The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss Hoops Opens Season with First Official Practice
9/29/2021 | Men's Basketball
<i class="icon-camera"></i> Photo Gallery<i class="icon-paper"></i> Kermit Davis Press Conference Transcript<i class="icon-video"></i> Kermit Davis Press Conference<i class="icon-video"></i> Jaemyn Brakefield Press Conference<i class="icon-video"></i> Jarkel Joiner Press Conference
Talented Newcomers and Veterans Poised to bring Rebels Back to Big Dance
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss men's basketball head coach Kermit Davis enters his 39th season coaching college basketball, 25th as head coach and fourth leading Rebels. However, no previous season had ever looked like 2020-21 for a variety of reasons.
Despite limited capacity crowds, chair distancing, masks, and uncertainty from week-to-week, last season's Rebels made a serious case for a potential NCAA Tournament berth. While an NIT appearance was ultimately their consolation prize, it is now a clean slate with a bit more normalcy and a roster full of new faces and seasoned veterans for the 2021-22 season. Davis, along with Jarkel Joiner and Jaemyn Brakefield, even spoke with the media in person for the first time since fall 2019 before their first official practice on Wednesday.
"It's been a good group to come to the gym with," Davis said. "Like a lot of teams in college basketball, I'm very excited about our team. We have a ton of work ahead of us…September has flown by. Our guys are excited."
In year four, Davis has his fourth leader at guard, from Terence Davis, Breein Tyree, Devontae Shuler to the local product Jarkel Joiner. The Oxford, Mississippi, native averaged 12 points per game a year ago and showed significant strides from game-to-game. In his final two games of the season, Joiner scored a combined 48 points in order to enter this season as an elite SEC guard.
"It's unbelievable the amount of improvement he's made from this time last year," Davis said. "His assist-to-turnover ratio is almost 3-to-1. That's what good guards do. His leadership has grown. He practices at such a high level. His body has changed. He's going to be one of the better guards in the SEC."
Defensively, the Rebels held opponents to 63.6 points per game while doing enough offensively to win 16 games a year ago. This time around, a change of offensive game plan across the board could prove wonders leading up to their season opener.
"We need to have more possessions," Davis said. "Last year, we had to win with defensive things and rebounding. We need to have a bigger number of possessions. I think our team is faster in transition as a whole. We're shooting it better. I think the biggest thing is to play fast, smart and unselfish. If you do those things with great toughness, now you have a great product."
With the return of Luis Rodriguez, Austin Crowley and Matthew Murrell at guard and Robert Allen and Sammy Hunter down low, a slew of new faces from high school and the transfer portal headline this year's roster, something that isn't exactly new given the recent history of college basketball.
"I've said this, but it's going to be the new norm," Davis said. "We have five transfers and eight high schoolers. I've got a decent idea now, but you don't know until you see them every single day. Now you get them every day. You can understand basketball IQ more and get guys to really catch on. That's a huge part of young guys, thinking on the court. Some guys pick it up quicker than others. Over the next two weeks, we're trying to understand what we can do defensively and find our strengths offensively. Then, we decide our depth charts."
The school's first McDonald's All-American signee, Daeshun Ruffin, is expected to make an immediate impact despite a recent injury, along with another former five-star, Duke transfer Jaemyn Brakefield.
The latter was nearly a Rebel earlier in his basketball career, and the previous relationship with Davis brought him back to his home state.
"Very skilled. He can shoot. He's been a good passer, very good teammate, likable guy," Davis said. "He loves Ole Miss. Happy players play better. He's a happy player. He can't wait for The Pavilion to fill up and start playing."
Brakefield bring versatility and experience after one year at Duke, and the Jackson, Mississippi, native is happy to be back home.
"I knew exactly where I was going to go," Brakefield mentioned when talking about his decision to enter the transfer portal. "It made it easy coming back home, being a guy that can help us be a tournament team, just be a guy that can do it all. I'm very versatile and can help a team be more than an average team."
Other transfers include Nysier Brooks from Miami and Tye Fagan from SEC foe Georgia. Highly touted freshmen like Grant Slatten, Eric Van Der Heijden and James White add to a roster that is set to build off last season's strong finish and take another run towards the big dance.
"All of these newcomers have a work ethic behind them," Joiner said. "They know that we're trying to get something done. They understand the culture of what we're trying to build and they fit in right perfectly."
On November 5, the Rebels will face off against Trevecca in an exhibition before officially tipping off the regular season in the SJB Pavilion against New Orleans on November 9. Both game times will be determined at a later date.
For the latest news and updates regarding Ole Miss Men's Basketball, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMBB, on Facebook at Ole Miss Men's Basketball and on Instagram at olemissmbb.
Despite limited capacity crowds, chair distancing, masks, and uncertainty from week-to-week, last season's Rebels made a serious case for a potential NCAA Tournament berth. While an NIT appearance was ultimately their consolation prize, it is now a clean slate with a bit more normalcy and a roster full of new faces and seasoned veterans for the 2021-22 season. Davis, along with Jarkel Joiner and Jaemyn Brakefield, even spoke with the media in person for the first time since fall 2019 before their first official practice on Wednesday.
"It's been a good group to come to the gym with," Davis said. "Like a lot of teams in college basketball, I'm very excited about our team. We have a ton of work ahead of us…September has flown by. Our guys are excited."
In year four, Davis has his fourth leader at guard, from Terence Davis, Breein Tyree, Devontae Shuler to the local product Jarkel Joiner. The Oxford, Mississippi, native averaged 12 points per game a year ago and showed significant strides from game-to-game. In his final two games of the season, Joiner scored a combined 48 points in order to enter this season as an elite SEC guard.
"It's unbelievable the amount of improvement he's made from this time last year," Davis said. "His assist-to-turnover ratio is almost 3-to-1. That's what good guards do. His leadership has grown. He practices at such a high level. His body has changed. He's going to be one of the better guards in the SEC."
Defensively, the Rebels held opponents to 63.6 points per game while doing enough offensively to win 16 games a year ago. This time around, a change of offensive game plan across the board could prove wonders leading up to their season opener.
"We need to have more possessions," Davis said. "Last year, we had to win with defensive things and rebounding. We need to have a bigger number of possessions. I think our team is faster in transition as a whole. We're shooting it better. I think the biggest thing is to play fast, smart and unselfish. If you do those things with great toughness, now you have a great product."
With the return of Luis Rodriguez, Austin Crowley and Matthew Murrell at guard and Robert Allen and Sammy Hunter down low, a slew of new faces from high school and the transfer portal headline this year's roster, something that isn't exactly new given the recent history of college basketball.
"I've said this, but it's going to be the new norm," Davis said. "We have five transfers and eight high schoolers. I've got a decent idea now, but you don't know until you see them every single day. Now you get them every day. You can understand basketball IQ more and get guys to really catch on. That's a huge part of young guys, thinking on the court. Some guys pick it up quicker than others. Over the next two weeks, we're trying to understand what we can do defensively and find our strengths offensively. Then, we decide our depth charts."
The school's first McDonald's All-American signee, Daeshun Ruffin, is expected to make an immediate impact despite a recent injury, along with another former five-star, Duke transfer Jaemyn Brakefield.
The latter was nearly a Rebel earlier in his basketball career, and the previous relationship with Davis brought him back to his home state.
"Very skilled. He can shoot. He's been a good passer, very good teammate, likable guy," Davis said. "He loves Ole Miss. Happy players play better. He's a happy player. He can't wait for The Pavilion to fill up and start playing."
Brakefield bring versatility and experience after one year at Duke, and the Jackson, Mississippi, native is happy to be back home.
"I knew exactly where I was going to go," Brakefield mentioned when talking about his decision to enter the transfer portal. "It made it easy coming back home, being a guy that can help us be a tournament team, just be a guy that can do it all. I'm very versatile and can help a team be more than an average team."
Other transfers include Nysier Brooks from Miami and Tye Fagan from SEC foe Georgia. Highly touted freshmen like Grant Slatten, Eric Van Der Heijden and James White add to a roster that is set to build off last season's strong finish and take another run towards the big dance.
"All of these newcomers have a work ethic behind them," Joiner said. "They know that we're trying to get something done. They understand the culture of what we're trying to build and they fit in right perfectly."
On November 5, the Rebels will face off against Trevecca in an exhibition before officially tipping off the regular season in the SJB Pavilion against New Orleans on November 9. Both game times will be determined at a later date.
For the latest news and updates regarding Ole Miss Men's Basketball, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMBB, on Facebook at Ole Miss Men's Basketball and on Instagram at olemissmbb.
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