Postgame Quotes vs. ULM

OLE MISS HEAD COACH KERMIT DAVIS

Opening statement…
"First of all, I'd like to thank all the fans, over 6,100 that came today. Good crowd for a Saturday afternoon game for Monroe at 1 p.m. with the college football conference championships going on. It was a good feeling for our players. Last night, we had a 6th Man Club gathering, we had about 200 for a good turnout for practice last night. We're a work in progress, early stages of our program development, but I think our players sense a vibe about basketball here and it makes them feel good. That's a good start, a good way to spend a Saturday. I thought we beat a very well-coached Monroe team, very athletic. Obviously, our size was the difference and we played inside out. We moved the ball extremely well, 25 assists on 33 made baskets, that's about as good as you can get."

On Blake Hinson's game…
"He's starting to score at different levels. Offensively rebounding the ball, his four assists to one turnover is really good. He wasn't really getting in the paint and making others better. That is a lot better. He's just going to keep getting better. When you're that talented of a young kid and you're the first guy in the gym every single day, great things are going to happen to you. You can't beat him to the gym. He's the first one there, and so he's a delight to coach. The Rebel fans are going to have a lot of fun watching him grow over the next 3-4 years."

On Breein Tyree's play…
"I didn't think he defended very well tonight. I think he got exposed a little bit in the first half. He's found a good rhythm offensively. He's got a really good mid-range game. He's shooting well obviously, went 4 for 9 from three. We've got to get Breein to where he doesn't fall in love at the (three-point) line, keep attacking getting to the free throw line. His balance is getting a lot better, taking care of the ball. Tonight three assists two turnovers is not bad."

On ULM today…
"They're an old-school motion team. Bobby Knight would be tickled to death if he watched that team play, old school straight cutting. We didn't jump to the ball, and they got us on some straight cutting. They cut hard. I thought in the second half we made some really good adjustments. I thought we guarded much better in the second half, but still holding them to 38 percent, a good offensive team, I was proud of our guys."

On assists today…
"It's just what we've emphasized. We've been about it for years where we've coached and just trying to get guys to get the ball off the floor. When it gets contagious, guys just feel good. They feel great. That's a huge stat. Whatever you emphasize to your team is what you're going to do. Obviously, we had 25 assists, but that's just a huge part. We're in the locker room and tell our guys we just had 25 assists on 33 baskets made, that makes them excited because that's a goal. It's gotten contagious when we get out of the dribble and start really trying to share the ball. It's been fun to watch, but we've got a lot of work to do."

On Dominik Olejniczak's play…
"I think he got us off to a great start. I was really proud of Dom and Bruce (Stevens). We keep a points system, and Dom kind of beat Bruce in this points system that we kept the last couple days, that's why he got the start. We went to him early had a nice jump hook in the lane. I thought Bruce's numbers were great, seven rebounds. Both those guys when you get in those physical games, especially in this league, those guys have got to play. We need more of that so hopefully they'll continue to get better."

"Our team does a good job of really trying to encourage him (Dom). Next play. He fumbles the ball, everybody does, but go back and make a really good defensive play. I think our team, our players are really good with Dom with that, and they know we're trying to win. They know Dom can be a big part of what we're trying to do."

On Terence Davis' play…
"He had eight rebounds, 15 points, he maybe shot one bad ball. Probably the one bad ball was whatever kind of dunk he was trying to do, I don't know what is was. I thought he stayed within himself. I just like where he's at, I really do. He's going to shoot a great percentage. He'll have night when he'll go 12 of 16. Second half they really just put everyone in the paint, going underneath all the ball screens and dared us to shoot. I like where TD is, he and Breein are giving us really good leadership."

"He's got to become a better rebounder, I know he had eight today, but he's got to be consistent with that. He's got to become an offensive rebounder at the 3 position. That's something we've talked about. Just leading and taking care of the ball, making smart plays, understanding time at the end of games which he didn't do great the other night against San Diego. He's trying like heck, and he's trying to lead. That's what we're most proud of."

On the rebounding margin today…
"We should have won 41-24 with our size, that's a big part of what we are. We've been the worst offensive rebounding team in the SEC statistically, and that's something we've talked about over the last two days. We've got to go back and get balls. Blake (Hinson), KJ (Buffen), Dom, Bruce and TD. So today, 13 offensive rebounds is a start. TD had three of them. If we just continue that, that's how you go on the road and win against really good teams, you've got to be able to rebound."

On Brian Halums' game…
"He's just got to get practice into a game. He has a lot of breakdowns right now. He's got a great heart. He's trying, great attitude, doesn't pout. When he gets in he's trying to press to make a play. I've had junior college guys that do that, and it just takes time but he's got to keep working."

On the bench play lately…
"Luis Rodriguez has really made our depth, he really did. Over the last week, we've compared Scooter (Brian Halums), Zach (Naylor), and Luis (Rodriguez). They're fighting for the eighth spot right there, and Luis, his numbers, rebounding numbers have been better and that's why his minutes were more today. He played 11 minutes, had four rebounds, two steals. He's a good player. With that injury, he's still not right there but I think by mid-January he's going to really help us."

On maturity level today…
"We did better tonight. They didn't really go after us and try to press, but we did better. Even when we had that last group in there, we talked about winning the last 3 minutes and 29 seconds. All those things, they evolve as the year goes on. We got better, but they didn't go after us like San Diego did, trying to press us when we had to decision-make in the halfcourt. We still have some room to grow there."

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Players Mentioned

Terence Davis

Brian Halums

Blake Hinson

Dominik Olejniczak

Luis Rodriguez

Breein Tyree

The University of Mississippi Athletics