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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
South Carolina
Ole Miss Returns Home to Host No. 1 South Carolina for Senior Day Sunday
2/26/2022 | Women's Basketball
Shakira Austin, Donnetta Johnson, Iyanla Kitchens, Lashonda Monk, Andeija Pucket & Mimi Reid Pregame
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OLE MISS (22-6, 10-5 SEC) vs. No. 1 SOUTH CAROLINA (26-1, 14-1 SEC) Sunday, February 27 • 1 p.m. CT • Oxford, Miss. SJB Pavilion  |
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Ole Miss Game Notes • SEC Game Notes |
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OXFORD, Miss. – One final home game remains, as Ole Miss returns to the SJB Pavilion to host No. 1 South Carolina Sunday (Feb. 27) for Senior Day. Ole Miss will honor Shakira Austin, Donnetta Johnson, Iyanla Kitchens, Lashonda Monk, Andeija Pucket and Mimi Reid prior to the 1 p.m. tip airing nationally on SEC Network.
TEAM FACTS
Ole Miss Rebels (22-6, 10-5 SEC)
Head Coach: Yolett McPhee-McCuin • 4th Season at Ole Miss (53-63) • 147-125 career record (9th Season)
South Carolina Gamecocks (26-1, 14-1 SEC)
Head Coach: Dawn Staley • 14th Season at USC (357-104) • 529-184 career record (22nd Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: SEC Network
Play by Play: Eric Frede
Analyst: Christy Thomaskutty
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Graham Doty
SERIES NOTES South Carolina holds the advantage 24-17 in the series that dates back to 1978. The Gamecocks have claimed the last 14 matchups in the series, with Ole Miss last picking up a win 64-63 at the 2010 SEC Tournament.
The last time the Rebels came away with a win against the Gamecocks was in 2009 with a one point 66-65 victory.
This will be the fourth meeting between the Rebels and the Gamecocks with South Carolina ranked as the No. 1 team in the nation.
FIRST MEETING
• 11/25/78 - UM, 84-76 - at Cookville
LAST MEETING
• 02/25/21 - USC, 68-43 - in Columbia
SCOUTING THE GAMECOCKS
The Gamecocks still remain the top team in the nation, winning their last 14 straight contests and have picked up 11 wins against ranked opponents this year.
South Carolina has already clinched the SEC Regular Season Title, with a record of 14-1 in conference.
Aliyah Boston has proven why she is one of the best players in the nation with 20 straight double-doubles to break the SEC record.
LAST TIME OUT
The Rebels started off hot in the first quarter at Auburn with a quick 17-0 run to go up 19-2 through the first frame.
It was an all around team win as Snudda Collins popped off from three on her way to a season-high performance. Collins shot a career-tying high five triples, finishing with a game leading 20 points.
Shakira Austin and Angel Baker also added double-figure points as the Rebels went up by as many as 31 in the third quarter on the way to the 72-52 victory.
4x100
Mimi Reid has been one of the SEC's best passers in her four years in Oxford, as the Bronx, N.Y., native ranks second in active career assists in the SEC with a total of 463.
Reid is four assists away from reaching 100 assists in a season for four straight years.
AGAINST NO. 1
If Ole Miss were to defeat the Gamecocks Sunday it would be program's second win all-time against an opponent ranked No. 1.
The 1977 Rebels defeated the eventual national champions then No. 1 Delta State in a tight 73-72 victory in Oxford.
BLOCKING HER WAY TO THE TOP
Shakira Austin loves a good rejection here and there as with three blocks on Thursday she tallied her 53rd career game with multiple blocks.
Austin is six blocks away for the fifth most in program history in a single season.
STAYING HOT
There was something about the floor in Auburn Arena that hit right for the Rebels, shooting at a blistering 50 percent clip through four quarters.
It was the Rebels best field goal percentage against an SEC opponent in over three seasons.
FOLLOW THE FOOTSTEPS
Off the glass, Shakira Austin has been on a tear recently with 15 boards at Vanderbilt and then 16 against Arkansas. The 16 were the most by a Rebel in a game this year.
Shakira is the only Rebel to snag 15+ boards in back-to-back games since assistant coach Armintie (Price) Herrington in 2003.
PROTECT THE RIM
Against Arkansas, Madison Scott led the Rebels with a career-high four blocks as the team finished with a total of nine for the most in an SEC game this season.
SEC WINS JUST MEAN MORE
With its 10th SEC victory, Ole Miss tied the most in a season in the last 20 years.
The Rebels had not reached double-digit wins in SEC play since the 1991-92 season where the Rebels went 11-0 in conference play.
ASSISTING ON AND OFF THE COURT
Redshirt senior Mimi Reid has been a fixture throughout the Oxford community in her five years at Ole Miss and on Wednesday, Reid was named to the SEC Community Service Team.
Reid has spent time with numerous organizations through the community, assisting to gather items for the Feed the Sip Food drive, and working with the Boys and Girls Club of Oxford.
HISTORY HAPPENS HERE
The win over the Commodores on Sunday was just another milestone set by the Rebels during the 2021-22 campaign as Ole Miss reached 20 wins for the first time since the 2006-07 season for the 20th, 20 win season in program history.
EXCELLENT GLASS CLEANERS
There's a reason why Ole Miss has rebounded its opponents in over half of its games this year, against Auburn proved to be no different.
Ole Miss outrebounded its opponent for the 18th time this season, and cleaned up on the boards by a margin of 22+ at Auburn.
This was the third time this year that Ole Miss has outrebounded its opponent by a margin of 15 or more in SEC play and the sixth time this season.
Six games with a 15+ rebound margin is the most in the last 10 seasons.
HOLDING IT DOWN
Aggressive defense by the Rebels assisted them to keeping Vanderbilt to only a mere 47 points in Sunday's matchup.
The Commodores are the latest victims to the Rebel defense, being the 10th Ole Miss opponent to be kept under 50 points this season as the program record is extended.
WE LIKE TO MIX THINGS UP
Head Coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin loves to tinker with her lineup at Vanderbilt was her 11th different starting rotation this season.
The combination of Mimi Reid, Destiny Salary, Madison Scott, Snudda Collins and Shakira Austin has been the most successful this year with a perfect record of 6-0.
KIRA'S WORLD
There was no stopping Shakira Austin against the Commodores, as the senior almost single handedly outrebounded Vanderbilt as a team herself.
Austin grabbed a then season-high 15 rebounds and added her eighth 20 point performance of the season with a total of 22.
She is the only Rebel in the last seven seasons to notch 20 points and 15 boards in a single game.
THAT'S 50
The win over the Aggies marked an important milestone Thursday night for head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin with her 50th win as the head coach at Ole Miss.
McPhee-McCuin continues along one of the best campaigns of her coaching career and is two wins away from tying her career season-high of wins in a season at 24.
SWEET SWEEP
From start to finish, Ole Miss maintained complete control over Texas A&M to claim its second win of the season over the Aggies.
It was the first victory over the Aggies at home since 2017, and the first regular season sweep of A&M in progrma history.
YOU GET A BUCKET! & YOU GET A BUCKET!
It was an all around scoring affair against Texas A&M as 10 Rebels made their way to the bucket.
For the second game in conference play, Ole Miss accomplished this task with 10 scoring with both games against Texas A&M.
THE ACCOLADES CONTINUE
For the second straight year, Shakira Austin has found herself named to the Lisa Leslie Award Top- 10 Watch List as one of the nation's best centers.
Austin was also recently named to the Wooden Award Late Season Top-20 List and the Naismith Award Midseason Team.
1K x 2
With the first rebound of the game against Texas A&M, Shakira Austin hit the 1,000 career rebound mark 118 games into her career. She is the only active player in the SEC with 1,000 career boards.
Austin eclipsing 1,000, makes her one of seven active players in Division I with 1,500 career points and 1,000 career rebounds.
DOMINANT OFF THE GLASS
Madison Scott was on a tear off the glass against LSU, grabbing a season-high 15 rebounds against the Tigers. Scott finished one shy of her career-high of 16 set last season.
Scott and Austin are the only Rebels in the last five seasons to grab 15+ boards in a single game and Scott's done it twice in her two years in Oxford.
THREAT AROUND THE RIM
The effectiveness of the Rebel defense can be seen around the rim with 11 games this season with five plus blocks as a team.
This sets the most games in a single season with five or more blocks under McPhee-McCuin.
QUIET IN CoMo
Coming in as the nation's fourth best team in field goal percentage, Ole Miss made sure of it that the Tigers could not find the basket, only allowing 45 points.
It marked the fewest points allowed in an SEC road game since January 12, 1991 in a 67-41 win at Mississippi State.
The Rebels also kept Mizzou scoreless from three, for the first time in 14 seasons that the Tigers went a game without a triple.
ANY TIME. ANY PLACE.
With the victory at Missouri, the Rebels moved to 8-1 on the road to set the most wins away from home for the program in the 21st century.
The win at Auburn tied the most road wins in a season since 1993-94 at nine.
NO THREE'S HERE
In three SEC games, the Rebels have been a threat against teams attempting to get shots up beyond the arc, with Florida, Kentucky and Missouri unable to hit a triple against the Rebels.
This is the only time in 20 seasons in which Ole Miss has held three SEC opponents scoreless from beyond the arc.
CAN'T GET PAST THIS
Ole Miss loves to take the ball away from its opponents and for the 14th game this year the Rebels recorded double-digit steals against Missouri.
The 14 games in double-figures are the most in a single season in the McPhee-McCuin era.
AGAINST RANKED TEAMS
Ole Miss has knocked off a top-10 opponent 29 times in program history, and have defeated a top-25 team a total of 87 times.
When the Rebels are ranked, Ole Miss boasts a record of 314-107 for a .745 winning percentage.
LONE STAR STATE-MENT
The history books keep being rewritten, as Ole Miss checked off another milestone during the 2021-22 campaign, with its first road win against Texas A&M in the 80-63 victory from Bryan-College Station.
The Ole Miss defense cashed in off of A&M turnovers for a total of 25 points. While the Aggies couldn't hold onto the ball, the Rebels did an exceptional job of taking care of it with a season-low six turnovers.
CASHING IN
Making its opponents pay for its mistakes has been a theme for Ole Miss during conference play, as the Rebels are averaging 15.7 points per game off of turnovers.
In three out of 15 SEC games, Ole Miss has returned its opponents turnovers for 25 or more points. At Texas A&M, the Rebels returned Aggie turnovers for 25 points, while the Aggies were only able to score two.
1,500 CLUB
While Lashonda Monk hit the 1,500 career point milestone last month, Shakira Austin and Angel Baker eclipsed the mark with 11 and 20 points against LSU.
The three are one of 82 active players in Division I with 1,500 career points. Ole Miss is only one of four programs nationally with three 1,500 point scorers on its roster.
CRASH THE BOARDS
Off the glass against Mississippi State in Oxford, Ole Miss dominated the Bulldogs off the boards by a margin of 20 more at 43 to 23. This was the Rebels third game this season with a rebounding margin of 20 or more.
The feat against the Bulldogs was the largest rebounding margin against an SEC team since facing Vanderbilt in January of 2007, where the Rebels outrebounded the Commodores by 20. Former Rebel and current assistant coach, Armintie Herrington (Price) led Ole Miss in that game with a total of 11 rebounds.
Ole Miss bested this once again this season, outrebounding Auburn by a margin of +22 on The Plains.
TIDE. ROLLED.
The high-flying Rebel offense contributed to another historic mark set against Alabama, as Ole Miss claimed its second straight win in the series.
The 30 point margin of victory against the Crimson Tide was the largest margin of victory against an SEC opponent in 13 seasons. The 2008-2009 Rebels defeated Alabama by 30 points in Oxford.
ALL OUT EFFORT
Through 15 SEC games, Ole Miss is forcing an average of 16.6 turnovers per game. Six out of 15 conference opponents have turned the ball over 20 or more times, with Florida surrendering an SEC opponent high of 25, followed by Tennessee with 22 and then Alabama with 21 in three consecutive games
The last time the Rebels forced 20+ turnovers in three straight games, was in 2017 in non-conference games against Middle Tennessee, Arkansas State and South Alabama.
TAKING CARE OF THE BALL
Not only are the Rebels one of the best teams in the SEC in terms of taking the ball away from its opponents, they also continue to prove that they can take care of it as well.
They love to win the turnover battle, as the Rebels currently place second in the SEC with an average of 4.50 turnovers less than their opponent each game. This also ranks 34th in all of Division I.
Against Texas A&M, in Bryan-College Station the six turnovers surrendered to the Aggies, were the fewest in any game this season by the Rebels.
SHE'S STOLEN OUR HEARTS
There's a reason why Lashonda Monk ranks second in the nation in active career steals with a total of 434.
The graduate transfer has a total of 59 so far this season, and recorded a steal in each of the first nine games this season.
After Monk picked up her 400th steal against Alabama, she became of 31 in NCAA history to join the 400 steal club.
With two steals at Mississippi State, Monk cracked the top-20 in NCAA history.
WORK HARD, GET REWARDED
With 15 trips to the line against Florida, Shakira Austin capitalized off of going hard in the paint to ultimately knock down 10 free throws.
She followed this up the next game against No. 7 Tennessee with 12 trips to the line, to knock down 10 free throws.
Austin's 15 free throw attempts tie the most in a single-game by any SEC player this season. She ranks second in the conference in attempts at 166 and first in makes at 111.
SHINING AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS
With 26 points against No. 7 Tennessee, Shakira Austin loves to pour it on against ranked opponents.
In her 15 games against ranked opponents as a Rebel, she is currently averaging 17.1 points and 9.2 rebounds per game.
Ole Miss recorded a season-high 18 steals at Florida, for the most steals in against an SEC opponent since facing Alabama in the 2007 SEC Tournament. The Rebels have recorded double-digit steals in 15 of 28 games this season.
The Rebels have accumulated a total of 274 steals this season ranking second in the SEC and 24th in Division I.
BLOCK PARTY QUEEN
With her first two of three blocks at Hofstra, Shakira Austin eclipsed the 200 career block mark.
Austin currently ranks fifth in the SEC and 13th nationally with a total of 229 blocks throughout her four year career.
The senior was a menace against the Crimson Tide, with a season-high seven blocks. The seven deflections were also the most by any Rebel in a single game this year.
DEFENSE > OFFENSE
The Rebels continue to slow down their opponents at a record pace, as 28 games into the season Ole Miss has held 20 opponents under 50 points for a program record.
Ole Miss currently ranks No. 22 nationally in scoring defense and second in the SEC, allowing an average of 55.1 points per game.
The pressure on the opposite side of the ball has proven to be too much, as the Rebels rank second in the conference forcing an average of 18.93 turnovers per game.
WE DEFEND
Defense is the name of the Rebel game and for three games in a row against San Diego State, Cal and New Orleans, Ole Miss held each opponent under 50 points.
The feat was last accomplished by the Rebels in January of 1991 holding Jackson State, Mississippi State and Prairie View A&M under 50 points each.
OFF THE LINE
Three-point defense has been a point of emphasis during the Coach Yo era, with 70 of 109 opponents being held to five or fewer.
1st Season (2018-19)
17-of-31 (54.8%)
2nd Season (2019-20)
21-of-30 (70.0%)
3rd Season (2020-21)
14-of-22 (63.6 %)
4th Season (2021-22)
20-of-28 (71.4%)
DEFENSE ON LOCK
The Rebels have been unstoppable on the defensive side of the ball, holding their opponents to an average of 55.2 points per game.
The 44 points allowed to the Lady Techsters was the first time since the 2011-2012 season that Ole Miss kept its opponents under 50 points in back-to-back games. The Rebels followed this up again, keeping San Diego State and Cal under the mark as well.
The Lady Techsters were also held to just a mere 2 points in the second quarter, the fewest amount of points allowed by the Rebels in a quarter since the women's game moved to the format in 2015-2016.
SHARING IS CARING
The Rebels continue to drop dimes at a record pace, recording their eighth 20 plus assist against Texas A&M with 22.
Lashonda Monk tied a career-high with nine against the New Orleans, tying the most in a single-game by a Rebel in 2021.
ALL THE WAY UP
Powered by Shakira Austin, the Rebels were absolutely dominant on both sides of the boards, outrebounding their opponents by an average of 20.5 rebounds against Lamar and LA Tech.
The last time the Rebels accomplished this feat was in 2008, out rebounding Alcorn State and Nicholls State by 21 and 22 rebounds a piece.
OLE MISS EARNS PROGRAM WIN NO. 850
The Rebel win vs. Samford in the First Round of the WNIT marked the 850th win in program history. All-time, Ole Miss is currently 852-583 (.594) in 46 years of NCAA Division I competition. Entering the 2020-21 season, only 44 programs have eclipsed the 850-win threshold.
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
