The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Florida
Men's Basketball to Take on Florida Wednesday Night
2/14/2023 | Men's Basketball
The Rebels will look to pick up a road win over the Gators on the SEC Network at 5:30 p.m. CT
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OLE MISS (10-15, 2-10 SEC) at FLORIDA (13-12, 6-6 SEC) Wednesday, Feb. 15 • 5:30 p.m. CT • Gainesville, Fla. Exatech Arena (10,151)  |
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Watch • Live Stats • Listen
Ole Miss Game Notes • Florida Game Notes • SEC Game Notes |
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Ole Miss men's basketball team will hit the road to face the Florida Gators on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. CT on the SEC Network.
TEAM FACTS
Ole Miss Rebels (10-15, 2-10 SEC)
Head Coach: Kermit Davis • 5th Season at Ole Miss (74-76) • 543-339 career record (28th Season)
Florida Gators (13-12, 6-6 SEC)
Head Coach: Todd Golden • 1st Season at Florida (13-12) • 70-48 career record (4th Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: SEC Network
Play-by-Play: Dave Neal
Color: Jon Sundvold
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: David Kellum
Color: Marc Dukes
SERIES HISTORY VS. FLORIDA
Wednesday's matchup will be the 118th meeting between Ole Miss and Florida, with the Gators owning a 69-48 lead in the all-time series. The home team owns the advantage on each campus, as Florida leads in Gainesville 41 wins to 13, and the Rebels lead 31 wins to 23. The Gators have gotten the better of Ole Miss recently, as they lead 7-3 over the last 10 and have won four of six under current Rebels head coach Kermit Davis.
LAST MEETING: FEBRUARY 5, 2022 (L, 57-62 (OT), GAINESVILLE, FLA.)
• The second meeting of the 2021-22 season, Florida came out on top after Ole Miss won the first matchup.
• The Rebels stormed out the gate, owning a nine point lead midway through the first half before taking a 30-21 advantage into the locker room for halftime. Trailing by six with three and a half minutes left in regulation, Ole Miss came back to force overtime after Tye Fagan made a jumper down low. However, the Rebels would fall in the extra five-minute period.
• Fagan led Ole Miss with 15 points, adding five rebounds, two steals and a block to his line. Matthew Murrell (14 points) and Nysier Brooks (11 points) scored in double figures as well.
• The leading scorer for Florida during the current 2022-23 season, Colin Castleton led the Gators during this game with 17 points and seven rebounds. Tyree Appleby recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 assists.
SCOUTING THE GATORS
Florida enters Wednesday night's game with a 13-12 overall record, and an even 6-6 mark in conference play. They began their inaugural season under head coach Todd Golden with a pair of wins over Stony Brook and Kennesaw State before falling to Florida Atlantic. After defeating Florida State, the Gators went 1-2 at the Phil Knight Legacy tournament with a win over Oregon State and losses to Xavier and West Virginia. Entering their SEC opener at No. 20 Auburn with a 7-5 record, they lost two straight before defeating Georgia, LSU and Missouri. A loss to Texas A&M came before wins over Mississippi State and South Carolina, before Florida fell to No. 5 Kansas State in the SEC-Big 12 Challenge. Following a 67-54 upset over No. 2 Tennessee, Florida lost three-straight to Kentucky, No. 3 Alabama, and Vanderbilt.
The team is led by fifth-year forward Colin Castleton with a 16.5 points per game average on the season, pacing the team in rebounding as well at 7.9 per outing. The big man also ranks second on the team in assists with 67, and leads the team in steals (23) and blocks (an SEC-best 75, and fourth-most in the nation).
Paced by Castleton, the Gators rank fifth in the country and lead the conference with 5.8 blocks per game. They also rank among the top-100 in defensive rebounds per game (27.6, No. 21 NCAA), opponent field goal percentage (40.2, No. 26 NCAA), turnovers per game (11.1, No. 43 NCAA), free throws made per game (15.0, No. 48 NCAA), and free throw attempts per game (20.5, No. 60 NCAA). Florida has had difficulty shooting from deep this year, as they enter Wednesday's game ranked 308th in the NCAA with a 31.4 shooting percentage from three, and grabbing offensive rebounds, as they enter ranked last in the SEC at 8.5 per game.
A DEFENSIVE GOAT
Recording a steal in the closing moments of the first half against Missouri, senior transfer Myles Burns collected the 400th steal of his collegiate career. Joining the Ole Miss program from Loyola New Orleans of the NAIA, Burns brought 358 steals from his four-time NAIA All-American career and has collected 53 since coming to Oxford. Counting his stats from the NAIA, Burns would become just the sixth person in NCAA men's basketball history across all divisions to collect 400 career steals. He is currently on pace to surpass 60 steals this season, and would become the first Rebel to hit that mark since Jason Smith had 73 in 1999.
400 Career NCAA Steals List
1. Calvin Cheek, New England Col. (III), 2017-22: 580 steals
2. Jacob Gilyard, Richmond (I), 2017-22: 466 steals
3. Tennyson Whitted, Ramapo (III), 1999-2003: 448 steals
4. Jonte Flowers, Winona St. (II), 2004-08: 414 steals
5. John Gallogly, Salve Regina (III), 1994-98: 413 steals
*Myles Burns - 411 steals (including stats from NAIA)
MB2K
Myles Burns scored 1,852 points during his career at Loyola New Orleans, and surpassed the 2,000-career points mark on February 4 at Vanderbilt with a dunk on an alley-oop. If his NAIA stats transferred to the NCAA, he would be one of just five active players across all divisions in college basketball with at least 2,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds. Other active student-athletes with at least 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds are Jayden Gardner (Virginia), KJ Williams (LSU), Kevin Obanor (Texas Tech), and Jordan Janssen (Wayne St. (NE)).
Burns would also be just one of three active players across all divisions with at least 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, 100 steals, and 100 blocks in their career. Janssen of Wayne St. (NE) and Williams of LSU would be the only other active members of that club.
Myles Burns Collegiate Career Totals
Games Played: 145
Games Started: 133
Points: 2,033 (14.0/game)
Rebounds: 1,225 (8.5/game)
Steals: 411 (2.8/game)
Assists: 329 (2.3/game)
Blocks: 128 (0.9/game)
BLOCK PARTY
The Ole Miss defense currently averages 68.1 points allowed per game, only letting their opponents top 70 points eight times this year. A major part of their defensive identity has been enforcing the paint, as the Rebels rank 39th in the country in blocks per game (4.5). They are led down low by senior transfers Theo Akwuba (30 total blocks, 1.2 per game) and Jayveous McKinnis (27 total blocks, 1.1 per game).
On January 3 at No. 7 Alabama, Akwuba and McKinnis combined for seven blocks, with Akwuba's four bringing his collegiate career total to 200 (now at 212). He and McKinnis (259 career blocks) are the only two teammates in college basketball with over 200 swats in their careers, and each rank among the top-10 in active career leaders.
IT'S MISTER STEAL-YOUR-PASS
Fifth-year transfer Myles Burns has been a defensive powerhouse this season for the Rebels, collecting 53 steals on the season. Entering the game at Florida, Burns sits on the edge of the top-10 for the most steals in a single season in program history.
Ole Miss Basketball - Most Steals in a Single Season
1. 89 Gerald Glass (30 games, 1989)
2. 73 Jason Smith (33 games, 1999)
3. 70 Gerald Glass (30 games, 1990)
4. 58 Murphy Holloway (36 games, 2013)
Rod Barnes (29 games, 1988)
6. 57 Stefan Moody (34 games, 2015)
7. 56 Devontae Shuler (33 games, 2019)
8. 55 Rahim Lockhart (33 games, 2000)
Ervin Garnes (27 games, 1994)
Eric Laird (28 games, 1984)
* 53 Myles Burns (25 games, 2023)
THROUGH THE FIRE
Ole Miss has faced off with some of the best competition college basketball has to offer, as the Rebels current strength of schedule ranks 19th in the nation. With a combined opponent record of 369-236 (0.610), they have taken on 13 foes with a current NET ranking in the top-100, including 10 in the top-50 and two in the top-five.
20-20 VISION
On February 7 at Georgia, Jaemyn Brakefield and Myles Burns each hit the 20-point mark in the Rebels' 78-74 road victory. Coming off the first double-double of his career at Vanderbilt, Brakefield led Ole Miss with a career-high 24 points on 11-15 shooting, adding seven rebounds and tying his season-best with four assists. Burns loaded the box score with a season-high 20 points as well as six rebounds, an assist, two steals, and a block. This was the first game Ole Miss had two hit the 20-point threshold since January 24, 2022, when Matthew Murrell (20 points) and Daeshun Ruffin (21 points) did so in a 70-54 win over Florida.
ANOTHER ONE
With an average of 12.1 offensive rebounds per game, the Rebels have been among the best in the country in earning second chances on the glass, currently ranking 40th in the nation. The team is led by senior transfer Myles Burns with 57 offensive rebounds (2.3 per game).
THEM REBS MOVE FAST
Ole Miss has been quick to react on defensive rebounds and turnovers, outscoring their opponents on fast-break opportunities by 88 this season (255-167). The Rebels has recorded more fast-break points than the other team in 18 of their 25 games.
THE MAGIC NUMBER IS 20
Junior guard Matthew Murrell has scored 20 or more points six times this season, and averages 14.3 per game. A large part of his offense has come from deep, as he has made 43 threes on the year. Over a four-game stretch against Mississippi State, Auburn, Georgia, and South Carolina from Jan. 7-17, Murrell averaged 19.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game, while shooting 44.1% from the field and connecting on 10 threes.
DEEP POCKETS
The Rebels' depth has been on full display this season, as the Ole Miss bench has accounted for over a third of the team's scoring through 25 games (34.8%, 586 of 1,686 points). The Rebs have topped their opponents in bench points in 17 contests, and are outscoring their foes' benches by 140 on the year (586 to 446).
BEST OF THE BEST
Ole Miss' four senior transfers are among some of the best returning big men in all of college basketball. Jayveous McKinnis stands as one of the best in the nation this year, currently fifth in total rebounds (1,108), fifth in total blocks (259), eighth in career double-doubles (39), 12th in rebounds per game (8.7), 13th in blocks per game (2.0) and 28th in field goal shooting (.611). McKinnis is one of just 12 active players in all of college basketball with 1,000 career rebounds alongside South Alabama's Kevin Samuel, North Carolina's Armando Bacot, Kentucky's Oscar Tshiebwe, Nicholls' Manny Littles, Lipscomb's Ahsan Asadullah, LSU's KJ Williams, Iowa's Filip Rebraca, San Diego's Eric Williams Jr., Texas Tech's Kevin Obanor, Virginia's Jayden Gardner, and Indiana's Trayce Jackson-Davis. He is also just one of ten, alongside Samuel, Bacot, Tshiebwe, Asadullah, Williams, Rebraca, Obanor, Williams Jr., and Gardner with 1,000 career points (1,207) and 1,000 career rebounds.
Ole Miss ranks highly on the career blocks list with two top-10 entries. McKinnis ranks fifth at 259 swats, while Theo Akwuba is 10th at 212. Ole Miss stands as the only school with multiple top-10 active blockers and is the only school with two within the top-25. The Rebel trio of McKinnis (39, No. 8), Mballa (29, No. 17) and Akwuba (17) combine for 85 career double-doubles, with McKinnis and Mballa owning the second-most by a pair of teammates at 68 behind Texas Tech's Almaq (41) and Obanor (37) at 78.
* Note: Myles Burns' 1,069 career rebounds while at NAIA Loyola New Orleans do not transfer over to the NCAA records lists, but he would rank third in the nation at 1,225 if they did and give Ole Miss a combined 4,567 boards between Burns (1,225), McKinnis (1,108), Mballa (827), Robert Allen (707), and Akwuba (700). Burns' combined career total of 2,033 points would also rank No. 32 among all NCAA divisions.
AIN'T WASTING TIME NO MORE
With eight new faces for Ole Miss this season, the Rebel newcomers have been seeing serious minutes and contributing in all major stat categories.
Newcomer Splits:
Minutes: 51.8% (2,588 of 5,000)
Scoring: 46.3% (780 of 1,686)
Rebounding: 50.9% (464 of 911)
Assists: 44.0% (144 of 327)
Steals: 58.4% (101 of 173)
Blocks: 77.9% (88 of 113)
They've also accounted for at least half the scoring in eight games this season.
vs. Stanford: 48 of 72 (66.7%)
vs. Siena: 37 of 74 (50.0%)
vs. Stanford: 39 of 55 (70.1%)
at Memphis: 32 of 57 (56.1%)
vs. UCF: 38 of 61 (62.3%)
vs. Georgia: 31 of 58 (53.5%)
vs. Kentucky: 48 of 66 (72.7%)
at Vanderbilt: 39 of 71 (54.9%)
DAVIS ERA TRENDS TO WATCH
• 60-25 when leading at half
• 6-0 when scoring 90+, 30-4 when scoring 80+, 58-25 when scoring 70+
• 52-22 when winning the rebounding battle
• 33-5 when at 50 percent shooting or better
• 21-8 when shooting 40 percent or better from three
• 40-9 when keeping opponents below 40 percent shooting
EXPERIENCE FROM THE PORTAL
Ole Miss went into the portal looking for experienced big men, and came away with four of the most well-seasoned options available. Those four senior transfers -- F Theo Akwuba, F Myles Burns, F Josh Mballa and F Jayveous McKinnis -- hold an incredible combined career stat lines across their respective careers prior to Ole Miss:
Combined Career Stats (NAIA included for Burns):
• 516 games played
• 386 games started
• 5,132 points
• 3,860 rebounds
• 684 steals (411 from Burns alone)
• 674 blocks
