The University of Mississippi Athletics
Monday, November 4
Oxford, Miss.
6:30 PM
Ole Miss
vs
Mississippi College (Exh.)
Men’s Hoops Hosts Mississippi College in Hurricane Dorian Relief Game Monday
11/3/2019 | Men's Basketball
Admission is Free, Donations Accepted Towards Relief in The Bahamas
OXFORD, Miss. – The 2019-20 Ole Miss men's basketball team will take the floor for the first time Monday, hosting Mississippi College in an exhibition. Tipoff is slated for 6:30 p.m. CT.
HURRICANE DORIAN RELIEF GAME
While the exhibition offers free admission, Monday's contest will benefit the rebuilding efforts in The Bahamas following the devastation left by Hurricane Dorian. Through head women's basketball coach Yolett McCuin's NoCeilings Foundation, cash donations will be accepted in The Pavilion, and checks can also be written out to the NoCeilings Foundation. For those unable to attend and still want to help out the cause, donations can be sent to "OleMissAthleticsFoundation" using the Venmo mobile app.
SCOUTING MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE
Mississippi College, a Division II school out of the Gulf South Conference, enters Monday's matchup following a 73-68 setback to Southern Miss in an exhibition (Oct. 29). The Choctaws shot 51.9 percent (28 of 54) from the field, including 60 percent (18 of 30) in the second half. Senior forward Brandon Boston led the team with 28 points and seven rebounds. Last season, Boston led Mississippi College with 15.0 ppg and 6.2 rpg. Mike Jones, also Mississippi College's athletic director, begins his 17th season as the Choctaws' head coach.
CHOCTAW CONNECTION
Ole Miss has one connection to Mississippi College. Coordinator of operations Thomas Gray earned a bachelor's degree (2009) and master's degree (2011) from the college. While earning his master's degree, he served as the graduate assistant coach for the Choctaws.
EXPERIENCE ON THE SIDELINES
Two experienced coaches will man their respective sidelines Monday night. Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis and Mississippi College head coach Mike Jones have combined for 933 victories over 44 seasons. Entering his 25th season as a head coach, Davis boasts 489 career wins. Jones, through 20 years as a junior college head coach, has amassed 444 victories.
YEAR TWO OF THE DAVIS ERA
Kermit Davis enters his second season at the helm of Ole Miss Basketball. A nine-time conference coach of the year, Davis is 31st among active Division I head coaches with 423 career wins over 21 seasons, including stints at MT, Idaho and Texas A&M. In 24 seasons as a college basketball head coach, he has amassed 489 wins. Davis wasted no time making an impact in Oxford. With the Rebels coming off a last-place finish in 2017-18, the media picked Ole Miss to land at the bottom of the SEC standings again in 2018-19. However, the Rebels posted a 20-13 record to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in four years. With a return to March Madness for the sixth time in his career, Davis joined a list of 63 coaches in college basketball history to take three different schools to the NCAA Tournament. Davis was named SEC Coach of the Year by his peers and the Associated Press, earning conference coach of the year accolades for the ninth time in his career. He became the sixth Ole Miss coach to earn SEC Coach of the Year honors, while joining Andy Kennedy as the only Rebel coaches to collect the award in their first year in Oxford.
TYREE LEADS THE WAY
After earning First Team All-SEC accolades and leading Ole Miss back to the NCAA Tournament a season ago, Breein Tyree has earned several preseason accolades heading into his senior campaign. Along with being named Preseason First Team All-SEC, the Rebel is one of 20 guards nationwide to be selected to the Jerry West Award Watch List (shooting guard of the year). Sporting News also tabbed him a Preseason Third Team All-American. The SEC's leading returning scorer heading into this season, Tyree averaged 17.9 ppg as a junior to rank third in the conference. He bumped his scoring average to 19.1 ppg in conference play, increasing his output from non-conference to SEC action for the third consecutive year. Last season, Tyree was the only player in the SEC to rank in the conference's top 10 in scoring (3rd-17.9 ppg), free throw percentage (3rd-83.1), three-pointers made (7th-2.1 per game) and field goal percentage (10th-45.9).
CLIMBING THE CAREER CHARTS
Senior guard Breein Tyree begins his final year as a Rebel ranked 29th on the all-time scoring list with 1,187 points. If he matches his scoring output from a season ago, he'll end his career in the top 10. Through 99 games in an Ole Miss uniform, Tyree has knocked down 143 three-pointers to sit 11th in the program's rankings.
NEWCOMER NOTICE
Kermit Davis' first full recruiting class at Ole Miss became one of the highest ranked in school history, coming in at No. 22 nationally by Rivals.com. Four-star prospects include guard Austin Crowley, guard Bryce Williams, forward Antavion Collum and forward Khadim Sy. Williams and Sy are junior college transfers from Daytona State, where Sy became one of the most sought-after JUCO prospects in the country (spent his freshman season at Virginia Tech). Sammy Hunter, one of the top prospects out of The Bahamas, is another newcomer who could make an immediate impact after a successful prep career in Canada. Joining the newcomers will be guard Franco Miller Jr. and forward Carlos Curry. The two Rebels both redshirted a season ago, but both look to make an impact after one season under Davis.
TD TO THE NBA
The Rebels must replace Second Team All-SEC guard Terence Davis, who finished his career ranked 12th on the program's all-time scoring list with 1,512 points. After going undrafted, Davis turned heads in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas and quickly earned a multi-year deal with the reigning champion Toronto Raptors. Davis has become a regular in the Raptors' rotation to start the NBA season.
UNDERRATED
Ahead of the SEC's media day, a panel consisting of SEC and national media members picked the Rebels to finish eighth in the conference standings this season. That shouldn't worry Ole Miss fans, as the Rebels have placed higher than the media's projection in seven of the last eight seasons since the SEC went away from the divisional format. That includes last year when Ole Miss was predicted to finish last in the SEC, only to tie for sixth and return to the NCAA Tournament under first year head coach and 2019 SEC Coach of the Year Kermit Davis.
HOMESTAND TIPS OFF THE SEASON
Ole Miss opens the 2019-20 regular season with a four-game homestand. First, Arkansas State treks to The Pavilion to lift the lid on the season (Nov. 8, 6 p.m.). Four days later (Nov. 12), the Rebels welcome Norfolk State for a 6:30 p.m. tip. The day before the Ole Miss football team battles LSU in the final home game of its season, the basketball Rebels square off against Western Michigan (Nov. 15, 6 p.m.). Closing out the homestand (Nov. 19), Seattle flies into Oxford for another 6:30 p.m. contest. All four games will be broadcast on SEC Network+.
HURRICANE DORIAN RELIEF GAME
While the exhibition offers free admission, Monday's contest will benefit the rebuilding efforts in The Bahamas following the devastation left by Hurricane Dorian. Through head women's basketball coach Yolett McCuin's NoCeilings Foundation, cash donations will be accepted in The Pavilion, and checks can also be written out to the NoCeilings Foundation. For those unable to attend and still want to help out the cause, donations can be sent to "OleMissAthleticsFoundation" using the Venmo mobile app.
SCOUTING MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE
Mississippi College, a Division II school out of the Gulf South Conference, enters Monday's matchup following a 73-68 setback to Southern Miss in an exhibition (Oct. 29). The Choctaws shot 51.9 percent (28 of 54) from the field, including 60 percent (18 of 30) in the second half. Senior forward Brandon Boston led the team with 28 points and seven rebounds. Last season, Boston led Mississippi College with 15.0 ppg and 6.2 rpg. Mike Jones, also Mississippi College's athletic director, begins his 17th season as the Choctaws' head coach.
CHOCTAW CONNECTION
Ole Miss has one connection to Mississippi College. Coordinator of operations Thomas Gray earned a bachelor's degree (2009) and master's degree (2011) from the college. While earning his master's degree, he served as the graduate assistant coach for the Choctaws.
EXPERIENCE ON THE SIDELINES
Two experienced coaches will man their respective sidelines Monday night. Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis and Mississippi College head coach Mike Jones have combined for 933 victories over 44 seasons. Entering his 25th season as a head coach, Davis boasts 489 career wins. Jones, through 20 years as a junior college head coach, has amassed 444 victories.
YEAR TWO OF THE DAVIS ERA
Kermit Davis enters his second season at the helm of Ole Miss Basketball. A nine-time conference coach of the year, Davis is 31st among active Division I head coaches with 423 career wins over 21 seasons, including stints at MT, Idaho and Texas A&M. In 24 seasons as a college basketball head coach, he has amassed 489 wins. Davis wasted no time making an impact in Oxford. With the Rebels coming off a last-place finish in 2017-18, the media picked Ole Miss to land at the bottom of the SEC standings again in 2018-19. However, the Rebels posted a 20-13 record to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in four years. With a return to March Madness for the sixth time in his career, Davis joined a list of 63 coaches in college basketball history to take three different schools to the NCAA Tournament. Davis was named SEC Coach of the Year by his peers and the Associated Press, earning conference coach of the year accolades for the ninth time in his career. He became the sixth Ole Miss coach to earn SEC Coach of the Year honors, while joining Andy Kennedy as the only Rebel coaches to collect the award in their first year in Oxford.
TYREE LEADS THE WAY
After earning First Team All-SEC accolades and leading Ole Miss back to the NCAA Tournament a season ago, Breein Tyree has earned several preseason accolades heading into his senior campaign. Along with being named Preseason First Team All-SEC, the Rebel is one of 20 guards nationwide to be selected to the Jerry West Award Watch List (shooting guard of the year). Sporting News also tabbed him a Preseason Third Team All-American. The SEC's leading returning scorer heading into this season, Tyree averaged 17.9 ppg as a junior to rank third in the conference. He bumped his scoring average to 19.1 ppg in conference play, increasing his output from non-conference to SEC action for the third consecutive year. Last season, Tyree was the only player in the SEC to rank in the conference's top 10 in scoring (3rd-17.9 ppg), free throw percentage (3rd-83.1), three-pointers made (7th-2.1 per game) and field goal percentage (10th-45.9).
CLIMBING THE CAREER CHARTS
Senior guard Breein Tyree begins his final year as a Rebel ranked 29th on the all-time scoring list with 1,187 points. If he matches his scoring output from a season ago, he'll end his career in the top 10. Through 99 games in an Ole Miss uniform, Tyree has knocked down 143 three-pointers to sit 11th in the program's rankings.
NEWCOMER NOTICE
Kermit Davis' first full recruiting class at Ole Miss became one of the highest ranked in school history, coming in at No. 22 nationally by Rivals.com. Four-star prospects include guard Austin Crowley, guard Bryce Williams, forward Antavion Collum and forward Khadim Sy. Williams and Sy are junior college transfers from Daytona State, where Sy became one of the most sought-after JUCO prospects in the country (spent his freshman season at Virginia Tech). Sammy Hunter, one of the top prospects out of The Bahamas, is another newcomer who could make an immediate impact after a successful prep career in Canada. Joining the newcomers will be guard Franco Miller Jr. and forward Carlos Curry. The two Rebels both redshirted a season ago, but both look to make an impact after one season under Davis.
TD TO THE NBA
The Rebels must replace Second Team All-SEC guard Terence Davis, who finished his career ranked 12th on the program's all-time scoring list with 1,512 points. After going undrafted, Davis turned heads in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas and quickly earned a multi-year deal with the reigning champion Toronto Raptors. Davis has become a regular in the Raptors' rotation to start the NBA season.
UNDERRATED
Ahead of the SEC's media day, a panel consisting of SEC and national media members picked the Rebels to finish eighth in the conference standings this season. That shouldn't worry Ole Miss fans, as the Rebels have placed higher than the media's projection in seven of the last eight seasons since the SEC went away from the divisional format. That includes last year when Ole Miss was predicted to finish last in the SEC, only to tie for sixth and return to the NCAA Tournament under first year head coach and 2019 SEC Coach of the Year Kermit Davis.
HOMESTAND TIPS OFF THE SEASON
Ole Miss opens the 2019-20 regular season with a four-game homestand. First, Arkansas State treks to The Pavilion to lift the lid on the season (Nov. 8, 6 p.m.). Four days later (Nov. 12), the Rebels welcome Norfolk State for a 6:30 p.m. tip. The day before the Ole Miss football team battles LSU in the final home game of its season, the basketball Rebels square off against Western Michigan (Nov. 15, 6 p.m.). Closing out the homestand (Nov. 19), Seattle flies into Oxford for another 6:30 p.m. contest. All four games will be broadcast on SEC Network+.
Players Mentioned
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