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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Georgia
Men's Basketball Remains on Road to Face Georgia
2/6/2023 | Men's Basketball
The Rebels look for revenge against Georgia after losing their first matchup of the season in January by four
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OLE MISS (9-14, 1-9 SEC) at GEORGIA (14-9, 4-6 SEC) Tuesday, Feb. 7 • 6:00 p.m. CT • Athens, Ga. Stegeman Coliseum (10,523)  |
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Watch • Live Stats • Listen
Ole Miss Game Notes • Georgia Game Notes • SEC Game Notes |
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ATHENS, Ga. – For the second time this season, the Ole Miss men's basketball team takes on the Georgia Bulldogs, this time in Athens at Stegeman Coliseum on Tuesday, January 7 at 6 p.m. CT on SEC Network.
TEAM FACTS
Ole Miss Rebels (9-14, 1-9 SEC)
Head Coach: Kermit Davis • 5th Season at Ole Miss (73-75) • 542-338 career record (28th Season)
Georgia Bulldogs (14-9, 4-6 SEC)
Head Coach: Mike White • 1st Season at Georgia (14-9) • 257-137 career record (12th Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: SEC Network
Play-by-Play: Mike Morgan
Color: Joe Kleine
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: David Kellum
Color: Marc Dukes
SERIES HISTORY VS. GEORGIA
Ole Miss and Georgia face off on the court for the second time this season, and 124th time overall, with the Bulldogs owning a 77-46 all-time lead in the series. In Athens, Georgia leads the series 42-15 and are 6-4 over the last ten meetings. After winning the first game of the year in January in Oxford, the Rebels still hold an all-time lead at home 28-25. With the four-point loss for Ole Miss last month, the Rebels and Bulldogs are now tied at four wins each under head coach Kermit Davis.
LAST MEETING: JANUARY 14, 2023 (L, 58-62, OXFORD, MISS.)
• Georgia took a one-point lead into halftime, holding the Rebels off in the final minutes of play after closing out with a 10-2 run.
• The Rebels were led offensively by Matthew Murrell, who finished with 13 points and made a pair of threes for his eighth game of the year (at the time) with multiple makes from deep.
• Amaree Abram added 12 points after getting his 12th start of the season, with he and Murrell combining for nine assists, as Abram tied his season-high with five and Murrell dished out four.
• Kario Oquendo led Georgia in scoring with 15 points, while Terry Roberts scored 14 to go with seven rebounds and five assists.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Georgia enters their game with the Rebels owning a 14-9 record, having gone 4-6 in conference thus far. After opening SEC play with a 76-64 win over Auburn at home, they fell to Florida on the road 82-75 before defeating Mississippi State 58-50 in Athens. Defeating the Rebels in Oxford, Georgia went on to fall to Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Tennessee before picking up a win over South Carolina. Their previous two games have resulted in a pair of losses to Auburn and Texas A&M.
Georgia ranks among some of the best in college basketball in three-point field goal defense, holding their opposition to 30.3 percent this year (No. 37 NCAA, No. 4 SEC). The Bulldogs have excelled at getting to the charity stripe this season, ranking No. 37 in the NCAA as well in free throw attempts per game (21.4), and No. 32 nationally in free throws made per game (15.7). They rank among the top-100 in the country as well in rebounds per game (37.5, No. 57 in NCAA), bench points per game (24.2, No. 61 in NCAA), offensive rebounds per game (11.7, No. 66 in NCAA), and fouls per game (15.6, No. 76 in NCAA).
Terry Roberts leads Georgia in scoring at 15.0 points per game, the eighth-best clip in the SEC, and ranks fourth in the conference with 4.2 assists per game. In conference games, Roberts ranks third in points per game (16.1) and sixth in assists per game (4.0).
First-year head coach Mike White leads the Bulldogs after spending the previous seven seasons at Florida where he compiled a 142-88 record. He got his first head coaching job at Louisiana Tech in 2011, where he coached for four years and led the Bulldogs to a 101-40 record. Prior to entering the head coaching ranks, White spent seven seasons as an assistant for the Ole Miss program under head coaches Rod Barnes and Andy Kennedy. A graduate of Ole Miss himself, White was a four-year starter for the Rebels basketball team, helping them win two SEC West titles and a trio of NCAA Tournament berths. His 370 career assists rank as the seventh-most in school history, after leading the team in assists per game all four of his seasons on campus.
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 48 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
MB2K
Myles Burns brought 1,852 points to Oxford from his four-time NAIA All-American 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: 143
Games Started: 131
Points: 2,006 (14.0/game)
Rebounds: 1,214 (8.5/game)
Steals: 406 (2.8/game)
Assists: 327 (2.3/game)
Blocks: 127 (0.9/game)
BLOCK PARTY
The Ole Miss defense currently averages 68.0 points allowed per game, only letting their opponents top 70 points seven times this year. A major part of their defensive identity has been enforcing the paint, as the Rebels rank 38th in the country in blocks per game (4.6). They are led down low by senior transfers Theo Akwuba (28 total blocks, 1.2 per game) and Jayveous McKinnis (26 total blocks, 1.2 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 210). He and McKinnis (258 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.
ANOTHER ONE
With an average of 12.3 offensive rebounds per game, the Rebels have been among the best in the country in earning second chances on the glass, currently ranking 39th in the nation. The team is led by senior transfer Myles Burns with 51 offensive rebounds (2.2 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 85 this season (240-155). The Rebels has recorded more fast-break points than the other team in 17 of their 23 games.
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 14th in the nation. With a combined opponent record of 318-194 (0.621), they have taken on 12 foes with a current NET ranking in the top-100, including 10 in the top-50 and two in the top-five.
THE MAGIC NUMBER IS 20
Junior guard Matthew Murrell has scored 20 or more points six times this season, and averages 14.7 per game. A large part of his offense has come from deep, as he has made 40 threes on the year. Over a four-game stretch against Mississippi State, Auburn, Georgia, and South Carolina, 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 to begin the season, as the Ole Miss bench has accounted for over a third of the team's scoring through their first 23 games (35.3%, 546 of 1,547 points). The Rebs have topped their opponents in bench points in 15 contests, and are outscoring their foes' benches by 118 on the year (546 to 428).
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: 52.9% (2,435 of 4,600)
Scoring: 47.3% (731 of 1,547)
Rebounding: 52.4% (441 of 841)
Assists: 45.9% (135 of 294)
Steals: 59.9% (94 of 157)
Blocks: 78.3% (83 of 106)
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%)
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 returners in the nation this year, currently fifth in total rebounds (1,103), fifth in total blocks (258), eighth in career double-doubles (39), 12th in rebounds per game (8.8), 13th in blocks per game (2.1) and 27th in field goal shooting (.612). 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 (1,199) and 1,000 career rebounds.
Ole Miss ranks highly on the career blocks list with two top-10 entries. McKinnis ranks fifth at 258 swats, while Theo Akwuba is 10th at 210. 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 (36) at 77.
* 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 1,214 if they did and give Ole Miss a combined 4,536 boards between Burns (1,214), McKinnis (1,103), Mballa (827), Akwuba (698) and Robert Allen (694). Burns' combined career total of 2,006 points would also rank No. 29 among all NCAA divisions.
RENAISSANCE MAN
Senior transfer Myles Burns has made an immediate impact for the Rebels on both ends of the floor with a unique talent blend as a defensive force and a go-getter on the glass. Burns ranks 35th in the NCAA with 48 steals, while also ranking 10th in the conference at 6.3 boards per game.
Prior to Ole Miss, Burns had an extraordinary career at Loyola New Orleans, where he was a four-time NAIA All-American and three-time SSAC Defensive Player of the Year. With the Wolf Pack, Burns played in 120 career games with 111 starts, while setting career averages of 15.3 points (1,852), 8.8 rebounds (1,069), 3.0 steals (358), 2.5 assists (298) and 1.0 blocks (116). In Loyola's record book, Burns ranks No. 1 in steals (358), No. 2 all-time in points (1,852), No. 2 in rebounds (1,069), No. 4 in blocks (116) and No. 7 in assists (298), with his 358 steals resting 163 more than any other player in Loyola history.
Burns helped lead Loyola to the 2022 NAIA National Championship title, the first in school history since 1945, as the tournament MVP at 19.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 5.2 steals with four double-doubles in six tournament games.
Burns is no stranger to dominating these two distinct statistical categories, as his 151 offensive rebounds and 152 steals in 2021-22 had no rival in all of college basketball, with the nearest Division I comparison being defending national player of the year Oscar Tshiebwe of Kentucky, who had 179 offensive rebounds and 60 steals last season. Furthermore, Burns' 152 steals last season earned him the 2022 Marques Haynes Award, which is given annually to the player with the most steals in all of college basketball, regardless of division.
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):
• 510 games played
• 384 games started
• 5,095 points
• 3,842 rebounds
• 679 steals (406 from Burns alone)
• 670 blocks
