The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss Heads To MSU To Face Rival Bulldogs
2/19/2017 | Men's Basketball
Date: Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017
Time: 8:00 p.m. CT
Location: Starkville, Miss.
Arena: Humphrey Colosseum (10,575)
Television: ESPN2
Tom Hart, play-by-play
LaPhonso Ellis, analyst
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
David Kellum, play-by-play
Keith Carter, analyst
Live Audio: OleMissSports.com
Live Video: WatchESPN.com
Series: MSU Leads Series 142-113
In Starkville: MSU leads 94-25
Streak: OM, W2
Last Meeting: OM, W 88-61 (1/31/17)
TIP OFF
• Ole Miss wraps up a two-game road trip at Mississippi State Tuesday. The Rebels and the Bulldogs are the SEC's most-played rivalry, having met 255 times. Ole Miss has won six of the last seven matchups against MSU, which is the Rebels' best streak against the Bulldogs since winning eight straight from 1980-83.
• The Rebels are averaging 88.7 ppg over their last three games and 83.5 ppg over the last six.
• Head coach Andy Kennedy recently moved past former Kentucky coach Rick Pitino into 19th on the SEC career coaching victories list and now has 228 wins at Ole Miss. A win over Mississippi State would be Kennedy's 250th as a head coach.
• The Rebels have hit 146 of 175 (.846) attempts from the free throw line over the last seven games. Ole Miss leads the league in SEC play making 75.8 percent of its attempts and ranks first in the conference, and fifth nationally, in made free throws this year with 528.
• Senior F Sebastian Saiz recorded his 26th career double-double with 11 points and 15 boards at Tennessee and now has 17 double-doubles this season, which leads the SEC and ranks sixth nationally. Saiz leads the SEC and ranks sixth in the nation pulling down 11.0 rebounds a game and is the only player in the conference this season averaging a double-double. The league's active career rebounding leader, he recently moved past Reggie Buckner into third in Ole Miss history with 896 rebounds. Saiz has topped both 1,000 points and 800 boards in his career and is just the sixth player in Ole Miss history accomplish that feat. He needs just nine rebounds to join Rebel great Murphy Holloway as the only two players in school history with 1,000 points and 900 rebounds.
• Sophomore G Terence Davis scored a career-high 33 points in Ole Miss' win over LSU and is averaging 27.7 points and 5.3 rebounds a game over his last three games while shooting 62.3 percent (33 of 53) from the field. He has increased his scoring this season 12.9 ppg over last year, which is the largest increase in scoring for any player in the SEC and ranks sixth in the conference averaging 16.8 ppg in league play.
• Two Ole Miss signees - Devontae Shuler and Jamarko Pickett - were recently ranked four-star prospects in thelatest release of the Rivals.com 150. Shuler was rated the No. 106 prospect in the nation, while Pickett checked in at No. 113. Pickett was also ranked the No. 93 player in the nation by ESPN.com.
• Ole Miss ranks No. 71 in the latest NCAA RPI and boasts the 39th toughest schedule this season. The Rebels have played 15 games against teams ranked inside the RPI top 100.
DAVIS LEADS OLE MISS COMEBACK OVER LSU
Sophomore G Terence Davis poured in a career high 33 points, with 22 coming in the second half, as Ole Miss erased an 11-point second half deficit to storm past LSU, 96-76. The Rebels ended the game on a 17-0 run, hitting 10 of their last 11 shots. Ole Miss closed out the game on a 42-12 streak to blow past the Tigers. Senior F Sebastian Saiz scored 15 points and grabbed six rebounds, while junior G Deandre Burnett also chipped in 15 points and added five assists. Senior G Rasheed Brooks scored nine points and posted a career high seven steals, as the Rebels tallied a season best 14 steals. Ole Miss also knocked down 18 of 20 attempts from the free throw line.
MOST IMPROVED PLAYER IN THE SEC
Sophomore Terence Davis earned SEC Player of the Week honors earlier this season after posting two double-doubles in wins over Tennessee and Missouri. Davis averaged 19.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in the two victories. He had a then career-high 20 points in the win over the Vols, including 13 in the second half as the Rebels overcame a 13-point deficit, and added 19 points and 11 boards at Mizzou. Davis has increased his scoring 12.9 ppg this year over last season's average (1.8 ppg to 14.7 ppg), which is the largest jump in scoring for any player in the SEC. He is averaging 18.3 points and 6.2 rebounds a game over his last seven games and is averaging 27.7 ppg over the last three.
KENNEDY ADMINISTRATION BEGINS 11TH YEAR
In 11 seasons under Mississippi native Andy Kennedy, Ole Miss has a 228-137 record, one SEC Tournament championship, two SEC West championships, eight 20-win campaigns and seven postseason berths, which includes two NCAA Tournament appearances and pair of trips to the NIT Final Four. The all-time winningest coach in school history, Kennedy has averaged more than 21 wins per season in his 10 years in Oxford after the Rebels posted just three 21-win seasons in the 96 years before his arrival.
OLE MISS WINS 20 ... AGAIN
Ole Miss posted 20 wins last year for the eighth time in 10 seasons under Andy Kennedy. Ole Miss had seven 20-win campaigns in the 96 seasons prior to Kennedy's arrival in Oxford. Kennedy is just the fifth coach in SEC history to guide his teams to 20+ wins in at least eight of his first 10 years in the league. The others: Billy Donovan (Florida), Joe. B. Hall (Kentucky), Nolan Richardson (Arkansas), Tubby Smith (Georgia/Kentucky). Kennedy is also the first coach in Ole Miss history to win 20 games in five-straight seasons. Ole Miss and Kentucky are also the only two schools to finish .500 or better in the SEC each of the last five seasons.
DEAN OF SEC COACHES
Entering his 11th season in the league, Ole Miss head coach Andy Kennedy is the Dean of SEC basketball coaches. Kennedy has faced 38 different head coaches in the SEC during his time in Oxford. He is also the longest tenured head coach in the league in both basketball and football having entered the league prior to Alabama football coach Nick Saban.
REBELS CONSISTENTLY UNDERRATED
The Rebels were predicted to finish ninth in the SEC this year by the media. Ole Miss finished tied for sixth in the league standings after being projected ninth in the preseason last year. The Rebels have not finished worse than sixth in the league and have finished above their preseason projected finish each of the last five seasons since the league moved away from a divisional format.
KENNEDY MOVING UP SEC COACHING WINS LIST
Ole Miss head coach Andy Kennedy moved past former Kentucky coach Rick Pitino for 19th in SEC history with 228 career victories. See complete list below:
1. Adolph Rupp (Kentucky) - 875
2. Billy Donovan (Florida) - 467
3. Dale Brown (LSU) - 448
4. C.M. Newtown (UA/VU) - 340
Harry Rabenhorst (LSU) - 340
6. Kevin Stallings (Vanderbilt) - 332
7. Tubby Smith (UGA/UK) - 308
8. Joe B. Hall (Kentucky) - 297
Hugh Durhman (Georgia) - 297
10. Rick Stansbury (MSU) - 293
11. Ray Mears (Tennessee) - 278
Roy Skinner (Vanderbilt) - 278
13. Wimp Sanderson (Alabama) - 265
John Mauer (UK/UT/UF) - 265
15. Hank Crisp (Alabama) - 264
16. Nolan Richardson (Arkansas) - 249
17. John Calipari (Kentucky) - 237
18. Norm Sloan (Florida) - 232
19. Andy Kennedy (Ole Miss) - 228
20. Rick Pitino (Kentucky) - 219
21. Joel Eaves (Auburn) - 214
SAIZ SAYS DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Senior F Sebastian Saiz is the SEC active career leader in rebounding with 896 boards. He leads the league, and ranks sixth nationally, in rebounding this year pulling down 11.4 boards a game and is the only player in the SEC averaging a double-double this season. Saiz leads the SEC, and ranks fourth nationally, with 17 double-doubles this year and leads all active players in the conference with 26 career double-doubles.
NCAA Rebounding Leaders
1. Angel Delgado, Seton Hall 13.2 PRG
2. Caleb Swanigan, Purdue 13.0 PRG
3. Steve Taylor Jr., Toledo 12.0 RPG
4. Rokas Gustys, Hofstra 12.0 PRG
5. Bryce Washington, ULL 11.3 RPG
6. Sebastian Saiz, Ole Miss 11.0 PRG
7. Aubrey Williams, Kennesaw St. 10.9 RPG
8. Emmanuel Omogbo, Colorado St. 10.8 RPG
9. Alex Johnson, Missouri St. 10.8 RPG
10. Ivan Rabb, Cal 10.7 RPG
SAIZ JOINS 1,000/800 CLUB
With 17 points and 10 rebounds against Tennessee, senior F Sebastian Saiz became just the sixth player in Ole Miss history to eclipse 1,000 points and 800 rebounds in his career. Saiz is the 38th player in Ole Miss history to break 1,000 career points and the 10th under head coach Andy Kennedy. He is also the seventh player in school history to post 800 career rebounds and recently passed Reggie Buckner for third on the Ole Miss career rebounding list with 891. Saiz also needs nine rebounds to join Murphy Holloway as the only players in Ole Miss history with 1,000 points and 900 rebounds. He would also become the only player in Rebel history with 1,000 points, 900 boards and 100 blocked shots and just the 16th player in SEC history to reach the milestone joining conference legends like Glenn Davis (LSU), Shaquille O'Neal (LSU) and Kenny Walker (UK).
OLE MISS NEARING .500 MARK AS A PROGRAM
With a 1275-1279 all time record, Ole Miss is nearing a .500 winning percentage as a program. The Rebels were 95 games under .500 when Andy Kennedy took over in Oxford and have not been .500 or better as a program since Ole Miss was 440-440 on Jan. 17, 1958.
REBELS RATE HIGHLY IN LATEST RPI RELEASE
Ole Miss checks in at No. 71 in the latest Ratings Percentage Index released by the NCAA, while Tuesday's opponent Mississippi State checks in at No. 48. Ole Miss is 5-11 against the RPI top 130 with wins over Vanderbilt (No. 49), Tennessee (No. 50), Auburn (No. 85), Memphis (No. 109 and MSU (No. 130). The Rebels' 11 losses this season have come against No. 3 Baylor, No. 8 Kentucky, No. 10 Florida, No. 22 Creighton, No. 30 South Carolina, No. 31 Middle Tennessee, No .33 Arkansas, No. 35 Virginia Tech, No. 50 Tennessee, No. 59 Georgia and No. 95 Texas A&M. Ole Miss boasts the 39th toughest strength of schedule this season and the Rebels have played the 38th toughest non-conference schedule according to ESPN.com.
KENNEDY'S FIRST 10 YEARS RANK AMONG ALL-TIME SEC GREATS ...
Last season, head coach Andy Kennedy moved past MSU's Rick Stansbury for the fourth-most wins by a head coach in their first 10 years who took over an SEC program. See the list below:
1. Joe B. Hall (Kentucky) - 227
2. Bill Donovan (Florida) - 226
3. Wimp Sanderson (Alabama) - 216
4. Andy Kennedy (Ole Miss) - 212
5. Rick Stansbury (Mississippi State) - 208
6. Mark Gottfried (Alabama) - 198
7. Kevin Stallings (Vanderbilt) - 189
8. Cliff Ellis (Auburn) - 186
Ray Mears (Tennessee) - 186
10. Don Devoe (Tennessee) - 185
11. John Brady (LSU) - 184
Hugh Durham (Georgia) - 184
13. Dale Brown (LSU) - 175
14. Roy Skinner (Vanderbilt) - 173
16. Babe McCarthy (Mississippi State) - 169
... AND HE IS CLIMBING UP THE 11-YEAR LIST
Kennedy is also fifth on the list for most wins by a coach in their first 11 years in the league after taking over an SEC program. See the list below:
1. Bill Donovan (Florida) - 261
2. Joe B. Hall (Kentucky) - 250
3. Wimp Sanderson (Alabama) - 239
4. Rick Stansbury (Mississippi State) - 231
5. Andy Kennedy (Ole Miss) - 228
6. Kevin Stallings (Vanderbilt) - 213
7. Mark Gottfried (Alabama) - 210
8. Don Devoe (Tennessee) - 204
9. Ray Mears (Tennessee) - 201
10. Hugh Durham (Georgia) - 199
11. Dale Brown (LSU) - 194
12. John Brady (LSU) - 192
13. C.M. Newtown (Alabama) - 193
14. Roy Skinner (Vanderbilt) - 188
15. Adolph Rupp (Kentucky) - 185
REBELS ROUT BULLDOGS
Ole Miss routed Mississippi State 88-61 as four Rebels scored in double figures led by sophomore G Terence Davis with 18 points and senior F Sebastian Saiz with 17. It marked the largest margin of victory over MSU for the Rebels since 1951. Saiz posted his 15th double-double of the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while junior G Deandre Burnett added 16 points, five assists and a career-high four steals. Junior F Justas Furmanavicius chipped in six points and pulled down 10 boards as the Rebels posted a +13 rebounding margin and outscored the Bulldogs 44-28 in the paint.
REBELS STORM BACK FOR 10TH STRAIGHT OVER THE TIGERS
Ole Miss tied a school record with a 23-point comeback to knock off Auburn 90-84 for the 10th straight time. The Rebels overcame a 20-point halftime deficit and a 23-point second half deficit, which both tied Ole Miss' comeback victory at Alabama in 2010. Sophomore G Terence Davis scored a career-high 26 points, all in the second half, after playing just four minutes in the first half. Davis knocked down 11 of 13 shot from the field in the second half and pulled down six rebounds. Junior G Cullen Neal added 20 points, 15 coming in the second half, and hit 3 of 7 attempts from behind the arc. Junior Deandre Burnett chipped in 18 points and was a perfect 10 of 10 from the line, as the Rebels made 27 of 31 attempts from the line in the comeback. Ole Miss scored 63 points in the second half and shot 62.5 percent from the field.
SECOND HALF SURGE GIVE REBELS COMEBACK WIN AT VANDERBILT
Sophomore G Terence Davis and junior Deandre Burnett scored 17 points each as Ole Miss overcame a five-point halftime deficit to knock off Vanderbilt 81-74. Davis scored all 17 of his points in the second half to help Ole Miss to the come-from-behind victory. Ole Miss opened the second half with a 9-2 run take the lead for good. The Rebels knocked down 7 of 9 from behind the arc in the second half and out rebounded the Commodores 41-33. Ole Miss also forced 11 VU turnovers, while committing just eight. Junior F Justas Furmanavicius and freshman G Breein Tyree both added 11 points for the Rebels and senior F Sebastian Saiz recorded 16th double-double of the year with 16 rebounds and 10 points.
CONSISTENT WINNER
Andy Kennedy is one of nine active head coaches with 10 or more consecutive winning seasons to start a career. The list includes: Jim Boehiem (40), Roy Williams (28), Tom Izzo (21), Thad Matta (17), Mark Few (17), Jamie Dixon (13), Sean Miller (12) and Dave Rose (11).
REBELS SECURE WINNING SEASON
Ole Miss secured its 10th consecutive winning season last year, all under head coach Andy Kennedy, and is one of just two teams in the SEC and 15 programs in the nation to have 10 straight winning seasons. That list includes Syracuse (46), Kansas (33), Arizona (32), Kentucky (26), Maryland (23), Duke (21), Michigan State (20), Xavier (20), Wisconsin (18), Pittsburgh (16), Louisville (15), North Carolina (14), Ohio State (12) and Florida State (10).
REBELS DROP NAIL BITER TO NO. 5 BAYLOR
Ole Miss dropped a nail biter 78-75 to No. 5 Baylor in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Senior F Sebastian Saiz posted his 14th double-double of the year with 20 points and 10 rebounds and freshman Breein Tyree added a career-high 20 points, including 18 in the second half. Ole Miss made 22 of 23 attempts (.957) at the line, which is the second-best free throw percentage as a team in a game with 20 or more attempts in school history. The Bears were the highest ranked non-conference opponent to visit Oxford since the Rebels hosted No. 5 Memphis in 1984.
OLE MISS SECURES COMEBACK OVER VOLS
Senior F Sebastian Saiz and sophomore G Terence Davis each posted double-doubles to help erase a 13-point deficit in the second half as Ole Miss outlasted Tennessee 80-69. Davis scored a career-high 20 points and pulled down 11 boards, while Saiz added 17 points and 10 rebounds. Freshman G Breein Tyree and junior F Justas Furmanavicius both added a career-best 15 points. The Rebels held Tennessee without a field goal in the final 4:13 for their sixth win over the Vols in the last seven meetings.
REBELS RALLY FOR NINTH STRAIGHT OVER THE TIGERS
Ole Miss overcame an eight-point halftime deficit to knock off Auburn 88-85 on the road Saturday. It was the Rebels' ninth-straight win over Auburn, which is the most consecutive wins over an SEC opponent in school history besting a pair of eight game streak against LSU and Mississippi State. Senior F Sebastian Saiz posted his sixth straight double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds and junior G Deandre Burnett added a team-high 18 points and a career-best eight assists. Ole Miss forced 16 Auburn turnovers, recorded eight steals and six Rebels scored in double figures.
DAVIS, SAIZ LEAD REBELS TO ROAD WIN AT MIZZOU
Senior F Sebastian Saiz picked up his 13th double-double of the year with 19 points and 10 rebounds and sophomore G Terence Davis recorded his second straight double-double 18 points and 11 rebounds as Ole Miss knocked off Missouri 75-71 on the road. Junior G Deandre Burnett added 14 points and hit three 3-pointers in his first action since the Georgia game.
BURNETT MAKING FREEBIES
Junior G Deandre Burnett made 25 consecutive free throws to start the season and finished just 12 shy of Dave Rhodes' school record. Burnett is 155 of 174 (.891) from the charity stripe this season, which ranks second in the SEC, and no player in the nation made more consecutive free throws to start the season. As a team, the Rebels lead the league in SEC play making 75.7 percent of its attempts this year and are 146 of 175 (.846) from the line over the last seven games.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Mississippi State is 14-12 on the year and 5-9 in the SEC after a 57-52 home loss setback to Florida Saturday. The Bulldogs have lost four straight and six of their last seven after starting league play 3-1. MSU is led by sophomore G Quinndary Weatherspoon, who averaging a team-high 16.7 ppg this season. Weatherspoon also leads the squad steals and ranks second in 3-pointers. Freshman G Lamar Peters is second on the team in scoring at 11.9 ppg and has knocked down a team-best 53 3-pointers. MSU ranks 12th in the league in rebounding in conference play at 34.6 rpg and 13th in rebounding margin in at -3.9.
SERIES HISTORY VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE
The Bulldogs are Ole Miss' most-played opponent, having met 255 times on the hardwood, which is also the SEC's most-played rivalry. Mississippi State holds a 142-113 lead in the series, which began in 1914, but the Rebels have won six of the last seven matchups. The Bulldogs hold a 94-25 advantage in games in Starkville, however Ole Miss claimed a 71-65 victory in 2015 at The Hump. Head coach Andy Kennedy is 11-11 against MSU in his career and his won six of the last seven meetings.
REBELS BLOCKING SHOTS
Ole Miss ranks sixth in the SEC and 54th in the nation this season averaging 4.6 blocked shots per game. Earlier this season, the Rebels tied a school record with 13 blocked shots against Bradley and senior F Sebastian Saiz posted a career-high six blocked shots.
DEFENDING HOME COURT
Winning at home has been a trademark of Andy Kennedy's squads since he took the reins in 2006-07. Ole Miss is 144-38 (.791 win pct.) in home games during Kennedy's tenure. The Rebels are 18-7 all time in The Pavilion and just snapped an eight-game home winning streak earlier this year. Ole Miss has won 269 of its last 339 games (.794 win pct.) in Oxford dating back to the 1996-97 campaign.
REBELS CLEANING UP ON THE GLASS
The Rebels rank third in the SEC pulling down 38.9 rebounds a game this year and are fifth in the league with a +2.4 rebounding margin. Ole Miss has only been outrebounded by eight opponents this year and are cleaning up on the offensive glass pulling down 12.3 offensive rebounds a game, which ranks fifth in the league.
REBELS COME UP SHORT AGAINST NO. 8 WILDCATS
Senior F Sebastian Saiz posted his fourth straight double-double with 23 points and 13 boards, but Ole Miss dropped its SEC opener 99-76 to No. 8 Kentucky. Junior G Deandre Burnett scored 19 points and senior G Rasheed Brooks added 15 for the Rebels, who finished the game 16 of 17 from the free throw line (.941), which is the third-best single game percentage in school history under 20 attempts.
OLE MISS TAMES TIGERS
Senior F Sebastian Saiz posted a double-double with 20 points and 16 rebounds as Ole Miss knocked off Memphis 85-77. Junior G Deandre Burnett added 19 points and five assists as the Rebels racked up 17 assists against a season-low 11 turnovers. The win was head coach Andy Kennedy's third straight victory over the Tigers and he is the first coach in school history to post three-straight wins over Memphis since R.L. Sullivan in 1923-25.
