The University of Mississippi Athletics
Friday, November 2
Oxford, Miss.
3 PM
Ole Miss
vs
LeMoyne-Owen (Exhibition)
Women’s Basketball Opens Season with Exhibition vs. LeMoyne-Owen
11/1/2018 | Women's Basketball
Tipoff is Set for 3 p.m. CT Inside The Pavilion at Ole Miss
OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss opens the Coach Yo era this Friday, as the Rebels will play host to LeMoyne-Owen for an exhibition at The Pavilion to tip off the 2018-19 season this Friday at 3 p.m. CT.
A NEW ERA
Ole Miss women's basketball stands on the cusp of a new era with Yolett McPhee-McCuin entering her first season as the ninth head coach in program history. McPhee-McCuin was named head coach on April 4, 2018 and introduced in a public ceremony two days later on April 6.
McPhee-McCuin, who also serves as the national coach for her native Bahamas, comes to Ole Miss following five seasons at Jacksonville, where she took the Dolphins to heights never before glimpsed in the history of the program. Her JU teams notched three-straight 20-win seasons to close out her career there, despite Jacksonville only recording two seasons above the 20-win plateau prior to her arrival.
Yolett McPhee-McCuin Coaching Career:
2019-Pres. -- Ole Miss, Head Coach
2014-18 -- Jacksonville, Head Coach
2011-13 -- Clemson, Assistant Coach
2009-10 -- Pittsburgh, Assistant Coach
2008 -- Portland, Assistant Coach
2006-07 -- Ark.-Pine Bluff, Assistant Coach
2005 -- Frank Phillips College, Assistant Coach
Record at Jacksonville:
Total (Five Seasons): 94-63, 50-24 ASUN
2017-18
24-9, 12-2 (2nd ASUN)
ASUN Tournament Runners-Up
WNIT First Round
2016-17
23-9, 11-3 (3rd ASUN)
ASUN Tournament Runners-Up
WNIT First Round
2015-16
22-11, 11-3 (2nd ASUN)
ASUN Tournament Champions
NCAA Tournament First Round
2014-15
12-17, 6-8 (4th ASUN)
2013-14
13-17, 10-8 (5th ASUN)
NEW STAFF
McPhee-McCuin's first task once arriving in Oxford was to surround herself with a brand new coaching staff. For her first season, that cast includes Chris Ayers, Tony Greene, and Ole Miss All-American Armintie Herrington, who was promoted from her previous position as the Coordinator of Player Engagement.
Chris Ayers - First Season
• Spent a decade in the high school and AAU ranks prior
• Has coached more than 100 athletes who went on to play either collegiately, professionally or both
• Graduate manager at Georgia Tech in 2017-18
Tony Greene - First Season
• More than 20 years of experience collegiately
• Has been part of 11 total postseason berths
• Conference Player of the Year at Langston
Armintie Herrington - Fifth Season
• Seventh season on staff at Ole Miss, the fifth as an assistant coach after serving from 2009-12
• No. 3 pick in the 2007 WNBA Draft (Chicago Sky)
• In 2007, became second player in NCAA history with 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, 400 assists and 400 steals
MORE NEW FACES
McPhee-McCuin has also brought on a new support staff, while keeping on sixth-year senior athletic trainer Meredith Pendergast.
Dana Rieger
Director of Operations
Tim Boeni
Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach
Michonné Gamble-Rivers
Coordinator of Player Development
Ed Mahan
Coordinator of Video Services
Chelsea Wolf
Assistant Director of On-Campus Recruiting
Sandy Dickinson
Recruiting Assistant
REDEMPTION FOR SESSOM
Redshirt senior Shandricka Sessom returns for one last go-round in a Rebel jersey following a gruesome ACL injury vs. Middle Tennessee last season after just seven games played. Sessom, who was averaging 17.7 PPG at the time of her injury, was awarded a fifth year of eligibility on a medical hardship waiver.
MOVIN' ON UP
Shandricka Sessom enters 2018-19 as the active career scorer for the Rebels at 1,131 points -- currently the 24th-most in Ole Miss history. Sessom became the 28th 1,000-point scorer in program history vs. Texas A&M on Feb. 26, 2017. In her three full seasons of play, she averaged 341.6 points. If she were to maintain that average this season, Sessom would finish her career ranked 13th all-time.
Below are the next few ahead of her on the list:
19. Erika Sisk (2012-17) - 1,187
20. Charlotte Banks (1989-92) - 1,181
21. Shawn Goff (2005-09) - 1,179
22. Amber Watts (2001-05) - 1,169
23. Kris Stratton (1978-81) - 1,164
DEBUT FOR MIMI
Redshirt freshman Mimi Reid is also returning from injury, as a preseason Achilles injury sidelined her for the entirety of her freshman year in 2017-18. Reid was the No. 49 prospect in the nation coming out of The Patrick School in the Bronx.
SENIOR LEADERSHIP
Ole Miss has five seniors in 2018-19, with returnees Cecilia Muhate, Torri Lewis and Shandricka Sessom joining newcomer transfers Crystal Allen (UT-Arlington) and La'Karis Salter (Jacksonville) in the senior class.
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
Crystal Allen (UT-Arlington) and La'Karis Salter (Jacksonville) aren't the only newcomers to the Rebel roster. Other transfers include junior Jhileiya Dunlap from Gulf Coast State Community College, junior Shannon Dozier from Odessa College, and junior Deja Cage from DePaul. Cage will have to sit the 2018-19 season out due to NCAA rules.
Ole Miss also welcomed four new freshmen to Oxford this fall in Gabby Crawford (Munford, Tenn.), Mahogany Matthews (Raeford, N.C.), Taylor Smith (Marietta, Ga.) and Iyanla Kitchens (Lithonia, Ga.).
SMILE FOR THE CAMERA
Ole Miss will be featured on national television seven times during the regular season, with all seven appearances on SEC Network. First up is a home contest in the Big 12/SEC Contest vs. TCU on Nov. 29. Other home games on SEC Network include a Jan. 6 tilt vs. Arkansas and a Jan. 20 showdown with Florida. The remaining SEC Network games all come on the road at Kentucky (Jan. 13), at Mississippi State (Jan. 27), at Georgia (Feb. 18) and at Arkansas (Feb. 24). Additionally, all non-televised home games and road SEC games will be broadcast on SEC Network+.
TOUGH SLATE IN STORE AT PARADISE JAM
Ole Miss will spend some time on the beach over Thanksgiving for the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands, but will face serious competition across three days of action. First up, the Rebels will square off against UConn on Nov. 22. The Huskies are coming off their 10th-straight trip to the Final Four after going 36-1, and they return three starters from that squad. Afterward, the Rebels will face Purdue (Nov. 23) and St. John's (Nov. 24) to close out their stay in St. Thomas. Ole Miss and UConn have never played, but the Rebels own the only victories in the series vs. Purdue (W, 62-54, Dec. 21, 1993, in Puerto Rico) and St. John's (W, 62-56, Dec. 29, 1992, in Jamaica, N.Y.).
Follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB on Instagram at Ole MissWBB and on Snapchat with the handle @OleMissWBB. You can also follow head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin on Twitter at @YolettMcCuin
A NEW ERA
Ole Miss women's basketball stands on the cusp of a new era with Yolett McPhee-McCuin entering her first season as the ninth head coach in program history. McPhee-McCuin was named head coach on April 4, 2018 and introduced in a public ceremony two days later on April 6.
McPhee-McCuin, who also serves as the national coach for her native Bahamas, comes to Ole Miss following five seasons at Jacksonville, where she took the Dolphins to heights never before glimpsed in the history of the program. Her JU teams notched three-straight 20-win seasons to close out her career there, despite Jacksonville only recording two seasons above the 20-win plateau prior to her arrival.
Yolett McPhee-McCuin Coaching Career:
2019-Pres. -- Ole Miss, Head Coach
2014-18 -- Jacksonville, Head Coach
2011-13 -- Clemson, Assistant Coach
2009-10 -- Pittsburgh, Assistant Coach
2008 -- Portland, Assistant Coach
2006-07 -- Ark.-Pine Bluff, Assistant Coach
2005 -- Frank Phillips College, Assistant Coach
Record at Jacksonville:
Total (Five Seasons): 94-63, 50-24 ASUN
2017-18
24-9, 12-2 (2nd ASUN)
ASUN Tournament Runners-Up
WNIT First Round
2016-17
23-9, 11-3 (3rd ASUN)
ASUN Tournament Runners-Up
WNIT First Round
2015-16
22-11, 11-3 (2nd ASUN)
ASUN Tournament Champions
NCAA Tournament First Round
2014-15
12-17, 6-8 (4th ASUN)
2013-14
13-17, 10-8 (5th ASUN)
NEW STAFF
McPhee-McCuin's first task once arriving in Oxford was to surround herself with a brand new coaching staff. For her first season, that cast includes Chris Ayers, Tony Greene, and Ole Miss All-American Armintie Herrington, who was promoted from her previous position as the Coordinator of Player Engagement.
Chris Ayers - First Season
• Spent a decade in the high school and AAU ranks prior
• Has coached more than 100 athletes who went on to play either collegiately, professionally or both
• Graduate manager at Georgia Tech in 2017-18
Tony Greene - First Season
• More than 20 years of experience collegiately
• Has been part of 11 total postseason berths
• Conference Player of the Year at Langston
Armintie Herrington - Fifth Season
• Seventh season on staff at Ole Miss, the fifth as an assistant coach after serving from 2009-12
• No. 3 pick in the 2007 WNBA Draft (Chicago Sky)
• In 2007, became second player in NCAA history with 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, 400 assists and 400 steals
MORE NEW FACES
McPhee-McCuin has also brought on a new support staff, while keeping on sixth-year senior athletic trainer Meredith Pendergast.
Dana Rieger
Director of Operations
Tim Boeni
Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach
Michonné Gamble-Rivers
Coordinator of Player Development
Ed Mahan
Coordinator of Video Services
Chelsea Wolf
Assistant Director of On-Campus Recruiting
Sandy Dickinson
Recruiting Assistant
REDEMPTION FOR SESSOM
Redshirt senior Shandricka Sessom returns for one last go-round in a Rebel jersey following a gruesome ACL injury vs. Middle Tennessee last season after just seven games played. Sessom, who was averaging 17.7 PPG at the time of her injury, was awarded a fifth year of eligibility on a medical hardship waiver.
MOVIN' ON UP
Shandricka Sessom enters 2018-19 as the active career scorer for the Rebels at 1,131 points -- currently the 24th-most in Ole Miss history. Sessom became the 28th 1,000-point scorer in program history vs. Texas A&M on Feb. 26, 2017. In her three full seasons of play, she averaged 341.6 points. If she were to maintain that average this season, Sessom would finish her career ranked 13th all-time.
Below are the next few ahead of her on the list:
19. Erika Sisk (2012-17) - 1,187
20. Charlotte Banks (1989-92) - 1,181
21. Shawn Goff (2005-09) - 1,179
22. Amber Watts (2001-05) - 1,169
23. Kris Stratton (1978-81) - 1,164
DEBUT FOR MIMI
Redshirt freshman Mimi Reid is also returning from injury, as a preseason Achilles injury sidelined her for the entirety of her freshman year in 2017-18. Reid was the No. 49 prospect in the nation coming out of The Patrick School in the Bronx.
SENIOR LEADERSHIP
Ole Miss has five seniors in 2018-19, with returnees Cecilia Muhate, Torri Lewis and Shandricka Sessom joining newcomer transfers Crystal Allen (UT-Arlington) and La'Karis Salter (Jacksonville) in the senior class.
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
Crystal Allen (UT-Arlington) and La'Karis Salter (Jacksonville) aren't the only newcomers to the Rebel roster. Other transfers include junior Jhileiya Dunlap from Gulf Coast State Community College, junior Shannon Dozier from Odessa College, and junior Deja Cage from DePaul. Cage will have to sit the 2018-19 season out due to NCAA rules.
Ole Miss also welcomed four new freshmen to Oxford this fall in Gabby Crawford (Munford, Tenn.), Mahogany Matthews (Raeford, N.C.), Taylor Smith (Marietta, Ga.) and Iyanla Kitchens (Lithonia, Ga.).
SMILE FOR THE CAMERA
Ole Miss will be featured on national television seven times during the regular season, with all seven appearances on SEC Network. First up is a home contest in the Big 12/SEC Contest vs. TCU on Nov. 29. Other home games on SEC Network include a Jan. 6 tilt vs. Arkansas and a Jan. 20 showdown with Florida. The remaining SEC Network games all come on the road at Kentucky (Jan. 13), at Mississippi State (Jan. 27), at Georgia (Feb. 18) and at Arkansas (Feb. 24). Additionally, all non-televised home games and road SEC games will be broadcast on SEC Network+.
TOUGH SLATE IN STORE AT PARADISE JAM
Ole Miss will spend some time on the beach over Thanksgiving for the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands, but will face serious competition across three days of action. First up, the Rebels will square off against UConn on Nov. 22. The Huskies are coming off their 10th-straight trip to the Final Four after going 36-1, and they return three starters from that squad. Afterward, the Rebels will face Purdue (Nov. 23) and St. John's (Nov. 24) to close out their stay in St. Thomas. Ole Miss and UConn have never played, but the Rebels own the only victories in the series vs. Purdue (W, 62-54, Dec. 21, 1993, in Puerto Rico) and St. John's (W, 62-56, Dec. 29, 1992, in Jamaica, N.Y.).
Follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB on Instagram at Ole MissWBB and on Snapchat with the handle @OleMissWBB. You can also follow head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin on Twitter at @YolettMcCuin
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