Men's Hoops Begins SEC Play at Alabama Tuesday

			OLE MISS (5-1, 0-0 SEC) at ALABAMA (5-3, 0-0 SEC) Tuesday, Dec. 29 • 8 p.m. • Tuscaloosa, Ala. Coleman Coliseum
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GAME 7
Date: Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2020
Time: 8 p.m. CT
Location: Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Arena: Coleman Coliseum (15,383)
Television: SEC Network
   Dave Neal, play-by-play
   Daymeon Fishback, analyst
Radio: Ole Miss Sports Network (XM-380, Internet-970)
   David Kellum, play-by-play
   Marc Dukes, analyst
Live Video: ESPN.com/ESPN app
Live Audio: OleMissSports.com/TuneIn app
Series: Alabama leads 123-58
Last Meeting: Feb. 22, 2020
   Alabama won 103-78
   Oxford, Miss.

TIPOFF TIDBITS
- Ole Miss enters Tuesday's conference opener with the nation's best scoring defense (52.7 ppg).
- The Rebels have allowed the fewest points (316) over their first six games since the 1980-81 season (307).
- Ole Miss starts SEC play on the road for the third straight season (have never opened at home under Kermit Davis), including the eighth time in the past 11 years; over the past three decades, 21 of the 30 SEC openers have been road contests.
- The media predicted the Rebels to finish ninth in the SEC; Ole Miss has finished higher than the preseason projection in seven of the last nine seasons.
- Devontae Shuler was named Preseason Second Team All-SEC by the conference's coaches.
- Ole Miss is the only team in the SEC to play multiple true road games to this point of the season.
- The Rebels are coming off a 90-43 win over UT Martin (Dec. 22), their largest margin of victory since a 92-45 victory over Morris Brown (Nov. 28, 2001).
- Ole Miss leads the SEC in turnovers forced (20.5 per game) and field goal percentage defense (35.6), ranking sixth and eighth nationally, respectively.
- The Rebels are 15-2 in December under Kermit Davis.
- Averaging 2.0 steals per game, Devontae Shuler ranks second in the SEC; Shuler has 154 career steals to rank eighth in program history alongside Rod Barnes (Ole Miss All-American and former Rebel head coach); Shuler is one away from Elston Turner (155) for seventh and three away from Joe Ayers (157) for sixth.
- Devontae Shuler and Romello White are both four points away from 1,000 for their respective careers.
- Opponents have shot a combined 27.9 percent (41 of 147) against Ole Miss in the first half, scoring only an average of 19.7 points.
- The Rebels have kept the opposition to single digits on made first half field goals in all six games this season.
- KJ Buffen (13.0 ppg) and Jarkel Joiner (12.0 ppg) are averaging double figures over the past three games, reaching double digits in all three contests.

LEADING THE NATION
- Ole Miss leads the nation in scoring defense, allowing only 52.7 points per game.
- The Rebels are sixth in the country in turnovers forced per game (20.5).
- Ole Miss is limiting opponents to a 35.6 field goal percentage, ranking eighth nationwide.
- The Rebels +6.0 turnover margin is 13th in the nation.
- With a scoring margin of +22.0, Ole Miss ranks 18th nationally.

SEC LEADERS
- Ole Miss leads the SEC in scoring defense (52.7), turnovers forced per game (20.5) and field goal percentage defense (35.6).
- The Rebels rank second in turnover margin (+6.0).
- Devontae Shuler ranks second in the SEC in steals (2.2) and third in free throw percentage (89.5).
- Shuler is the SEC's active leader in career points (996), career steals (154) and career assists (262).
- Luis Rodriguez ranks second in assist/turnover ratio (2.6), fifth in rebounding (8.5) and fifth in steals (1.8); his 6.8 defensive rebounds per game are second as well.
- Romello White ranks fifth in blocks (1.7); White would be the SEC leader in field goal percentage (73.0), but his 27 field goals made (4.5 average) fall just below the NCAA/SEC minimum of 5.0 makes per game in order to be considered ranked.

ROAD REBS
- Ole Miss is the only SEC team to play multiple true road games to this point of the season (Dec. 14 at Middle Tennessee, Dec. 16 at Dayton).
- Tuesday will be the third straight season the Rebels have opened up SEC play on the road, every year under Kermit Davis.
- Ole Miss will begin its conference slate away from home for the eighth time in the past 11 years, including the 21st time over the past three decades.

LATE START
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the start of the college basketball season was pushed back to November 25. Then, the virus hit the Rebels, forcing the cancellation of the Justin Reed Ole Miss Classic (Nov. 25-27) as well as a matchup against Memphis (Dec. 5). The program paused team activities until December 7. When the Rebels tipped off their season Dec. 10, Ole Miss was the final Power 5 team (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC) to start its season. Ole Miss wasted no time in getting games in, playing four over a one-week span. The Rebels' first six games were over 13 days.

SCOUTING ALABAMA
- Alabama enters Tuesday's opener with a 5-3 record following an 85-69 win over East Tennessee State (Dec. 22).
- Hosting the Rebels, the Crimson Tide conclude a four-game homestand.
- Alabama leads the SEC in three-point field goal attempts (242), averaging more than 30 per game.
- Jaden Shackelford, the Crimson Tide's leading scorer at 14.0 ppg, also paces the conference with 19 made threes this season.
- Alabama has three others averaging double figures in scoring: Herbert Jones (13.3 ppg), John Petty Jr. (12.0 ppg) and Jahvon Quinerly (11.8 ppg); Jones leads the team in rebounding (6.8 per game), while Quinerly is the team's assist leader (3.6 per game).
- Nate Oats is in his second season as Alabama head coach after spending four seasons as the head coach at Buffalo.

SERIES HISTORY
Tuesday's game will be the 182nd meeting between the two schools. The Crimson Tide holds a 123-58 lead in the series, which began in 1921. Alabama has won five of the past six, including three straight. Prior to that streak, it was Ole Miss who took four of five. Last season, Alabama snapped a six-game losing streak in Oxford.

LAST TIME WE MET
Ole Miss ran into a hot shooting Alabama team in The Pavilion (Feb. 22, 2020). Kira Lewis Jr., John Petty Jr., and Jaden Shackelford combined for 56 points, including 10 of 16 shooting from three, to lead the visitors past the Rebels 103-78. Breein Tyree continued his strong SEC play with 28 points before fouling out at the 8:50 mark. Tyree shot 66.7 percent (8 of 12) from the field and was 12 of 12 from the charity stripe. He was followed by Devontae Shuler, who tallied up 21 points and shot 50 percent (3 of 6) from three. Khadim Sy pulled down a career-high eight rebounds to go along with seven points. As a team, the Rebels played well offensively with a 54.2 field goal percentage (26 of 48). Overall, Alabama shot 56.1 percent (37 of 66) throughout the contest. The Rebels fell victim to the long ball as the Crimson Tide made 13 of 29 (44.8 percent) from behind the arc.

OLE MISS-ALABAMA CONNECTION
Ole Miss assistant coach Levi Watkins and Alabama head coach Nate Oats were assistants under Bobby Hurley at Buffalo (2014-15). In two seasons, the pair helped guide the Bulls to a 42-20 record that included two MAC titles (one tournament, one regular season) and the school's first trip to the NCAA Tournament.

ON THIS DATE
- Dec. 29, 1979: Ole Miss beat Virginia Tech 70-66 in a basketball tournament hosted by the Sugar Bowl. John Stroud, the program's all-time leading scorer (2,328 points) was named tournament MVP. The tournament took place in the Superdome.

UNDERRATED REBELS
For the SEC's annual preseason poll, a panel consisting of SEC and national media members picked the Rebels to finish ninth 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 nine seasons since the SEC went away from the divisional format. That includes the 2018-19 campaign 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.

DEFENSE - THE GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING THE WHOLE YEAR
Head coach Kermit Davis loves a team that plays good defense with toughness. His Rebels have been that team this season, starting off as one of the best defensive squads in college basketball. Ole Miss kept its first four opponents under 60 points, accomplishing the feat for the first time since the 1944-45 season (76 years). Allowing just 52.7 ppg to lead the country, the Rebels have allowed their fewest points (316) over the first six games of the season since the 1980-81 campaign (307). Overall, Ole Miss is at the top of the SEC and the country in several defensive categories.

Category	Stat	SEC Rank	NCAA Rank
Scoring Defense	52.7	1st	1st
Turnovers Forced	20.5	1st	6th
FG% Defense	35.6	1st	8th
Turnover Margin	+6.0	2nd	13th

JELLY OF THE MONTH CLUB
Ole Miss thrives in the month of December under Kermit Davis. Over three seasons, the Rebels are 15-2 in the final month of the calendar year.

NEARING 1K
A pair of Rebels are nearing 1,000 points for their respective careers. Devontae Shuler has 996 career points, all at Ole Miss, while Romello White has 996 points as well. White scored 927 of his points at Arizona State.

NUGGETS FROM THE WIN OVER UT MARTIN
- The Rebels' 47-point win was the largest margin of victory since a 92-45 victory over Morris Brown (Nov. 28, 2001).
- Ole Miss held a 45-21 advantage on the glass; the +24 rebounding margin was the best since a +25 rebounding margin exactly 12 years ago (Dec. 22, 2008 vs. Florida A&M).
- UT Martin's 43 points tied for the fewest allowed by the Rebels under Kermit Davis, matching his Ole Miss coaching debut (Nov. 8, 2019 against Arkansas State).
- The Rebels shot a season-best 59.3 percent from the floor, while making a season-high nine threes.
- Ole Miss scored a season-high 47 points in the first half, building a 28-point lead.
- KJ Buffen and Jarkel Joiner scored in double figures for the third straight game, tallying a game-high 16 points apiece (season highs for both Rebels).
- Matthew Murrell scored a career-high 13 points off the bench.
- Austin Crowley matched his career high in points with 11.
- Robert Allen made his first start as a Rebel.

FAST STARTS
Ole Miss has built large first half leads, starting with its lockdown defense. The Rebels are limiting opponents to an average of 19.7 points in the opening 20 minutes, while causing them to shoot just 27.9 percent (41 of 147) from the field. Ole Miss has kept the opposition to single digits on made first half field goals in all six games this season. While Dayton made 40 percent of its shots, the 24 points were the fewest the Flyers scored in a half all year.

Opponent	FG (Made-Att.)	FG%	Halftime Advantage
Jackson State	5-25	20.0	+29 (41-12)
UNCW	7-23	30.4	+20 (38-18)
Central Arkansas	5-21	23.8	+12 (35-23)
Middle Tennessee	8-28	28.6	+10 (32-22)
Dayton	9-22	40.9	+7 (31-24)
UT Martin	7-28	25.0	+28 (47-19)

HOT HANDS
First it was Devontae Shuler, making nine of his 10 shot attempts (90 percent) for 23 points to lead Ole Miss to a victory over Jackson State (Dec. 10). Romello White followed his teammate with a 20-point game versus UNCW (Dec. 12), going 7 of 8 (87.5 percent) from the floor. It marked the first time in at least the past 25 years that Ole Miss had a pair of Rebels shoot 87.5 percent or better (minimum five attempts) in back-to-back games. White matched his performance at Middle Tennessee (Dec. 16), making 7 of 8 shots on his way to a team-high 16 points. KJ Buffen became the latest Rebel to have an impressive shooting performance, going 7 of 8 against UT Martin (Dec. 22) for a game-high 16 points.

SHULER STEALS
Senior Devontae Shuler is rising up the program's all-time steals list, already tied with Rod Barnes for eighth with 154 career steals. His next steal will tie Elston Turner for seventh (155), while three more steals put him alongside Joe Ayers for sixth (157). The Rebel guard is five steals away from cracking the top five, tying Gerald Glass (159). After finishing second on the team in steals as a freshman (32), Shuler produced 56 steals his second year in Oxford, the most ever by an Ole Miss sophomore and seventh-most by any Rebel in a single season. He led the team last year as well, compiling 54 (1.7 per game) throughout the season.

MELLO'S WORLD
Graduate transfer Romello White has brought his toughness and physicality to Oxford, dominating the post. The Arizona State transfer is averaging 13.3 ppg and 6.7 rpg, ranking second on the team in both categories. He has been unstoppable down low, making 27 of his 37 attempts for a 73 percent clip. With 10 blocks over the first six games, White sits fifth in the SEC in blocks per game. Earning his first start as a Rebel, he made seven of his eight shot attempts on his way to a game-high 20 points versus UNCW (Dec. 12). It was the fourth 20-point game of White's collegiate career and the first since February 4, 2018 (at Washington State) when he was a freshman at Arizona State.

BUFFEN AND JOINER PROVIDE SPARKS
Neither KJ Buffen nor Jarkel Joiner scored in double figures in any of the first three games of the season, but the two starters have gotten things going over the past three contests. Both Rebels have reached double digits in each of the past three games. Buffen is averaging 13.0 ppg over the span, while Joiner's average is 12.0 ppg during the trio of contests. In last week's win over UT Martin, the duo tallied 16 points apiece to lead Ole Miss to an easy victory.

DOMINATING DEFENSE
Ole Miss put together a dominating defensive performance in the victory over UT Martin (Dec. 22), holding the Skyhawks to 43 points. It tied for the lowest opposing output by a Kermit Davis-coach Ole Miss squad alongside last season's opener versus Arkansas State (43). The 43 points were tied for the fifth-fewest by an Ole Miss opponent over the last 21 years, and it marked the 14th time the Rebels held an opponent to 45 points or less during that span, including the second this season.

Points	Opponent	Date
33	LSU	Feb. 7, 2001
38	Southern	Nov. 20, 2014
38	Arkansas-Pine Bluff	Dec. 28, 2002
41	Nicholls	Jan. 3, 2009
43	UT Martin	Dec. 22, 2020
43	Arkansas State	Nov. 8, 2019
43	Nicholls	Dec. 15, 2005
43	ULM	Nov. 29, 2005
43	ULM	Dec. 3, 2001
44	Alabama State	Dec. 30, 2003
45	Jackson State	Dec. 10, 2020
45	Lipscomb	Nov. 23, 2012
45	Arkansas	March 6, 2004
45	Morris Brown	Nov. 28, 2001

CONTROLLING THE PAINT
Ole Miss has dominated the paint in wins, outscoring opponents by 22.5 points (39.5-17). Here's a look at paint points for each victory.

	Ole Miss	Opponent
vs. Jackson State	38	14
vs. UNCW	50	20
vs. Central Arkansas	22	18
at Middle Tennessee	48	16
vs. UT Martin	40	14

SHULER TAKES COMMAND
With Terence Davis and Breein Tyree, All-SEC guards from the previous two seasons, graduated and in the NBA, Devontae Shuler has become the Rebels' leader. Shuler paces the team in scoring (14.8 ppg), assists (3.8 per game) and steals (2.0 spg). His 2.0 steals per game rank second in the SEC. The Irmo, South Carolina, native is making 43.5 percent of his attempts from the floor, including 40.0 percent from long range. Shuler has also found success at the line, going 17 of 19 (89.5 percent) on the young season, good enough for third in the SEC.

SHULER TABBED PRESEASON SECOND TEAM ALL-SEC
For the second consecutive season, Devontae Shuler was named Preseason All-SEC by the conference coaches. After ranking fifth in the SEC in steals (1.7 per game) and assist/turnover ratio (1.7) a season ago, one of only two players conference-wide to finish top five in both categories, Shuler was tabbed Second Team All-SEC heading into his senior season. Shuler, the only fourth-year senior on the team, is the Rebels' leading returning scorer (11.7 ppg) following the graduation of First Team All-SEC honoree Breein Tyree (19.7 ppg). Along with pacing Ole Miss in steals on the defensive end of the court, he also produced a team-best 3.3 assists per game. The Irmo, South Carolina, native put together five 20-point games throughout the 2019-20 season, including a career-high 28 points at LSU (Feb. 1).

LUIS GOT GAME
After going one full year without playing (season-ending foot injury on November 27, 2019), Luis Rodriguez has returned to become a leader for the Rebels. The Los Angeles, California, native paces the team in rebounds (8.5 per game), while ranking second in assists (3.0 per game) and steals (1.8 per game). He's second in the SEC with a 2.6 assist/turnover ratio, while his 8.5 rebounds per game and 1.8 steals per game rank fifth. In the win over UNCW (Dec. 12), Rodriguez produced his first career double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds. He pulled down a career-high 14 rebounds at Dayton (Dec. 19), the most by a Rebel since Sebastian pulled down 15 in the NIT quarterfinals versus Georgia Tech (March 21, 2017).

YEAR THREE OF THE DAVIS ERA
Kermit Davis is in his third season at the helm of Ole Miss Basketball. A nine-time conference coach of the year, Davis is 38th among active Division I head coaches with 443 career wins over 23 seasons, including stints at MT, Idaho and Texas A&M. In 26 seasons as a college basketball head coach, he has amassed 509 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 just the third active coach (Dana Altman, Bob Huggins) to be named coach of the year in four different conferences.

NEXT ON THE HARDWOOD
After the SEC opener, Ole Miss returns to non-conference play to tip off the 2021 calendar year. The Rebels finish a home-and-home series with Wichita State, hosting the Shockers in Oxford (Jan. 2). The matchup, a doubleheader of sorts with the Ole Miss football team playing in the Outback Bowl earlier that afternoon, is slated to begin at 5 p.m. CT on ESPNU.

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Players Mentioned

Robert Allen

KJ Buffen

Austin Crowley

Jarkel Joiner

Matthew Murrell

Luis Rodriguez

Devontae Shuler

Khadim Sy

Breein Tyree

Romello White

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