The University of Mississippi Athletics
Culture Week Sweep: Men’s Hoops Takes Down NC State, Memphis
12/4/2023 | Men's Basketball
OXFORD, Miss. – When Chris Beard took over the Ole Miss men's basketball program, he and his staff set out to establish a winning culture in Oxford. If the results of Culture Week were any indication, they're well on their way to doing just that.
Beard's squad welcomed NC State and Memphis to the Sandy and John Black Pavilion at Ole Miss last week, dubbing it Culture Week with two marquee non-conference opponents in town. The Ole Miss fan base stepped up and created an electric atmosphere as a total of 16,881 fans played a part in two victories.
The Rebel club first drubbed NC State, 72-52, as part of the ACC/SEC Challenge in front of 7,465 on Tuesday night.
Jaemyn Brakefield took over with a career-high 25 points as Ole Miss started the game on a 14-3 run and never looked back. Allen Flanigan, Jaylen Murray and Matthew Murrell all chipped in on that opening surge and each finished in double figures.
After the big win over an ACC foe, Rebel Nation came through with a sellout crowd of 9,416, just under the facility record of 9,500 and the most since hitting that mark vs. Kentucky on March 5, 2019.
Memphis brought a talented team down I-55, sitting just outside of the Top 25, ranking 26th in both national polls coming into the game, and Ole Miss found itself in a tightly contested battle featuring three ties and six lead changes. The Tigers led 37-30 at halftime, but the Rebels leaned on their raucous crowd and battled back.
Then, they leaned on their usual suspects to take control. Memphis still led by four at the 4:00 mark when Murrell knocked down a clutch three to put him at 20 on the night. Flanigan then gave Ole Miss the lead as he notched 18 points in the game. The Tigers answered, but Murray responded right back with a triple to make it a 75-73 game. Ole Miss never trailed from then on as Murray scored twice more to finish with 22 in the 80-77 final.
Next Up: Non-Conference Continues
After the pair of resume-building wins, Ole Miss is out to a 7-0 start for just the fourth time in program history.
Beard and Co. now look ahead at the remainder of their non-conference slate, beginning Tuesday night at the SJB Pavilion vs. Mount St. Mary's at 7 p.m. CT.
Single-game non-conference tickets are on sale now through the Ole Miss ticket office. The Rebels have three home non-conference games left on their slate: this week vs. Mount St. Mary's, Dec. 19 vs. Troy and Dec. 31 vs. Bryant.
Single-game tickets for SEC games go on sale starting December 6. Ole Miss opens its home conference slate on Jan. 10 vs. Florida. Visit OleMissTix.com to see the home SEC slate.
Beard's squad welcomed NC State and Memphis to the Sandy and John Black Pavilion at Ole Miss last week, dubbing it Culture Week with two marquee non-conference opponents in town. The Ole Miss fan base stepped up and created an electric atmosphere as a total of 16,881 fans played a part in two victories.
The Rebel club first drubbed NC State, 72-52, as part of the ACC/SEC Challenge in front of 7,465 on Tuesday night.
Jaemyn Brakefield took over with a career-high 25 points as Ole Miss started the game on a 14-3 run and never looked back. Allen Flanigan, Jaylen Murray and Matthew Murrell all chipped in on that opening surge and each finished in double figures.
Keep Building 📈#HottyToddy | #Culture pic.twitter.com/hv5xYzbb4L
— Ole Miss Men's Basketball (@OleMissMBB) November 29, 2023
Thank You Ole Miss STUDENTS @UMClubRed & #RebelNation for your support tonight vs a talented NC State team. 6-0. Let's do it again Saturday 1pm tip-off at The Pavilion. #WinInTheSip#HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/ujIabLeM39
— Chris Beard (@CoachBeard) November 29, 2023
🗣️ S-E-C
— Ole Miss Men's Basketball (@OleMissMBB) November 30, 2023
🗣️ S-E-C
🗣️ S-E-C#HottyToddy | #BuildTheCulture pic.twitter.com/v7XVqJU8nc
All Gas, No Brakes ⛽️ pic.twitter.com/lrWm0a0yPq
— Ole Miss Men's Basketball (@OleMissMBB) November 29, 2023
After the big win over an ACC foe, Rebel Nation came through with a sellout crowd of 9,416, just under the facility record of 9,500 and the most since hitting that mark vs. Kentucky on March 5, 2019.
Memphis brought a talented team down I-55, sitting just outside of the Top 25, ranking 26th in both national polls coming into the game, and Ole Miss found itself in a tightly contested battle featuring three ties and six lead changes. The Tigers led 37-30 at halftime, but the Rebels leaned on their raucous crowd and battled back.
Then, they leaned on their usual suspects to take control. Memphis still led by four at the 4:00 mark when Murrell knocked down a clutch three to put him at 20 on the night. Flanigan then gave Ole Miss the lead as he notched 18 points in the game. The Tigers answered, but Murray responded right back with a triple to make it a 75-73 game. Ole Miss never trailed from then on as Murray scored twice more to finish with 22 in the 80-77 final.
Saturday 𝗥𝗲𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗱 ⏮
— Ole Miss Men's Basketball (@OleMissMBB) December 4, 2023
See you again tomorrow? ⏩#HottyToddy | #Culture pic.twitter.com/WtesXB5IQO
7-0. Thank You STUDENTS & Rebel Nation. Let's do it again Tuesday 7pm tip. #HottyToddy#WinInTheSip pic.twitter.com/Dqra8o7248
— Chris Beard (@CoachBeard) December 3, 2023
The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year#CultureWeek | #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/ZieGkmaLVO
— Ole Miss Men's Basketball (@OleMissMBB) December 2, 2023
JUJUUUUUUUUUUU 👌@JSMurray10 | #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/qt8MHjsceS
— Ole Miss Men's Basketball (@OleMissMBB) December 2, 2023
Next Up: Non-Conference Continues
After the pair of resume-building wins, Ole Miss is out to a 7-0 start for just the fourth time in program history.
Beard and Co. now look ahead at the remainder of their non-conference slate, beginning Tuesday night at the SJB Pavilion vs. Mount St. Mary's at 7 p.m. CT.
Single-game non-conference tickets are on sale now through the Ole Miss ticket office. The Rebels have three home non-conference games left on their slate: this week vs. Mount St. Mary's, Dec. 19 vs. Troy and Dec. 31 vs. Bryant.
Single-game tickets for SEC games go on sale starting December 6. Ole Miss opens its home conference slate on Jan. 10 vs. Florida. Visit OleMissTix.com to see the home SEC slate.
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