The University of Mississippi Athletics
Friday, November 2
Oxford, Miss.
6 PM
Ole Miss
vs
Fayetteville State (Exh.)
Men's Hoops Set to Host FSU in Exhibition Friday
11/1/2018 | Men's Basketball
Rebels to Play First Game in The Pavilion Under Kermit Davis
EXHIBITION (FREE ADMISSION)
Date: Friday, Nov. 2, 2018
Time: 6 p.m. CT
Location: Oxford, Miss.
Arena: The Pavilion at Ole Miss
Television: SEC Network+
Will Kollmeyer, play-by-play
Marc Dukes, analyst
Radio: None
Series: First Meeting
TIPOFF TIDBITS
- Ole Miss opens the 2018-19 season Friday with an exhibition game against Fayetteville State and will tip off its 109th season of basketball at home Nov. 10 against Western Michigan.
- The Rebels won last year's exhibition 94-53 over North Alabama.
- Ole Miss will begin its third full season inside The Pavilion at Ole Miss and play the first game in The Pavilion under new head coach Kermit Davis.
- Kermit Davis, a native of Leakesville, Mississippi, comes to Oxford after spending the last 16 seasons at Middle Tennessee and becoming the winningest coach in school history as well as Sun Belt Conference history.
- With 403 career wins, Kermit Davis ranks 124th all-time and 34th among active head coaches.
- The Rebels took a preseason tour to Canada in August, going 3-1 over a five-day stretch that included stops in Montreal and Ottawa.
- Ole Miss averaged 83.5 ppg in Canada led by Terence Davis (21.0 ppg) and Breein Tyree (14.5 ppg).
- The Rebels return three double-digit scorers (Terence Davis-13.8 ppg, Breein Tyree-10.8 ppg, Bruce Stevens-10.8 ppg) for the first time since 2012-13, a season that resulted in an SEC Tournament title and NCAA Tournament berth.
- Terence Davis ranks 39th in Ole Miss history with 1,011 career points.
- Dominik Olejniczak spent a portion of the summer competing for the Polish national team during FIBA World Cup qualifying.
- All three Rebel seniors hail from the state of Mississippi: D.C. Davis, Terence Davis and Bruce Stevens.
- Bruce Stevens and Breein Tyree produced double-digit scoring efforts in each of the final six games last season; Stevens recorded double-doubles in two of the final three games.
- Two Rebels have made number changes heading into this season - sophomores Devontae Shuler (#0 to #2) and Antonio Morgano (#10 to #30).
- Rebel returners combined to make 87 starts last season.
- Eight newcomers join this year's squad (six freshmen, two junior college transfers); all saw action in Canada.
A NEW ERA OF OLE MISS BASKETBALL
The 2018-19 season is the dawn of a new era for Ole Miss Basketball. A new head coach took the reins of the program when Kermit Davis was hired on March 15, 2018. Davis, the winningest coach in Middle Tennessee history, returns to his home state with years of success. A native of Leakesville, Mississippi, Davis guided the Blue Raiders to league titles in seven of his last nine years in Murfreesboro, between Conference USA and the Sun Belt. Middle Tennessee was one of five programs he led to conference championships in 36 years as an assistant and head coach. An eight-time conference coach of the year, Davis is 34th among active Division I head coaches with 403 career wins, including stints at MT, Idaho and Texas A&M. He ranks 11th nationally in winning percentage over the last three years and 13th over the last seven.
SCOUTING FAYETTEVILLE STATE
Fayetteville State, a Division II institution in Fayetteville, North Carolina, is coming off an 8-21 record during the 2017-18 campaign. The Broncos posted a 4-12 mark in Central Collegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) play in Ken Spencer's second season as head coach. FSU lost its top two scorers in Josh Bryant (15.1 ppg) and Willie Gilmore (14.0 ppg), but guard Denzell Hosch (11.8 ppg)is back for his junior season.
SCORING RETURNS
Ole Miss returns three of its top four scorers from a season ago in Terence Davis (13.8 ppg), Bruce Stevens (10.8 ppg) and Breein Tyree (10.8 ppg). The last time the Rebels had three returners that averaged double figures the season prior was the when Murphy Holloway (11.2 ppg), Jarvis Summers (10.4 ppg) and Nick Williams (10.1 ppg) returned for the 2012-13 campaign. That season resulted in a 27-9 record, the SEC Tournament title and advancement to the third round of the NCAA Tournament. If history repeats itself, Ole Miss will have one of the nation's biggest turnarounds and be dancing come March.
MEETING THE STAFF
Building his staff, Kermit Davis brought two coaches with him from Middle Tennessee in assistants Win Case and Ronnie Hamilton, while also adding assistant coach Levi Watkins.
- Case spent the last 10 seasons on Davis' staff at Middle Tennessee, helping the Blue Raiders capture seven conference title and make three NCAA Tournament appearances. Middle Tennessee won 232 games during Case's decade in Murfreesboro, including six seasons with at least 24 victories. Before joining up with Davis, he made head coaching stops at Redlands College and Eastern Oklahoma State College. Case was head coach at Oklahoma City University for 13 years, posting a 343-127 record and winning the NAIA National Championship in 1994 and again in 1996.
- Hamilton was at Middle Tennessee for four seasons, assisting the program in one of the best runs in school history. He helped produce a stretch in which the Blue Raiders earned three straight Conference USA championships. Before arriving at Middle Tennessee, Hamilton was familiar with Conference USA due to stints at Houston and Tulane. The Oxford, North Carolina, native was a four-year letterman for the Duke football team as a defensive back before deciding to put on his coaching shoes and switch sports.
- Before coming to Ole Miss, Watkins was an assistant coach at Arizona State for three seasons. Last season, the Sun Devils were ranked as high as No. 3 in the AP poll (highest in school history) and were the last undefeated team in Division I men's basketball. Prior to Arizona State, Watkins spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Buffalo, where the Bulls went 42-20 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. As a player at NC State from 2002-05, he helped lead the Wolfpack to four consecutive NCAA Tournaments.
OLE CANADA
The new era of Ole Miss Basketball began outside of the United States, as the Rebels traveled to Canada for their foreign tour. The NCAA allows basketball teams to take an international trip every four years. Although the preseason games do not count towards the 2018-19 NCAA campaign, the week provided an early opportunity for a team mixed with veterans and newcomers to take the floor against some quality opposition. Ole Miss hit the hardwood against four Canadian teams, Aug. 5-9, competing in games for the first time under head coach Kermit Davis. With two games apiece in Montreal and Ottawa, the Rebels went 3-1 north of the border. Senior guard Terence Davis led Ole Miss throughout the trip, pacing the team in scoring (21.0 ppg), rebounding (8.3 rpg), assists (2.5 apg) and steals (2.3 spg).
- Game 1 (Montreal): Ole Miss 102, McGill 61 - Ole Miss held the Redmen to a 28.6 percent (18 of 63) clip from the floor, while shooting 58 percent (40 of 69) on the other side of the court. Davis scored a team-high 20 points, including the Rebels' first nine of the game.
- Game 2 (Montreal): Ole Miss 84, Concordia 77 - Thanks, in large part, to the 1-3-1 zone, the Ole Miss defense forced 23 Concordia turnovers throughout the night to combat 15 three-pointers made by the Stingers. Breein Tyree led all scorers with 23 points, including 16 in the second half.
- Game 3 (Ottawa): Carleton 81, Ole Miss 63 - Ole Miss faced its toughest test of the 2018 Canada Tour, a Carleton team that has won 13 of the past 16 Canadian national championships. Davis led the way with a game-high 23 points, seven rebounds and three blocks.
- Game 4 (Ottawa): Ole Miss 85, Ottawa 74 - Ole Miss rallied from 27 points down, outscoring the Gee-Gees 71-36 over the final three quarters. Davis could not be stopped throughout the night as he posted an impressive double-double (23 points, 16 rebounds).
MISSISSIPPI MADE
Along with head coach Kermit Davis (Leakesville), all three Ole Miss seniors hail from the state of Mississippi: D.C. Davis (Purvis), Terence Davis (Southaven) and Bruce Stevens (Louin).
CLIMBING THE CHARTS
Terence Davis enters his senior campaign with 1,011 points to rank 39th in Ole Miss history. He is on pace to crack the top 20, and with a big year, could find himself in the top 10 to end his Rebel career. John Stroud is the Rebels' all-time scoring leader with 2,328 points.
OLEJNICZAK COMPETES FOR HIS COUNTRY
After spending a week working out back in his native country of Poland this summer, junior center Dominik Olejniczak earned a spot on the country's national team to complete the first round of FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers. Olejniczak joined Rebel Basketball alums Tomasz Gielo and Sebastian Saiz in representing their countries in qualifying games across Europe.
NEW REBS
Six freshmen and two junior college transfers make up the 2018-19 newcomers: KJ Buffen, Carlos Curry, Brian Halums, Blake Hinson, John McBride, Franco Miller Jr., Zach Naylor and Luis Rodriguez. All six freshmen joined the team following the hire of new head coach Kermit Davis. All eight newcomers saw action during the Rebels' preseason trip to Canada. Hinson, a four-star wing from Deltona, Florida, led all newcomers in scoring at 9.0 ppg.
GRADUATED REBELS
Ole Miss must replace two starters, including four-year letterman Marcanvis Hymon. The forward ended his Ole Miss career ranked 10th in school history with 97 blocks. The Rebels also lost graduate transfer Markel Crawford, who led the team in minutes and steals. Deandre Burnett, one of the top two scorers in each of the last two seasons, also graduated. Burnett led Ole Miss in assists a season ago.
QUALITY WINS
Last season, Ole Miss earned six victories over RPI top 100 teams, including three over opponents ranked in the top 50 (Alabama-41, Florida-43, Missouri-49). Moreover, five of the six top 100 victories were actually in the top 75. Comparing to the 2016-17 run to the NIT Quarterfinals, Ole Miss had only three top 100 wins. The Rebels went through the gauntlet last season, ranking 23rd nationally in strength of schedule.
CRASHING THE BOARDS
The Rebels rebounded well in SEC play, pulling down 37.7 boards per game to rank fourth in the league. To go along with overall rebounding in conference matchups, Ole Miss crashed the offensive glass better than any other SEC team. The Rebels hauled in 12.8 offensive rebounds per SEC game to top the conference.
RELYING ON THE THREE
Ole Miss relied on the long ball, making 7.8 threes per game (sixth in the SEC). The Rebels are 11-7 when they shot over 30 percent from beyond the arc. When Ole Miss made less than 30 percent from long distance, its record was 1-13.
GREEN LIGHT GUARDS
Ole Miss has proven to develop guards over the past 12 seasons as 12 guards have earned All-SEC accolades to rank third among conference teams during that period. The depth at guard showed in terms of scoring. Ole Miss guards accounted for 70.1 percent of the Rebels' points. Five of the top six scorers on the team were guards led by Terence Davis (13.8 ppg), Deandre Burnett (13.5 ppg), Breein Tyree (10.8 ppg) and Markel Crawford (9.2 ppg). Freshman Devontae Shuler added 6.0 ppg (sixth on team).
FINDING THE RIGHT FIVE
The Rebels sent out 16 different starting lineups throughout the 2017-18 campaign. Ole Miss was one of eight teams nationally that has had at least 16 different starting lineups this season. Ten Rebels started at least one game, and only six teams nationwide had at least 10 different players start at any point of the year.
PROTECTING THE ROCK
Ole Miss took care of the basketball last season. The Rebels coughed up the rock only 365 times, ranking 34th nationally in fewest turnovers surrendered. Averaging only 11.4 turnovers per game, Ole Miss was 43rd in the nation. Against Missouri (Feb. 6), Ole Miss only turned the ball over four times. It was the fewest turnovers in a game by the Rebels since only making four against George Mason in the Charleston Classic (Nov. 19, 2015). Also, the Rebels' 1.3 assist/turnover ratio ranked fourth in the SEC and 50th in the country.
BLOCK PARTY
Averaging 4.1 blocks per game, Ole Miss ranked 66th in the country. Four Rebels recorded at least 20 blocks, led by 28 from Terence Davis. Marcanvis Hymon, who ranks 10th all-time in program history with 97 career rejections, was close behind with 26 blocks. Justas Furmanavicius had 22, while seven-footer Dominik Olejniczak had 20 of his own.
SWIPE RIGHT
The Rebels were active with their hands on the defensive end of the floor, averaging 6.3 steals per game to rank seventh in the SEC. The Rebels recorded 37 steals over the last five games, including 13 in the win at Missouri (Feb. 20). Through 32 games, four Rebels recorded at least 20 steals. Markel Crawford led the way with 38 steals, including 23 in SEC games to rank ninth in the conference. Devontae Shuler followed with 32 steals. Terence Davis and Breein Tyree have 29 and 22 steals, respectively, with Davis earning a career-high four steals at Missouri. Against Utah in Last Vegas (Nov. 20), the Rebels tallied 14 steals throughout the night, a season high for the Red and Blue.
BENCH POINTS
The Ole Miss bench played a prominent role in scoring, averaging 25.0 points per game. In five different games, the bench scored at least 40 points. The season high for bench points occurred against Utah (Nov. 20) in Las Vegas, as the reserves tallied 46 of the team's 74 points. During a win over Bradley (Dec. 22), the Ole Miss bench accounted for 50 percent of the scoring (41 of 82). In the regular season finale versus Vanderbilt, the Rebels' bench scored 36 of the team's 69 points. It was the most points and highest percentage (52.1 percent) by the bench in an SEC game throughout the 2017-18 campaign.
UNFAMILIAR TERRITORY
Last year, Ole Miss finished under .500 for the first time since the 2005-06 season. Going 5-13 in SEC play, the Rebels posted a losing conference record for the first time in seven years (7-9 in 2010-11).
NEXT ON THE HARDWOOD
Following the exhibition matchup, the Rebels will lift the lid on the 109th regular season of Ole Miss Basketball by hosting Western Michigan at The Pavilion (Nov. 10). The Saturday afternoon tilt will tip off at 3 p.m. CT on SEC Network+.
Date: Friday, Nov. 2, 2018
Time: 6 p.m. CT
Location: Oxford, Miss.
Arena: The Pavilion at Ole Miss
Television: SEC Network+
Will Kollmeyer, play-by-play
Marc Dukes, analyst
Radio: None
Series: First Meeting
TIPOFF TIDBITS
- Ole Miss opens the 2018-19 season Friday with an exhibition game against Fayetteville State and will tip off its 109th season of basketball at home Nov. 10 against Western Michigan.
- The Rebels won last year's exhibition 94-53 over North Alabama.
- Ole Miss will begin its third full season inside The Pavilion at Ole Miss and play the first game in The Pavilion under new head coach Kermit Davis.
- Kermit Davis, a native of Leakesville, Mississippi, comes to Oxford after spending the last 16 seasons at Middle Tennessee and becoming the winningest coach in school history as well as Sun Belt Conference history.
- With 403 career wins, Kermit Davis ranks 124th all-time and 34th among active head coaches.
- The Rebels took a preseason tour to Canada in August, going 3-1 over a five-day stretch that included stops in Montreal and Ottawa.
- Ole Miss averaged 83.5 ppg in Canada led by Terence Davis (21.0 ppg) and Breein Tyree (14.5 ppg).
- The Rebels return three double-digit scorers (Terence Davis-13.8 ppg, Breein Tyree-10.8 ppg, Bruce Stevens-10.8 ppg) for the first time since 2012-13, a season that resulted in an SEC Tournament title and NCAA Tournament berth.
- Terence Davis ranks 39th in Ole Miss history with 1,011 career points.
- Dominik Olejniczak spent a portion of the summer competing for the Polish national team during FIBA World Cup qualifying.
- All three Rebel seniors hail from the state of Mississippi: D.C. Davis, Terence Davis and Bruce Stevens.
- Bruce Stevens and Breein Tyree produced double-digit scoring efforts in each of the final six games last season; Stevens recorded double-doubles in two of the final three games.
- Two Rebels have made number changes heading into this season - sophomores Devontae Shuler (#0 to #2) and Antonio Morgano (#10 to #30).
- Rebel returners combined to make 87 starts last season.
- Eight newcomers join this year's squad (six freshmen, two junior college transfers); all saw action in Canada.
A NEW ERA OF OLE MISS BASKETBALL
The 2018-19 season is the dawn of a new era for Ole Miss Basketball. A new head coach took the reins of the program when Kermit Davis was hired on March 15, 2018. Davis, the winningest coach in Middle Tennessee history, returns to his home state with years of success. A native of Leakesville, Mississippi, Davis guided the Blue Raiders to league titles in seven of his last nine years in Murfreesboro, between Conference USA and the Sun Belt. Middle Tennessee was one of five programs he led to conference championships in 36 years as an assistant and head coach. An eight-time conference coach of the year, Davis is 34th among active Division I head coaches with 403 career wins, including stints at MT, Idaho and Texas A&M. He ranks 11th nationally in winning percentage over the last three years and 13th over the last seven.
SCOUTING FAYETTEVILLE STATE
Fayetteville State, a Division II institution in Fayetteville, North Carolina, is coming off an 8-21 record during the 2017-18 campaign. The Broncos posted a 4-12 mark in Central Collegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) play in Ken Spencer's second season as head coach. FSU lost its top two scorers in Josh Bryant (15.1 ppg) and Willie Gilmore (14.0 ppg), but guard Denzell Hosch (11.8 ppg)is back for his junior season.
SCORING RETURNS
Ole Miss returns three of its top four scorers from a season ago in Terence Davis (13.8 ppg), Bruce Stevens (10.8 ppg) and Breein Tyree (10.8 ppg). The last time the Rebels had three returners that averaged double figures the season prior was the when Murphy Holloway (11.2 ppg), Jarvis Summers (10.4 ppg) and Nick Williams (10.1 ppg) returned for the 2012-13 campaign. That season resulted in a 27-9 record, the SEC Tournament title and advancement to the third round of the NCAA Tournament. If history repeats itself, Ole Miss will have one of the nation's biggest turnarounds and be dancing come March.
MEETING THE STAFF
Building his staff, Kermit Davis brought two coaches with him from Middle Tennessee in assistants Win Case and Ronnie Hamilton, while also adding assistant coach Levi Watkins.
- Case spent the last 10 seasons on Davis' staff at Middle Tennessee, helping the Blue Raiders capture seven conference title and make three NCAA Tournament appearances. Middle Tennessee won 232 games during Case's decade in Murfreesboro, including six seasons with at least 24 victories. Before joining up with Davis, he made head coaching stops at Redlands College and Eastern Oklahoma State College. Case was head coach at Oklahoma City University for 13 years, posting a 343-127 record and winning the NAIA National Championship in 1994 and again in 1996.
- Hamilton was at Middle Tennessee for four seasons, assisting the program in one of the best runs in school history. He helped produce a stretch in which the Blue Raiders earned three straight Conference USA championships. Before arriving at Middle Tennessee, Hamilton was familiar with Conference USA due to stints at Houston and Tulane. The Oxford, North Carolina, native was a four-year letterman for the Duke football team as a defensive back before deciding to put on his coaching shoes and switch sports.
- Before coming to Ole Miss, Watkins was an assistant coach at Arizona State for three seasons. Last season, the Sun Devils were ranked as high as No. 3 in the AP poll (highest in school history) and were the last undefeated team in Division I men's basketball. Prior to Arizona State, Watkins spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Buffalo, where the Bulls went 42-20 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. As a player at NC State from 2002-05, he helped lead the Wolfpack to four consecutive NCAA Tournaments.
OLE CANADA
The new era of Ole Miss Basketball began outside of the United States, as the Rebels traveled to Canada for their foreign tour. The NCAA allows basketball teams to take an international trip every four years. Although the preseason games do not count towards the 2018-19 NCAA campaign, the week provided an early opportunity for a team mixed with veterans and newcomers to take the floor against some quality opposition. Ole Miss hit the hardwood against four Canadian teams, Aug. 5-9, competing in games for the first time under head coach Kermit Davis. With two games apiece in Montreal and Ottawa, the Rebels went 3-1 north of the border. Senior guard Terence Davis led Ole Miss throughout the trip, pacing the team in scoring (21.0 ppg), rebounding (8.3 rpg), assists (2.5 apg) and steals (2.3 spg).
- Game 1 (Montreal): Ole Miss 102, McGill 61 - Ole Miss held the Redmen to a 28.6 percent (18 of 63) clip from the floor, while shooting 58 percent (40 of 69) on the other side of the court. Davis scored a team-high 20 points, including the Rebels' first nine of the game.
- Game 2 (Montreal): Ole Miss 84, Concordia 77 - Thanks, in large part, to the 1-3-1 zone, the Ole Miss defense forced 23 Concordia turnovers throughout the night to combat 15 three-pointers made by the Stingers. Breein Tyree led all scorers with 23 points, including 16 in the second half.
- Game 3 (Ottawa): Carleton 81, Ole Miss 63 - Ole Miss faced its toughest test of the 2018 Canada Tour, a Carleton team that has won 13 of the past 16 Canadian national championships. Davis led the way with a game-high 23 points, seven rebounds and three blocks.
- Game 4 (Ottawa): Ole Miss 85, Ottawa 74 - Ole Miss rallied from 27 points down, outscoring the Gee-Gees 71-36 over the final three quarters. Davis could not be stopped throughout the night as he posted an impressive double-double (23 points, 16 rebounds).
MISSISSIPPI MADE
Along with head coach Kermit Davis (Leakesville), all three Ole Miss seniors hail from the state of Mississippi: D.C. Davis (Purvis), Terence Davis (Southaven) and Bruce Stevens (Louin).
CLIMBING THE CHARTS
Terence Davis enters his senior campaign with 1,011 points to rank 39th in Ole Miss history. He is on pace to crack the top 20, and with a big year, could find himself in the top 10 to end his Rebel career. John Stroud is the Rebels' all-time scoring leader with 2,328 points.
OLEJNICZAK COMPETES FOR HIS COUNTRY
After spending a week working out back in his native country of Poland this summer, junior center Dominik Olejniczak earned a spot on the country's national team to complete the first round of FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers. Olejniczak joined Rebel Basketball alums Tomasz Gielo and Sebastian Saiz in representing their countries in qualifying games across Europe.
NEW REBS
Six freshmen and two junior college transfers make up the 2018-19 newcomers: KJ Buffen, Carlos Curry, Brian Halums, Blake Hinson, John McBride, Franco Miller Jr., Zach Naylor and Luis Rodriguez. All six freshmen joined the team following the hire of new head coach Kermit Davis. All eight newcomers saw action during the Rebels' preseason trip to Canada. Hinson, a four-star wing from Deltona, Florida, led all newcomers in scoring at 9.0 ppg.
GRADUATED REBELS
Ole Miss must replace two starters, including four-year letterman Marcanvis Hymon. The forward ended his Ole Miss career ranked 10th in school history with 97 blocks. The Rebels also lost graduate transfer Markel Crawford, who led the team in minutes and steals. Deandre Burnett, one of the top two scorers in each of the last two seasons, also graduated. Burnett led Ole Miss in assists a season ago.
QUALITY WINS
Last season, Ole Miss earned six victories over RPI top 100 teams, including three over opponents ranked in the top 50 (Alabama-41, Florida-43, Missouri-49). Moreover, five of the six top 100 victories were actually in the top 75. Comparing to the 2016-17 run to the NIT Quarterfinals, Ole Miss had only three top 100 wins. The Rebels went through the gauntlet last season, ranking 23rd nationally in strength of schedule.
CRASHING THE BOARDS
The Rebels rebounded well in SEC play, pulling down 37.7 boards per game to rank fourth in the league. To go along with overall rebounding in conference matchups, Ole Miss crashed the offensive glass better than any other SEC team. The Rebels hauled in 12.8 offensive rebounds per SEC game to top the conference.
RELYING ON THE THREE
Ole Miss relied on the long ball, making 7.8 threes per game (sixth in the SEC). The Rebels are 11-7 when they shot over 30 percent from beyond the arc. When Ole Miss made less than 30 percent from long distance, its record was 1-13.
GREEN LIGHT GUARDS
Ole Miss has proven to develop guards over the past 12 seasons as 12 guards have earned All-SEC accolades to rank third among conference teams during that period. The depth at guard showed in terms of scoring. Ole Miss guards accounted for 70.1 percent of the Rebels' points. Five of the top six scorers on the team were guards led by Terence Davis (13.8 ppg), Deandre Burnett (13.5 ppg), Breein Tyree (10.8 ppg) and Markel Crawford (9.2 ppg). Freshman Devontae Shuler added 6.0 ppg (sixth on team).
FINDING THE RIGHT FIVE
The Rebels sent out 16 different starting lineups throughout the 2017-18 campaign. Ole Miss was one of eight teams nationally that has had at least 16 different starting lineups this season. Ten Rebels started at least one game, and only six teams nationwide had at least 10 different players start at any point of the year.
PROTECTING THE ROCK
Ole Miss took care of the basketball last season. The Rebels coughed up the rock only 365 times, ranking 34th nationally in fewest turnovers surrendered. Averaging only 11.4 turnovers per game, Ole Miss was 43rd in the nation. Against Missouri (Feb. 6), Ole Miss only turned the ball over four times. It was the fewest turnovers in a game by the Rebels since only making four against George Mason in the Charleston Classic (Nov. 19, 2015). Also, the Rebels' 1.3 assist/turnover ratio ranked fourth in the SEC and 50th in the country.
BLOCK PARTY
Averaging 4.1 blocks per game, Ole Miss ranked 66th in the country. Four Rebels recorded at least 20 blocks, led by 28 from Terence Davis. Marcanvis Hymon, who ranks 10th all-time in program history with 97 career rejections, was close behind with 26 blocks. Justas Furmanavicius had 22, while seven-footer Dominik Olejniczak had 20 of his own.
SWIPE RIGHT
The Rebels were active with their hands on the defensive end of the floor, averaging 6.3 steals per game to rank seventh in the SEC. The Rebels recorded 37 steals over the last five games, including 13 in the win at Missouri (Feb. 20). Through 32 games, four Rebels recorded at least 20 steals. Markel Crawford led the way with 38 steals, including 23 in SEC games to rank ninth in the conference. Devontae Shuler followed with 32 steals. Terence Davis and Breein Tyree have 29 and 22 steals, respectively, with Davis earning a career-high four steals at Missouri. Against Utah in Last Vegas (Nov. 20), the Rebels tallied 14 steals throughout the night, a season high for the Red and Blue.
BENCH POINTS
The Ole Miss bench played a prominent role in scoring, averaging 25.0 points per game. In five different games, the bench scored at least 40 points. The season high for bench points occurred against Utah (Nov. 20) in Las Vegas, as the reserves tallied 46 of the team's 74 points. During a win over Bradley (Dec. 22), the Ole Miss bench accounted for 50 percent of the scoring (41 of 82). In the regular season finale versus Vanderbilt, the Rebels' bench scored 36 of the team's 69 points. It was the most points and highest percentage (52.1 percent) by the bench in an SEC game throughout the 2017-18 campaign.
UNFAMILIAR TERRITORY
Last year, Ole Miss finished under .500 for the first time since the 2005-06 season. Going 5-13 in SEC play, the Rebels posted a losing conference record for the first time in seven years (7-9 in 2010-11).
NEXT ON THE HARDWOOD
Following the exhibition matchup, the Rebels will lift the lid on the 109th regular season of Ole Miss Basketball by hosting Western Michigan at The Pavilion (Nov. 10). The Saturday afternoon tilt will tip off at 3 p.m. CT on SEC Network+.
Players Mentioned
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