Men's Hoops Heads to No. 15 Auburn Tuesday

			OLE MISS (13-14, 4-10 SEC) at #15 AUBURN (23-4, 10-4 SEC) Tuesday, February 25 • 6 PM • Auburn, Ala. Auburn Arena (9,121)
Watch • Listen • Live Stats Ole Miss Game Notes (PDF) • Auburn Game Notes • SEC Game Notes (PDF)

GAME 28
Date: Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2020
Time: 6 p.m. CT
Location: Auburn, Ala.
Arena: Auburn Arena (9,121)
Television: SEC Network
   Tom Hart, play-by-play
   Dane Bradshaw, analyst
   Alyssa Lang, Reporter
Radio: Ole Miss Sports Network (XM - 383, Sirius/XM Internet - 973)
   David Kellum, play-by-play
   Marc Dukes, analyst
Live Video: ESPN.com/ESPN app
Live Audio: OleMissSports.com/TuneIn app
Series: Auburn leads 78-60
Last Meeting: March 14, 2019
   Auburn won 83-82 (2OT); Oxford, Miss.

TIPOFF TIDBITS
- Ole Miss has won 12 of the last 15 matchups versus the Tigers, including a 60-55 win at Auburn last season; the 55 points were the fewest the Tigers have scored in an SEC home game under Bruce Pearl and the fewest in any home game since they lost 58-54 versus Coastal Carolina (Dec. 3, 2014).
- Auburn won the first game of the season, 83-82, in double overtime at The Pavilion (Jan. 28).
- Devontae Shuler has averaged 19.0 ppg over his last three games against Auburn, scoring 26 earlier this season.
- Breein Tyree was 12 for 12 at the free throw line against Alabama, the most free throws made in a game without a miss by a Rebel since Marshall Henderson went 14 for 14 versus Georgia (Feb. 16, 2013); he has made 23 consecutive free throws, missing his first at Missouri last week before rattling off 11 straight in that road game.
- Ole Miss shot 54.2 percent (26 of 48) in Saturday's game versus the Crimson Tide, its best shooting percentage in an SEC game since going 26 of 45 (57.8 percent) at Auburn (Feb. 7, 2015).
- Breein Tyree is averaging 29.5 ppg over the past six games, leading the SEC in scoring overall (20.6 ppg) and ranking 18th nationally.
- Breein Tyree averages 24.7 ppg in SEC play to lead the conference; he increased his scoring output from non-conference to SEC play in each of his first three seasons as well.
- The Rebels rank 13th nationally in defending the three-point line; opponents are shooting 29.0 percent.
- Eleven of Ole Miss' 13 victories have been by double digits, including all four in SEC play; the Rebels are 1-6 in games decided by five points or less, including an 0-5 mark in conference contests.
- Ole Miss starters have scored 865 of the team's 956 points in SEC play (90.5 percent).
- All five starters are averaging double figures in wins: Breein Tyree (21.0 ppg), Blake Hinson (12.1 ppg), Devontae Shuler (11.5 ppg), KJ Buffen (11.5 ppg) and Khadim Sy (10.3 ppg).
- Breein Tyree is one 3-pointer away from becoming the sixth Rebel in history to make 200 threes over a career; Tyree already ranks seventh on the Ole Miss all-time scoring list with 1,722 points.

SEC LEADERS
- Breein Tyree leads the SEC in scoring overall (20.6 ppg) as well as in conference play (24.7 ppg).
- Tyree is the SEC's active leader in career points (1,722) and field goals made (580).
- Tyree is one of two SEC players (Skylar Mays-LSU) to rank in the top 10 in both field goal percentage (10th-43.9) and free throw percentage (8th-80.8); his field goal percentage (6th-47.5) and free throw percentage (4th-84.0) are both better in conference play.
- Devontae Shuler ranks second in the SEC in steals (2.0 per game) during conference play and fifth overall (1.8 per game).
- Shuler is one of two SEC guards (Ashton Hagans-Kentucky) to average at least 1.8 steals per game and boast at least a 1.7 assist/turnover ratio; both marks rank top five in the SEC.
- The Rebels are limiting opponents to 29.0 percent from beyond the arc, ranking second in the conference.
- Ole Miss ranks third in steals (7.1) during SEC play.

SCOUTING AUBURN
Auburn enters Tuesday's game ranked No. 15 in both polls following a comeback win over Tennessee at home. Rallying from 17 points down in the second half, the Tigers improved to 23-4 on the season, including 10-4 in SEC play. Auburn gets to the charity stripe often with 736 attempts ranking second nationally. The Tigers have made 495 of them (third nationally). The Tigers pull down 41.5 rebounds per game, another mark that's top five in the country. Samir Doughty leads Auburn in scoring at 16.2 ppg, while Isaac Okoro adds 13.1 ppg. J'Von McCormick ranks second in the SEC with a 1.9 assist/turnover ratio to go along with 12.0 ppg. Nearly averaging a double-double per game is Austin Wiley (10.5 ppg, 9.3 rpg). Bruce Pearl is in his sixth season guiding the Auburn program. He is in his 25th season as a head coach with stops at Southern Indiana (1992-2001), Milwaukee (2001-05) and Tennessee (2005-11) before arriving at Auburn in 2014.

SERIES HISTORY
Auburn leads the all-time series 78-60, but the Rebels have won 12 and the last 15 over the Tigers and 15 of the last 20. Prior to Auburn sweeping Ole Miss in 2018, the Rebels had a 10-game winning streak in the series. It was the longest in school history against an SEC foe, bettering a pair of eight-game streaks against LSU and Mississippi State. During the winning streak, five of the Rebels' victories occurred in Oxford, four in Auburn and one at the SEC Tournament (2012). Ole Miss avenged the 2018 series with a sweep of its own in 2019, beating the Tigers twice before they made their run to the Final Four. The Rebels have won five of the past six matchups in Auburn.

LAST MONTH'S MATCHUP
A back-and-forth battle at The Pavilion needed 50 minutes of play before deciding a winner, coming down to the final second. In the end, a Blake Hinson three at the buzzer did not fall as Ole Miss suffered a heartbreaking double overtime defeat to No. 16 Auburn 83-82 (Jan. 28). Junior guard Devontae Shuler led the Rebels, especially down the stretch after senior Breein Tyree fouled out with five minutes left in regulation. The Irmo, South Carolina, native scored 26 points to go along with team highs in assists (5) and steals (3). Shuler tallied half of his points at the charity stripe, going 13 of 18, while shooting 6 of 10 from the field. Playing a career-high 48 minutes, he showed his stamina by scoring nine of the Rebels' points during the two overtime periods. Hinson also played the majority of the game, logging 49 minutes and scoring 16 points. In the post, Khadim Sy tallied 13 points and a team-high seven rebounds, while KJ Buffen scored 10 points. Both forwards were on the floor for 37 minutes apiece. Auburn had five Tigers in double figures behind Anfernee McLemore's 19 points off the bench. Samir Doughty added 17 points in 45 minutes. While Ole Miss held Auburn to 38.1 percent (24 of 63) from the field, the Tigers went to the free throw line 36 times and made 26 of their attempts (72.2 percent) to rally from a 19-point deficit.

LAST YEAR AT AUBURN
Ole Miss completed the regular season sweep of Auburn behind a dominant defensive effort at Auburn Arena (Feb. 13, 2019). The Rebels held the Tigers to a season-low field goal percentage (32.7 percent) and point total in a 60-55 victory. Ole Miss was led by the stellar guard play of Breein Tyree and Devontae Shuler. Tyree scored 20 points for the sixth straight game behind four three-pointers. Shuler added 17 of his own with a career-high tying four three-pointers, three coming when the shot clock was expiring. Terence Davis added eight points on 3 of 3 shooting, all in the second half. The Rebels shot 39 percent from the three-point line, making a season-high 13 three-pointers, the eighth-most in school history; the 33 attempts were the fifth-most in school history. Auburn was led by Chuma Okeke who had 23 points and 11 rebounds.

ON THIS DATE
- Feb. 25, 1987: Ole Miss beat Auburn 73-67 at home.
- Feb. 25, 1998: Ole Miss protected Tad Smith Coliseum and upset No. 12 Arkansas 81-65; three days later, the Rebels beat Auburn at home to wrap up the SEC Western Division title.

NO. 2 AGAINST AUBURN
Devontae Shuler has had some of his biggest games against Auburn. He averages 14.6 ppg when facing the Tigers, his best career scoring average against any SEC team. Over the past two seasons (three games), the junior guard has averaged 17.0 ppg versus Auburn. After recording 14 points to help the Rebels knock off the ranked Tigers in The Pavilion a season ago, Shuler scored 17 to lead Ole Miss to a win in Auburn later that year. He followed that up with a 26-point performance in Oxford last month, playing 48 minutes and putting the team on his back in both overtime periods.

TYREE THE TERROR
Breein Tyree has been unstoppable over the past six games. Leading Ole Miss to three victories during that stretch, the senior has averaged an astounding 29.5 ppg. Tyree has shot 52.3 percent (56 of 107) from the floor, including 44.4 percent (16 of 36) from beyond the arc. Getting to the charity stripe, he is shooting 87.5 percent (49 of 56) through the five contests.

REBELS CAN'T STOP RED HOT CRIMSON TIDE
Ole Miss ran into a hot shooting Alabama team Saturday night in The Pavilion. 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 and move the Crimson Tide to .500 in conference play on the season. Breein Tyree, the SEC's leading scorer, continued his reign 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 21 points that included 17 in the second half. Blake Hinson added 11, while 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), their best shooting performance in an SEC game in five seasons. 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.

BALANCED SCORING LEADS TO VICTORIES
It's no secret that a balanced offense helps in seeking victories. When Ole Miss finds that balance, it usually leads to positive outcomes. In wins, all five Rebel starters average double figures: Breein Tyree (21.0 ppg), Blake Hinson (12.1 ppg), Devontae Shuler (11.5 ppg), KJ Buffen (11.5 ppg) and Khadim Sy (10.3 ppg). In losses, Tyree (20.2 ppg) and Shuler (11.6 ppg) are the only Rebels scoring in double digits.

BREEIN LOVES SEC PLAY
Ole Miss senior Breein Tyree thrives during conference play. Not only is he the leading active scorer in the SEC (1,722 points), but he paces the conference in scoring during league games. This isn't new to Tyree as his scoring output increased from non-conference action to SEC play in each of his first three seasons. He has kept the trend going as a senior, scoring 26 points against Texas A&M (Jan. 7) in the conference opener before tallying 27 versus Arkansas (Jan. 11). After missing the Florida game due to a back injury, Tyree returned better than ever and scored 36 points versus LSU (Jan. 18). With those performances, Tyree became the first Rebel to score at least 25 points in each of the first three SEC games of the season since Joe Harvell (1992). During the 1991-92 campaign, Harvell started conference play with four consecutive 30-point games. Since then, Tyree added a 38-point performance against South Carolina (Feb. 5) and a 40-point night versus Mississippi State (Feb. 11).

Tyree's Seasons	Non-Conference	SEC
2016-17 (Freshman)	5.1 ppg	9.3 ppg
2017-18 (Sophomore)	9.0 ppg	12.3 ppg
2018-19 (Junior)	16.5 ppg	19.1 ppg
2019-20 (Senior)	16.5 ppg	24.7 ppg

DEFENDING THE LONG BALL
Ole Miss has become one of the best teams in defending the new three-point line this season. The Rebels rank 13th nationally as opponents have shot just 29.0 percent from long distance. Ole Miss has kept opponents under 25 percent in 10 games this season, including three of the past five contests. Before Alabama went on its rampage and made 13 threes Saturday, the opposition had shot a combined 15 for 83 (18.1 percent) from beyond the arc over a four-game stretch.

CLOSE HEARTBREAKERS
Close games have gone against the Rebels all season long. Ole Miss is 1-6 in games decided by five points or less, including 0-5 in SEC play. All four of the Rebels' losses at home have been by single digits with three SEC games decided by four points or less. Had some of the close games gone in favor of the Red and Blue, Ole Miss would be looking at a chance to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season.

TYREE'S BIG GAMES
Breein Tyree has 15 20-point games on the season, producing three such contests in November and three in December to go along with nine in SEC play. He has 37 20-point games over his Ole Miss career. His biggest game as a Rebel was a career-high 40 points to lead Ole Miss to a blowout win over rival Mississippi State (Feb. 11), the most points by a Rebel since Deandre Burnett scored 41 points against Oral Roberts (Nov. 18, 2016). It was the most scored by an Ole Miss player in an SEC game since Stefan Moody dropped 43 to lead the Rebels over MSU on his senior night (March 3, 2016). Tyree also had 34 against Middle Tennessee (Dec. 14), 36 versus LSU (Jan. 18) and 38 against South Carolina to give him six 30-point games for his career.

VETERANS LEAD THE WAY
The Rebels are led by a veteran cast. Senior guard Breein Tyree (20.6 ppg), junior Devontae Shuler (11.6 ppg), sophomore Blake Hinson (10.3 ppg) and sophomore forward KJ Buffen (9.6 ppg) have accounted for 71.5 percent of the team's scoring this season. Tyree leads the league in scoring, while Buffen paces the team in rebounding (5.9 per game) and blocks (0.9 per game). Shuler also leads the Rebels in assists (3.4 per game) and steals (1.8 per game), both top 10 in the SEC, while ranking fifth in the conference in assist/turnover ratio (1.7). After missing four games due to injury, Hinson has put together 12 double-digit scoring performances, starting 22 games following the injury to Luis Rodriguez.

SHULER STATS
Junior guard Devontae Shuler leads the Rebels in assists (3.4) and steals (1.8). The Irmo, South Carolina, native is one of two players in the SEC to record at least 1.8 steals per game and a 1.7 assist/turnover ratio, joining Kentucky's Ashton Hagans in the conference's top five of each category. He has recorded at least two steals in 11 of the last 15 games, sitting just three steals away from cracking the top 10 on the Ole Miss career steals list. Shuler has provided some consistency offensively, reaching double figures in 14 of the past 19 games which include the best two games of his career. Over the past eight games, Shuler is averaging 19.0 ppg. Against No. 16 Auburn (Jan. 28), he took over after Breein Tyree fouled out and finished with 26 points in 48 minutes of the double overtime battle. Shuler followed that performance with a career-high 28 points at No. 22 LSU (Feb. 1). He now has six 20-point games over his career, including five this season.

DAVIS EARNS 500TH CAREER WIN
Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis picked up his 500th win as the Rebels defeated South Carolina at home (Feb. 5). In his 25th season as a college basketball head coach, Davis has collected 502 wins over 792 games (.634 winning percentage). His head coaching career started as a 24-year old at Southwest Mississippi Community College in 1984, the youngest junior college coach in the country, and he earned 66 victories over three season in the junior college ranks. Four years later at the age of 28, Davis became Idaho's head coach and was the youngest Division I head coach in the nation. Through 22 seasons as a Division I head coach, which includes becoming the winningest coach in Middle Tennessee and Sun Belt Conference history, Davis has 436 wins. He ranks 38th in victories among active Division I head coaches.

NEEDING BUFFEN
KJ Buffen was a primary bench player during his freshman campaign, but the 6-foot-7 forward is an important piece of the Ole Miss lineup as a sophomore. Starting all 27 games, one of only two Rebels to start each game, Buffen is averaging 9.6 ppg along with a team-best 5.9 rpg. His rebounding average is 20th in the conference. The Gainesville, Georgia, native is also leading the team in blocks (0.9). Buffen tallied a career-high 23 points in a win over Norfolk State (Nov. 12) before producing his second career 20-point game to close out the calendar year against Tennessee Tech (Dec. 29). In the return to his home state, Buffen was 5 of 6 from the field and made all four of his free throws, tallying 14 points to help Ole Miss beat Georgia (Jan. 25). His play factors into the outcome of games. Buffen averages 11.5 ppg and 7.2 rpg in wins, while tallying 7.9 ppg and 4.6 rpg in losses.

CLIMBING THE CAREER CHARTS
In his final year as a Rebel, senior guard Breein Tyree ranks seventh on the all-time scoring list with 1,722 points. That career output leads all active players in the SEC. The Somerset, New Jersey, native scored 29 points at Missouri (Feb. 18) to pass current Ole Miss Athletics Director Keith Carter (1,682). Next on Tyree's climb up the charts is Justin Reed (1,785). Through 125 games in an Ole Miss uniform, Tyree has knocked down 199 three-pointers to sit one shy from becoming the sixth Rebel in history to make 200 threes over a career.

YEAR TWO OF THE DAVIS ERA
Kermit Davis is in his second 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 436 career wins over 22 seasons, including stints at MT, Idaho and Texas A&M. In 25 seasons as a college basketball head coach, he has amassed 502 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.

TD IN THE NBA
The Rebels are without 2018-19 Second Team All-SEC guard Terence Davis, who ranks 13th 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. The Southaven, Mississippi, native matched LeBron James with 13 points in the Raptors' win over the Lakers (Nov. 10). Last month (Jan. 8), Davis was called upon to make his first career start, and boy did he deliver. The NBA Rebel scored 23 points and pulled down a career-high 11 rebounds, both team highs, to record his first double-double and lead the Raptors to a victory over the Hornets. Kicking off February, Davis tallied a career-high 31 points off the bench to help the Raptors beat the Bulls (Feb. 2). Averaging 8.1 ppg, including 13.5 ppg since returning from the All-Star Break, he is only Raptor to play in all 57 of the team's games. Davis is the first Rebel to play in the NBA since Justin Reed (2005-07).

NEXT ON THE HARDWOOD
Up next, the Rebels play their final two home games of the season. First, Vanderbilt comes to The Pavilion for a Saturday afternoon matchup (Feb. 29). Tipoff is slated for noon on SEC Network. Then, Ole Miss faces Missouri for the second time this season (March 4), while honoring Breein Tyree on Senior Night. The Rebels will look for revenge after the Tigers won the first matchup (Feb. 18).

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KJ Buffen

Terence Davis

Blake Hinson

Luis Rodriguez

Devontae Shuler

Khadim Sy

Breein Tyree

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