Rebels Host Fansgiving, $1 Ticket Night Tuesday Against Sam Houston State

			OLE MISS (3-2, 0-0 SEC) vs. SAM HOUSTON STATE (2-1, 0-0 Southland) Tuesday, Nov. 26 • 6 p.m. • Oxford, Miss. The Pavilion at Ole Miss (9,500)
Watch • Live Stats • Listen • Buy Tickets Ole Miss Game Notes (PDF) • Sam Houston State Game Notes (PDF) • SEC Game Notes

OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss women's basketball looks to make it two in a row when Sam Houston State rolls into The Pavilion for a Tuesday night contest. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT, and fans in attendance will have the chance to win raffle prizes throughout the game.

PROMOTIONS
• Fansgiving (chance to win raffle prizes throughout the game)
• $1 tickets (walk-up only)

TEAM FACTS

Ole Miss Rebels (3-2, 0-0 SEC)
Head Coach: Yolett McPhee-McCuin • 2nd Season at Ole Miss (12-24) • 106-87 career record (7th Season)

Sam Houston State Bearkats (2-1, 0-0 Southland)
Head Coach: Ravon Justice • 2nd Season at Sam Houston State (18-14) • 46-48 career record (4th season)

ON THE AIR

Television/Online: SEC Network +
Play-by-Play: Seth Austin
Color: Lindsay Roy

OLE MISS RADIO

Radio: 105.1 FM
Audio: TuneIn
Play-by-Play: Graham Doty

SERIES NOTES

Series History
Ole Miss leads, 2-0

Current Streak
Ole Miss, 2

First Meeting
Nov. 17, 2009
• W, 95-61, in Oxford

SCOUTING SAM HOUSTON STATE

Record
2-1, 0-0 Southland

Last Game
L, 99-57, at Texas Tech
• Top Scorers: Amber Leggett (16 points), Kiera McKinney (10 points), Jenniffer Oramas (10 points)
• Were in search of first 3-0 start since 1988-89

Notes
• Top scorer: Amber Leggett (14.3 PPG)
• Kiera McKinney currently averaging a double-double (10.7 PPG, 10.0 RPG)
• Out-shooting opponents 34.4-24.3 from three-point distance
• Rank in the NCAA top-50 in: steals per game (4th, 15.3), turnovers forced (11th, 25.0), assists per game (12th, 20.7) and three-point defense (48th, .243)
• Amber Leggett: 2nd NCAA, leads Southland in steals per game (4.7)
• Faith Cook: 12th NCAA, leads Southland in assist-turnover ratio (5.0)

TEAM NOTES

LAST TIME OUT (vs. LA Tech)
Ole Miss women's basketball cruised to a 76-53 victory over Louisiana Tech, led by a dominant offensive performance from Deja Cage, who scored 30 points on Nov. 23 at the Pavilion.

"When you are coaching a young team like we are, you never know what to expect," said Ole Miss head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin. "But I thought my coaching staff responded well to the challenge that was put in front of us. We're figuring out who we are with this young group. We brought it defensively tonight, and that is what we have to be known for this year."

Ole Miss (3-2) was able to hold Louisiana Tech (2-2) to just 53 points, which was 27 less than their previous season-low of 80 points. The Rebels also forced 29 Lady Techster turnovers, the most by an Ole Miss defense since forcing 30 against Alabama on Jan. 22, 2017.

"We have to find each opponent's weakness," McPhee-McCuin said. "Louisiana Tech is well-coached and they play really well when they are comfortable. So, we all decided to take them out of their rhythm, because that is where they are best. We decided to up our level of intensity and because of it, we were able to turn them over and get easy baskets."

Ole Miss (3-2) was able to share the ball well, recording 20 assists compared to just 16 turnovers.

"We really shared the ball," McPhee-McCuin said. "We are moving the ball. When you move the ball versus any type of defense, something is going to open up. You just have to be patient enough. Our staff found we were having turnovers because we were scared. We were having turnovers because we weren't helping each other. So, we recognized where our turnovers were coming from, and looked at the turnovers we can get rid of."

Cage's 30 points marked the highest scoring total for Ole Miss since Crystal Allen scored 30 against Tennessee on March 3, 2019. Cage shot 10-of-18 from the field and 5-of-8 from beyond the arc, highlighting her offense efficiency that has been on display for most of the season. The junior leads Ole Miss with 17.4 points per game on 52.3 percent shooting.

"Deja, that's what she is," McPhee-McCuin said. "I don't believe leaders are taught; I believe they are born. I think scorers are born, and Deja is a scorer. I felt like she would have a good game today."

Ole Miss also had several other impressive individual performances, including junior Valerie Nesbitt. Nesbitt got injured early, but came back and had the best game of her collegiate career. She set career-highs across the board, including points (12), rebounds (six), assists (eight) and steals (eight).

Freshman Sarah Dumitrescu also had a great game, recording nine points and eight rebounds. Junior Dominique Banks had a similar stat line, scoring six points to go with eight rebounds, one steal, and one block.

"What we love about Sarah is that she is one of our toughest players," McPhee-McCuin said. "She is a kid that came to the United States to fulfill her dream. She made it clear when we were recruiting her that she wasn't like the average person and she wanted to win. She has been taking coaching really well and we have been challenging her. That is why she is having success."

REBELS POST BIG WIN OVER LA TECH
The 76-53 win over the Lady Techsters on Nov. 23 registered as the biggest that Ole Miss has ever had against the historically dominant Louisiana Tech program. The Rebels entered the game trailing the all-time series, 7-2, with the largest margin of victory standing at 11 points in 2013 before Saturday's 23-point win.

SUCCESS AGAINST THE SOUTHLAND
Ole Miss has a dominant all-time record against current Southland Conference schools, holding a 50-10 all-time record. Ole Miss holds a 2-0 record against Sam Houston State. Of the 10 current Southland schools that Ole Miss has played, the Rebels only hold a losing record against Stephen F. Austin (2-4).

DEFENSE! DEFENSE!
Ole Miss currently ranks in the upper half of the SEC in scoring defense, ranking sixth overall at 55.2 points allowed through five games played. The Rebel defense put on a show against an electric Louisiana Tech offense on Nov. 23, holding the Lady Techsters to 53 points after they entered the game averaging 83.3 per contest. Ole Miss also forced 29 turnovers, the most by a Rebel defense since the 2016-17 season. That single-game effort alone brought Ole Miss to an even turnover margin for the season after entering the LA Tech game sitting at -3.2.

The 276 total points the Rebels allowed through the first five games stands as the eighth fewest in that time span in program history.

SHARING IS CARING
Ole Miss currently ranks fourth in the SEC in assists, averaging 16.4 per game through five games played. The Rebels have recorded two separate 20-assist games, notching 20 on 30 made field goals in the season opener vs. Mississippi Valley State on Nov. 5 before recording 20 on 26 made shots against Louisiana Tech on Nov. 23.

Ole Miss had five games with at least 20 assists in 2018-19 after doing so only three times the year prior. Last season, Ole Miss was 6-5 when recording more assists than its opponent, but 3-16 on the opposite end of the spectrum.

ALL HANDS ON DECK
Of the 10 Rebels that have seen action in 2019-20, eight have averaged at least 15 minutes of action through three games played, with seven averaging at least 20 minutes.

VARIETY IN THE STARTING LINEUP
Ole Miss has used five different starting lineups in each of its first four games in the 2019-20 season. In Coach Yo's first season with the Rebels, Ole Miss used 17 different starting lineups through 31 total games played.

OPTIONS IN THE SCORING COLUMN
Ole Miss has had a different leading scorer through four of its first five games this season after having just four unique top scorers throughout the entire 2018-19 season. Junior Deja Cage is the lone Rebel to have repeated, dropping career highs against ULM (21 points) and Louisiana Tech (30 points). Other top Rebel scorers include sophomore Taylor Smith in the season opener vs. MVSU (18), freshman Jayla Alexander vs. UNO (21) and junior Dominique Banks at Southern Miss (13).

BENCH COMING THROUGH
The Rebel bench has been active in the scoring department through five games played, out-scoring opponents in four of five games thus far for a season total of 137-69.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES

OH MY, SHE'S ON FIRE!
Junior Deja Cage lit the net on fire with a 30-point performance against Louisiana Tech, her third career high this season after sitting out a year due to NCAA transfer rules. Cage shot 10-of-18 from the field and a career-best 5-of-8 from three-point distance -- the second Rebel this year to hit at least five three-pointers in a single game after Jayla Alexander's 21-point performance vs. New Orleans. Cage's 30-point outing stands as one of two SEC 30-point games this season, and is also one of just four Rebels to record 30-point games in the last five years.

Cage currently ranks as the SEC's fifth-best scorer at 17.4 points per game and the second-best three-point shooter with 2.6 threes made per game.

NESBITT STUFFS THE STAT SHEET
Junior Valerie Nesbitt had an all-around superb game against Louisiana Tech on Nov. 23, recording an incredible line of 12 points, eight assists, eight steals and six rebounds. Her eight steals rank as the most by any player in the SEC this season, as well as tied for No. 4 on the Ole Miss single-game list. Additionally, it is the first game in available records at Ole Miss in which a Rebel has recorded at least eight assists and eight steals in the same game. She is also one of just two in the NCAA this season to have recorded such a game alongside Norfolk State's Chanette Hicks (20 points, 14 assists, 11 steals vs. Virginia-Lynchburg, Nov. 14).

RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME
Freshman Sarah Dumitrescu has been a consistent rebounder for the Rebels this year, leading the team and ranking 12th in the SEC with 7.8 boards per game through four contests. The Bucharest native has had at least seven rebounds in four games, and at least eight in each of her last three outings. She hauled in a career-high 11 rebounds in her first career start vs. New Orleans.

#MississippiMade
Freshman and Pearl, Mississippi native Jayla Alexander has been an offensive catalyst off the bench for the Rebels, scoring 39 points in her last three games alone. Alexander went off against New Orleans, more than doubling her previous career high of 10 points with a 21-point outing against the Privateers. She followed that up with an 11-point performance at Southern Miss.

Alexander, the No. 1 rated recruit out of the state of Mississippi last year, has played at least 18 minutes in each of her first four games as a Rebel. Helping her against UNO was a 5-of-8 clip from beyond the arc, tied for the second-most threes in a game among SEC players this season.

COOKING WITH KITCHENS
Sophomore Iyanla Kitchens blossomed in a big way against ULM, recording her first double-double with career highs in points (10) and rebounds (10). Kitchens, who averaged 6.2 minutes per game her freshman season, is currently averaging 4.2 points and 4.0 rebounds through five games played in 2019-20.

SMITH IN SPOTLIGHT AS SOPHOMORE
Sophomore Taylor Smith emerged as a potent scoring threat for the Rebels after a career day against Mississippi Valley State. Smith, who entered this season with a career-high of nine points scored against Florida last season, doubled that with a demonstrative 18-point performance on 9-of-17 shooting. Smith started off a perfect 4-of-4 from the field thanks to a deadly mid-range jumper.

AIR IT OUT, TORRI!
Senior three-point specialist Torri Lewis picked up right where she left off two years ago, draining 3-of-5 from beyond the arc for 11 total points against MVSU to start the season. Lewis, who returned for her redshirt senior season at Ole Miss after sitting out last year due to the birth of her son, A.J., is a career 34.2 percent three-point shooter. In her career, 84.9 percent of all of her field goals have come from three-point distance.

In her career, Lewis owns 27 games with multiple threes -- hitting seven or more threes in a game twice. She knocked down a school-record 10 in a game vs. New Orleans as a freshman in 2015 (the third-most in a single-game in NCAA history), and during her junior year, she nailed seven against Alabama.

During that junior season, Lewis was on fire from downtown in the final month of the season, going 16-of-32 in a stretch from deep from Feb. 1-11. That season, 90 percent of her made field goals were three-pointers and 131 of her 150 attempts were from beyond the arc (87.3 percent).

MIMI DIRECTING TRAFFIC
Sophomore guard Mimi Reid returned to her role as the floor general for the Rebels, notching six assists against MVSU and New Orleans -- the 11th and 12th times in her young career she has recorded at least six in a game. Reid was unflappable in this role as a redshirt freshman in 2018-19, spearheading what was an efficient Rebel offensive attack. She was the only player in the SEC last year with separate games of 11+ assists (vs. Louisiana) and 11+ rebounds (vs. Western Michigan), and she led all SEC freshmen with 4.3 assists per game (sixth overall). Reid was also the most efficient shooter for the Rebels last season, knocking down a team-high 40.2 percent of her field goal tries.

DOM ON THE BLOCK
Junior transfer Dominique Banks has been a force to reckon with on the block, averaging 7.2 rebounds and 2.4 blocks to go along with her 7.0 points per game average at the moment. Banks has started two games for the Rebels at the five position, and she currently ranks sixth in the SEC with her 2.4 blocks per game. Banks, a transfer from Gulf Coast State Community College, was part of an NJCAA national title team in 2019, shooting 52.6 percent from the field for Gulf Coast State.

Follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB and on Instagram at Ole MissWBB. You can also follow head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin on Twitter at @YolettMcCuin

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Players Mentioned

Jayla Alexander

Crystal Allen

Dominique Banks

Deja Cage

Sarah Dumitrescu

Iyanla Kitchens

Torri Lewis

Mimi Reid

Taylor Smith

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