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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Wednesday, November 27
Nassau, Bahamas
6:30 PM
Ole Miss
vs
UConn
Women’s Basketball Faces UConn for Continental Tire Baha Mar Championship Title
11/26/2024 | Women's Basketball
NASSAU, Bahamas – After a dominating performance against Boston College, No. 18/18 Ole Miss women's basketball has earned a spot in the championship game of the 2024 Continental Tire Baha Mar Championship on Wednesday against No. 1/2 UConn. The title game is set at 6:30 p.m. CT on FloCollege in the Baha Mar Convention Center.
TEAM FACTS
No. 18/18 Ole Miss Rebels (4-1, 0-0 SEC)
Head Coach: Yolett McPhee-McCuin • 7th Season at Ole Miss (107-85) • 12th Season in Career (201-148)
No. 1/2 UConn Huskies (5-0, 0-0 Big East)
Head Coach: Geno Auriemma • 40th Season at UConn (1218-162) • 40th Season in Career (1218-162)
ON THE AIR
Television: FloCollege
Play-by-Play: Sam Hyman
Color: Debbie Antonelli
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Graham Doty
OLE MISS VS. UCONN
The championship round of the 2024 Continental Tire Baha Mar will feature No. 18 Ole Miss and No. 2 UConn. This is the second all-time matchup between the two squads, with UConn claiming victory in the prior matchup.
In head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin's first season in Oxford, then-No. 2 UConn beat Ole Miss 90-50 at the Paradise Jam in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, on Nov. 22, 2018. Crystal Allen and Shannon Dozier led the Rebels that day, scoring 11 apiece.
SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
The Huskies are led by Hall of Famer Geno Auriemma, who recently became the winningest head coach in NCAA basketball history. UConn bested Fairleigh Dickinson, 85-41, on Nov. 20, 2024, for Auriemma's 1,217th career victory. UConn earned its spot in the tournament's championship round after besting Oregon State, 71-52, on Monday. The Huskies are 5-0.
On the court, Paige Bueckers heads the charge for the Huskies. The six-foot senior averages 20.6 points per game, top-30 in the NCAA, on over 60% shooting. Bueckers is projected to be the first overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft. She will be the third Associated Press Preseason All-America selection the Rebels have faced so far this season after taking on USC's JuJu Watkins and Kiki Iriagen in the season-opener in Paris.
Sarah Strong is not to be overlooked either. She leads the team in blocks with 10 and is behind Bueckers in points per game with 15.4.
Similar to the Rebels, the Huskies play tough defense. They hold the fifth-best scoring defense mark in the NCAA, just above the Rebels' sixth-best mark. UConn also plays smart offense, dishing out the fourth-most assists in the NCAA (22.8) and limits turnovers to the tune of 10.2 per game. That average is eighth in the NCAA.
The Huskies' smart offensive play is highlighted by sophomore guard KK Arnold, who leads the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio with 8.5.
REBELS AGAINST THE BIG EAST
Ole Miss is 4-4 all-time against Big East opponents. The Rebels first win over a Big East opponent came in 1983, when Ole Miss toppled Villanova 79-62 at the LaSalle Tournament.
Head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin is 5-4 all-time against Big East opponents in her overall career and 1-1 during her tenure in Oxford.
Her win came last season against No. 10 Marquette in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Four players surpassed double figures that day, with Madison Scott scoring a team-high 20 points and four assists. This will be the only opportunity for Ole Miss to claim victory over a Big East opponent during the regular season this year.
LAST TIME OUT
Ole Miss women's basketball shined on both ends of the court to defeat Boston College, 92-55, in game one of the Continental Tire Baha Mar Championship in Nassau, Bahamas.
Defensively, Ole Miss held Boston College to its fewest point total this season. The Rebels held the Eagles to 23 points in the first half, the first time this season the Eagles failed to breach 30 points in either half. Boston College connected on only 36.7% of its shots against Ole Miss, its worst night of shooting this year.
The Rebels scored the most points this season, marking the sixth-straight season with at least one 90-point game. Opposite to Boston College, Ole Miss had its best shooting night of the year. The Rebels shot 51.4% from the field, their first time making more than half their shots this season.
Ole Miss saw several standout performances from key players in its first game in Nassau. Starr Jacobs headed the charge with her first double-double in the blue and red, scoring 12 points and adding 11 rebounds. Eight of Jacobs' rebounds came off the offensive glass, tying a career best for the senior.
Kennedy Todd-Williams led the field with a season-high 17 points and five assists. It's her first time this season leading the Rebels in both categories. With her accolade, Todd-Williams became the first player this season to be the single game leader in scoring, rebounding and assists in at least one game.
CLASH OF THE TITANS
Wednesday's game marks a match-up of two of the most successful college basketball programs over the past three years. Ole Miss has won no fewer than 23 games in each of its last three seasons while UConn has recorded at least 30 wins annually in that same span. Ole Miss is one of just 22 NCAA Division I programs – and one of only 12 Power 4 teams – to notch at least 23 victories each year since 2021-22 as head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin has re-established the Rebels as a national power.
The Rebels' three-year win total of 72 ranks them ahead of storied programs like Maryland (71 wins), Tennessee (70), Michigan (68), USC (62) and Mississippi State (60). Ole Miss is averaging 24 wins over the past three seasons, good for 29th nationally among all NCAA DI programs and 14th among Power 4 teams.
The last time Ole Miss had a stretch of at least 23 wins in three consecutive seasons was 1986-89 under legendary Rebel head coach Van Chancellor.
FRESHMAN PHENOM
True freshman guard Sira Thienou has wasted little time making her mark as an Ole Miss Rebel. The Mali native was tabbed SEC Co-Freshman of the Week on Tuesday, Nov. 26, the first such honor of her young career and the first award of its type for an Ole Miss player since Madison Scott earned the same accolade six times as a true freshman during the 2020-21 season.
Thienou has scored in double figures in the Rebels' last three outings, including consecutive 16-point outbursts against Jackson State (Nov. 18) and Boston College (Nov. 25). The last true freshman to record double-digit scoring efforts in three straight games was Scott herself who did it twice during her first season in Oxford.
Additionally, the last time an Ole Miss freshman had a 16-plus point performance was when Scott earned 17 against No. 18 Arkansas, on Feb. 19, 2021.
Over her last three games, Thienou is averaging 15 points on 78% shooting to go along with 15 rebounds and seven steals.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE TROUBLE
In its matchup against Boston College, Starr Jacobs headed the charge with her first double-double in a Rebel jersey, scoring 12 points and adding 11 rebounds. The graduate student's double-double served as the 27th of her overall collegiate career and the 18th as a Division I player. Her double-double is also the first by any Rebel this season.
POWERING OVER THE POWER FOUR
The Rebels' 92 points against Boston College on Nov. 25 marked the first time Ole Miss scored at least 90 points against a Power Four opponent since outscoring LSU, 102-101, in triple overtime back on February 7, 2010. The last time the Rebels scored at least 90 points in regulation against a Power Four team was March 25, 2007, in a 90-82 win over Oklahoma.
Its convincing win also marked four-straight years beating a Power Four team by 30 or more points. In its last six victories over Power Four opponents, Ole Miss has triumphed by double digits each time for an average margin of victory of 27.33 points, including a 44-point win over Arkansas, a 37-point win over Boston College and a 30-point win over Kentucky.
TURNOVERS ON TURNOVERS ON TURNOVERS
Ole Miss' defense remains its strung suit, forcing its first five opponents of the year to make 20+ turnovers, including 29 against Jackson State.
The Rebels turned defense into offense all night versus the Lady Tigers, scoring a season-high 33 points off of JSU's turnovers.
On the other side of the court, Ole Miss played its cleanest game of the season against Delaware State, giving up only six turnovers to hold a -17 turnover margin after forcing the Hornets to lose the ball 23 times.
RECORD BREAKING REBS
Ole Miss showed up and showed out in its first win of the 2024-25 season, allowing the fewest points in program history as it kept Arkansas-Pine Bluff to just 24 points. Yolett McPhee-McCuin's teams now hold three of the top five spots with the fewest points allowed in Ole Miss history, including spots one and two.
STAY CONNECTED WITH THE REBELS
New season and single-game tickets for the 2024-25 Ole Miss basketball season are on sale now. To purchase or learn more about buying season or single-game tickets for women's basketball, click here or contact the Ole Miss Athletics ticket office.
Follow the Rebels on X at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB and on Instagram at Ole MissWBB. You can also follow head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin on X at @YolettMcCuin.
TEAM FACTS
No. 18/18 Ole Miss Rebels (4-1, 0-0 SEC)
Head Coach: Yolett McPhee-McCuin • 7th Season at Ole Miss (107-85) • 12th Season in Career (201-148)
No. 1/2 UConn Huskies (5-0, 0-0 Big East)
Head Coach: Geno Auriemma • 40th Season at UConn (1218-162) • 40th Season in Career (1218-162)
ON THE AIR
Television: FloCollege
Play-by-Play: Sam Hyman
Color: Debbie Antonelli
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Graham Doty
OLE MISS VS. UCONN
The championship round of the 2024 Continental Tire Baha Mar will feature No. 18 Ole Miss and No. 2 UConn. This is the second all-time matchup between the two squads, with UConn claiming victory in the prior matchup.
In head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin's first season in Oxford, then-No. 2 UConn beat Ole Miss 90-50 at the Paradise Jam in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, on Nov. 22, 2018. Crystal Allen and Shannon Dozier led the Rebels that day, scoring 11 apiece.
SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
The Huskies are led by Hall of Famer Geno Auriemma, who recently became the winningest head coach in NCAA basketball history. UConn bested Fairleigh Dickinson, 85-41, on Nov. 20, 2024, for Auriemma's 1,217th career victory. UConn earned its spot in the tournament's championship round after besting Oregon State, 71-52, on Monday. The Huskies are 5-0.
On the court, Paige Bueckers heads the charge for the Huskies. The six-foot senior averages 20.6 points per game, top-30 in the NCAA, on over 60% shooting. Bueckers is projected to be the first overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft. She will be the third Associated Press Preseason All-America selection the Rebels have faced so far this season after taking on USC's JuJu Watkins and Kiki Iriagen in the season-opener in Paris.
Sarah Strong is not to be overlooked either. She leads the team in blocks with 10 and is behind Bueckers in points per game with 15.4.
Similar to the Rebels, the Huskies play tough defense. They hold the fifth-best scoring defense mark in the NCAA, just above the Rebels' sixth-best mark. UConn also plays smart offense, dishing out the fourth-most assists in the NCAA (22.8) and limits turnovers to the tune of 10.2 per game. That average is eighth in the NCAA.
The Huskies' smart offensive play is highlighted by sophomore guard KK Arnold, who leads the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio with 8.5.
REBELS AGAINST THE BIG EAST
Ole Miss is 4-4 all-time against Big East opponents. The Rebels first win over a Big East opponent came in 1983, when Ole Miss toppled Villanova 79-62 at the LaSalle Tournament.
Head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin is 5-4 all-time against Big East opponents in her overall career and 1-1 during her tenure in Oxford.
Her win came last season against No. 10 Marquette in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Four players surpassed double figures that day, with Madison Scott scoring a team-high 20 points and four assists. This will be the only opportunity for Ole Miss to claim victory over a Big East opponent during the regular season this year.
LAST TIME OUT
Ole Miss women's basketball shined on both ends of the court to defeat Boston College, 92-55, in game one of the Continental Tire Baha Mar Championship in Nassau, Bahamas.
Defensively, Ole Miss held Boston College to its fewest point total this season. The Rebels held the Eagles to 23 points in the first half, the first time this season the Eagles failed to breach 30 points in either half. Boston College connected on only 36.7% of its shots against Ole Miss, its worst night of shooting this year.
The Rebels scored the most points this season, marking the sixth-straight season with at least one 90-point game. Opposite to Boston College, Ole Miss had its best shooting night of the year. The Rebels shot 51.4% from the field, their first time making more than half their shots this season.
Ole Miss saw several standout performances from key players in its first game in Nassau. Starr Jacobs headed the charge with her first double-double in the blue and red, scoring 12 points and adding 11 rebounds. Eight of Jacobs' rebounds came off the offensive glass, tying a career best for the senior.
Kennedy Todd-Williams led the field with a season-high 17 points and five assists. It's her first time this season leading the Rebels in both categories. With her accolade, Todd-Williams became the first player this season to be the single game leader in scoring, rebounding and assists in at least one game.
CLASH OF THE TITANS
Wednesday's game marks a match-up of two of the most successful college basketball programs over the past three years. Ole Miss has won no fewer than 23 games in each of its last three seasons while UConn has recorded at least 30 wins annually in that same span. Ole Miss is one of just 22 NCAA Division I programs – and one of only 12 Power 4 teams – to notch at least 23 victories each year since 2021-22 as head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin has re-established the Rebels as a national power.
The Rebels' three-year win total of 72 ranks them ahead of storied programs like Maryland (71 wins), Tennessee (70), Michigan (68), USC (62) and Mississippi State (60). Ole Miss is averaging 24 wins over the past three seasons, good for 29th nationally among all NCAA DI programs and 14th among Power 4 teams.
The last time Ole Miss had a stretch of at least 23 wins in three consecutive seasons was 1986-89 under legendary Rebel head coach Van Chancellor.
FRESHMAN PHENOM
True freshman guard Sira Thienou has wasted little time making her mark as an Ole Miss Rebel. The Mali native was tabbed SEC Co-Freshman of the Week on Tuesday, Nov. 26, the first such honor of her young career and the first award of its type for an Ole Miss player since Madison Scott earned the same accolade six times as a true freshman during the 2020-21 season.
Thienou has scored in double figures in the Rebels' last three outings, including consecutive 16-point outbursts against Jackson State (Nov. 18) and Boston College (Nov. 25). The last true freshman to record double-digit scoring efforts in three straight games was Scott herself who did it twice during her first season in Oxford.
Additionally, the last time an Ole Miss freshman had a 16-plus point performance was when Scott earned 17 against No. 18 Arkansas, on Feb. 19, 2021.
Over her last three games, Thienou is averaging 15 points on 78% shooting to go along with 15 rebounds and seven steals.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE TROUBLE
In its matchup against Boston College, Starr Jacobs headed the charge with her first double-double in a Rebel jersey, scoring 12 points and adding 11 rebounds. The graduate student's double-double served as the 27th of her overall collegiate career and the 18th as a Division I player. Her double-double is also the first by any Rebel this season.
POWERING OVER THE POWER FOUR
The Rebels' 92 points against Boston College on Nov. 25 marked the first time Ole Miss scored at least 90 points against a Power Four opponent since outscoring LSU, 102-101, in triple overtime back on February 7, 2010. The last time the Rebels scored at least 90 points in regulation against a Power Four team was March 25, 2007, in a 90-82 win over Oklahoma.
Its convincing win also marked four-straight years beating a Power Four team by 30 or more points. In its last six victories over Power Four opponents, Ole Miss has triumphed by double digits each time for an average margin of victory of 27.33 points, including a 44-point win over Arkansas, a 37-point win over Boston College and a 30-point win over Kentucky.
TURNOVERS ON TURNOVERS ON TURNOVERS
Ole Miss' defense remains its strung suit, forcing its first five opponents of the year to make 20+ turnovers, including 29 against Jackson State.
The Rebels turned defense into offense all night versus the Lady Tigers, scoring a season-high 33 points off of JSU's turnovers.
On the other side of the court, Ole Miss played its cleanest game of the season against Delaware State, giving up only six turnovers to hold a -17 turnover margin after forcing the Hornets to lose the ball 23 times.
RECORD BREAKING REBS
Ole Miss showed up and showed out in its first win of the 2024-25 season, allowing the fewest points in program history as it kept Arkansas-Pine Bluff to just 24 points. Yolett McPhee-McCuin's teams now hold three of the top five spots with the fewest points allowed in Ole Miss history, including spots one and two.
STAY CONNECTED WITH THE REBELS
New season and single-game tickets for the 2024-25 Ole Miss basketball season are on sale now. To purchase or learn more about buying season or single-game tickets for women's basketball, click here or contact the Ole Miss Athletics ticket office.
Follow the Rebels on X at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB and on Instagram at Ole MissWBB. You can also follow head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin on X at @YolettMcCuin.
Players Mentioned
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