.png&width=48&height=48&type=webp)
The University of Mississippi Athletics
Sunday, December 28
Oxford, Miss.
2 PM
Ole Miss
vs
Alcorn State
Women’s Basketball Hosts Alcorn State in Final Nonconference Game of 2025-26 Season
12/27/2025 | Women's Basketball
OXFORD, Miss. – Following a short break for the holidays, Ole Miss will close out its nonconference slate against Alcorn State on Sunday, December 28. Tipoff at the SJB Pavilion will be at 2 p.m. CT, streaming on SEC Network+.
TEAM FACTS
No. 15/17 Ole Miss Rebels (12-2, 0-0 SEC)
Head Coach: Yolett McPhee-McCuin • 8th Season at Ole Miss (137-97) • 13th Season in Career (231-160)
Alcorn State Lady Braves (3-7, 0-0 SWAC)
Head Coach: Nate Kilbert • 6th Season at ASU (51-97) • 24th Season in Career (230-443)
ON THE AIR
Television: SEC Network+
Play-by-Play: Will Kollmeyer
Color: Lindsay King
Reporter: Annie Strong
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Graham Doty
SERIES HISTORY
Sunday's matchup will mark the 20th all-time matchup between Ole Miss and Alcorn State in a series that dates to 1980. The Rebels are 18-1 against the Lady Braves, with all their wins coming consecutively. Alcorn State won the first game of the series in 1980, 70-66, but Ole Miss has gone undefeated since then. In total, the Rebels have dropped 90-plus points on the Lady Braves six times in 19 matches, most recently in last year's competition.
Head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin is 4-0 against the Lady Braves in her tenure in Oxford. Her second win against Alcorn State being the most impressive, as Ole Miss tallied its first100-point performance under her, on Dec. 8, 2020. The Rebels won 104-48, which is also the ninth-widest margin of victory in Ole Miss history. It's the highest-scoring game by a Coach Yo led Rebel team, and a Sandy & John Black Pavilion record for most points scored. Ole Miss shot 61.54 percent from the field, the third most efficient scoring day in program history, as six players went for double figures.
Historically, Ole Miss has shot exceedingly well against Alcorn State. Three of the top six best field goal percentage performances in Ole Miss history have come against Alcorn State. Last season, Ole Miss made program history by shooting 67.3 percent from the field, the most efficient evening of shooting by any Rebel squad.
SCOUTING THE LADY BRAVES
Nate Kilbert leads Alcorn State in his sixth year at the helm. The Lady Braves are 3-7 entering Sunday's matchup, and have faced four Power Four teams thus far, all of whom within the SEC. Ole Miss will mark the fifth and final opponent from the SEC for Alcorn State this season before it enters its conference slate.
In their three wins, the Lady Braves are averaging 78 points per game. Alcorn State's most convincing win of the season came against Rust College, when the Lady Braves routed the Bearcats, 72-32. Nakia Cheatham, Alcorn State's top scorer this season, dropped 17 points in 20 minutes of action against Rust. Cheatham, a four-year player for the Lady Braves, is averaging 12.8 points per game, and leads the team in steals with 24 through 10 games for a 2.4 per game average. That average leads the SWAC. She is also the team's leader in rebounds with a 5.4 per game average.
Maya Hunkin-Claytor and Kiarra Henderson support Cheatham with scoring and defensively. Both average at least eight points per game, Hunkin-Claytor is an established sharpshooter from long distance. She leads the SWAC with a 44.1 percent clip from 3-point range. Hunkin-Claytor leads a very capable deep distance shooting Alcorn State team, which leads the SWAC in 3-point percentage with 36.3 percent of their attempts converting. That mark is top-50 nationally.
Henderson is just behind Cheatham in steals, with 1.9 per game and 19 overall. Henderson is Alcorn State's best passer, averaging 4.4 per game. She's the only Lady Brave north of 40 assists this season, the next closest being Dalayja Hurt-Floyd, who has 17 assists for a 1.7 per game average. Her per/game assist rate leads the SWAC.
Defensively, Alcorn State has the second-best scoring defense in the SWAC. As a team, the Lady Braves have registered 26 blocks and allows a 42.8 percent field goal percentage for their opponents. They also play cleanly, having the second fewest fouls in the conference.
GAMES AGAINST THE SWAC
Ole Miss has historically dominated SWAC opponents, holding a 100-7 combined record against all members of the conference. The Rebels went 5-0 against SWAC opponents last season, with two of the victories (against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Alabama State) setting program records for fewest points allowed. Ole Miss has won the last 22 matchups against SWAC opponents, with McPhee-McCuin holding a perfect 21-0 record. The Rebels are already 3-0 against SWAC opponents this season, with victories against Alabama A&M, Southern and most recently Mississippi Valley State.
HOME SWEET HOME
Rebel nation has turned the SJB Pavilion into an intimidating environment for visiting teams, especially in the nonconference slate. Ole Miss has won 38 of its last 41 games at home against nonconference opponents, dating back to the 2020 season. During the 2024-25 season, the Rebels won all seven nonconference games at the SJB Pavilion, the third time Ole Miss has entered conference competition undefeated at home under Coach Yo. The Rebels aim to build on that success with the last nonconference matchup on their home court this year.
C-SQUARED
Christeen Iwuala and Cotie McMahon have become quite the dynamic duo for the Rebels. Combined the two seniors account for 42.4% of the Rebels' points this season and together have been the game leaders in scoring 13 out of the 14 matchups. In rebounding, the pair has accounted for 34.5% of Ole Miss' total rebounds, leading the Rebels' in boards in 12 out of the 14 games so far. Iwuala has earned six double-doubles this year, and McMahon has notched three, combining for nine of the ten double-doubles any Rebel has registered during the 2025-26 season.
THE IWUALA IMPACT
Christeen Iwuala has established herself as one of the top frontcourt players in the SEC throughout the nonconference season. She has recorded a double-double in a team-high six outings this year, after previously never earning the feat in any of her three seasons of collegiate basketball prior.
Additionally, Iwuala has grabbed the most rebounds by a Rebel in ten games this year, leading Ole Miss in the category, while also leading the Rebels in scoring five times. She has especially shown to be effective in second chance opportunities, ranking second in the SEC and 21st in the nation in offensive rebounds with 3.9 per game.
Iwuala is following the pattern that Rebel transfers under Coach Yo tend to blossom in their second year in Oxford, joining the likes of Marquesha Davis, Angel Baker and Shakira Austin.
SHE'S THE mcMAHON
Cotie McMahon has provided a spark to the Ole Miss offense in her first season in Oxford, becoming the first Rebel since Shandricka Sessom in 2015-16 to have double-digit points in the first fourteen games of the season. She is also the first Rebel since Bianca Thomas in 2009-10 to have six games or more with over 20 points to commence the year.
In Ole Miss' matchup against MVSU, McMahon became the eighth Rebel in program history to surpass 1,700 career points, currently sitting at 1,742.
STAY CONNECTED WITH THE REBELS
Season and single game tickets for the 2025-26 campaign are on sale now. Click here to secure yours today or visit OleMissTix.com.
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. 15/17 Ole Miss Rebels (12-2, 0-0 SEC)
Head Coach: Yolett McPhee-McCuin • 8th Season at Ole Miss (137-97) • 13th Season in Career (231-160)
Alcorn State Lady Braves (3-7, 0-0 SWAC)
Head Coach: Nate Kilbert • 6th Season at ASU (51-97) • 24th Season in Career (230-443)
ON THE AIR
Television: SEC Network+
Play-by-Play: Will Kollmeyer
Color: Lindsay King
Reporter: Annie Strong
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Graham Doty
SERIES HISTORY
Sunday's matchup will mark the 20th all-time matchup between Ole Miss and Alcorn State in a series that dates to 1980. The Rebels are 18-1 against the Lady Braves, with all their wins coming consecutively. Alcorn State won the first game of the series in 1980, 70-66, but Ole Miss has gone undefeated since then. In total, the Rebels have dropped 90-plus points on the Lady Braves six times in 19 matches, most recently in last year's competition.
Head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin is 4-0 against the Lady Braves in her tenure in Oxford. Her second win against Alcorn State being the most impressive, as Ole Miss tallied its first100-point performance under her, on Dec. 8, 2020. The Rebels won 104-48, which is also the ninth-widest margin of victory in Ole Miss history. It's the highest-scoring game by a Coach Yo led Rebel team, and a Sandy & John Black Pavilion record for most points scored. Ole Miss shot 61.54 percent from the field, the third most efficient scoring day in program history, as six players went for double figures.
Historically, Ole Miss has shot exceedingly well against Alcorn State. Three of the top six best field goal percentage performances in Ole Miss history have come against Alcorn State. Last season, Ole Miss made program history by shooting 67.3 percent from the field, the most efficient evening of shooting by any Rebel squad.
SCOUTING THE LADY BRAVES
Nate Kilbert leads Alcorn State in his sixth year at the helm. The Lady Braves are 3-7 entering Sunday's matchup, and have faced four Power Four teams thus far, all of whom within the SEC. Ole Miss will mark the fifth and final opponent from the SEC for Alcorn State this season before it enters its conference slate.
In their three wins, the Lady Braves are averaging 78 points per game. Alcorn State's most convincing win of the season came against Rust College, when the Lady Braves routed the Bearcats, 72-32. Nakia Cheatham, Alcorn State's top scorer this season, dropped 17 points in 20 minutes of action against Rust. Cheatham, a four-year player for the Lady Braves, is averaging 12.8 points per game, and leads the team in steals with 24 through 10 games for a 2.4 per game average. That average leads the SWAC. She is also the team's leader in rebounds with a 5.4 per game average.
Maya Hunkin-Claytor and Kiarra Henderson support Cheatham with scoring and defensively. Both average at least eight points per game, Hunkin-Claytor is an established sharpshooter from long distance. She leads the SWAC with a 44.1 percent clip from 3-point range. Hunkin-Claytor leads a very capable deep distance shooting Alcorn State team, which leads the SWAC in 3-point percentage with 36.3 percent of their attempts converting. That mark is top-50 nationally.
Henderson is just behind Cheatham in steals, with 1.9 per game and 19 overall. Henderson is Alcorn State's best passer, averaging 4.4 per game. She's the only Lady Brave north of 40 assists this season, the next closest being Dalayja Hurt-Floyd, who has 17 assists for a 1.7 per game average. Her per/game assist rate leads the SWAC.
Defensively, Alcorn State has the second-best scoring defense in the SWAC. As a team, the Lady Braves have registered 26 blocks and allows a 42.8 percent field goal percentage for their opponents. They also play cleanly, having the second fewest fouls in the conference.
GAMES AGAINST THE SWAC
Ole Miss has historically dominated SWAC opponents, holding a 100-7 combined record against all members of the conference. The Rebels went 5-0 against SWAC opponents last season, with two of the victories (against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Alabama State) setting program records for fewest points allowed. Ole Miss has won the last 22 matchups against SWAC opponents, with McPhee-McCuin holding a perfect 21-0 record. The Rebels are already 3-0 against SWAC opponents this season, with victories against Alabama A&M, Southern and most recently Mississippi Valley State.
HOME SWEET HOME
Rebel nation has turned the SJB Pavilion into an intimidating environment for visiting teams, especially in the nonconference slate. Ole Miss has won 38 of its last 41 games at home against nonconference opponents, dating back to the 2020 season. During the 2024-25 season, the Rebels won all seven nonconference games at the SJB Pavilion, the third time Ole Miss has entered conference competition undefeated at home under Coach Yo. The Rebels aim to build on that success with the last nonconference matchup on their home court this year.
C-SQUARED
Christeen Iwuala and Cotie McMahon have become quite the dynamic duo for the Rebels. Combined the two seniors account for 42.4% of the Rebels' points this season and together have been the game leaders in scoring 13 out of the 14 matchups. In rebounding, the pair has accounted for 34.5% of Ole Miss' total rebounds, leading the Rebels' in boards in 12 out of the 14 games so far. Iwuala has earned six double-doubles this year, and McMahon has notched three, combining for nine of the ten double-doubles any Rebel has registered during the 2025-26 season.
THE IWUALA IMPACT
Christeen Iwuala has established herself as one of the top frontcourt players in the SEC throughout the nonconference season. She has recorded a double-double in a team-high six outings this year, after previously never earning the feat in any of her three seasons of collegiate basketball prior.
Additionally, Iwuala has grabbed the most rebounds by a Rebel in ten games this year, leading Ole Miss in the category, while also leading the Rebels in scoring five times. She has especially shown to be effective in second chance opportunities, ranking second in the SEC and 21st in the nation in offensive rebounds with 3.9 per game.
Iwuala is following the pattern that Rebel transfers under Coach Yo tend to blossom in their second year in Oxford, joining the likes of Marquesha Davis, Angel Baker and Shakira Austin.
SHE'S THE mcMAHON
Cotie McMahon has provided a spark to the Ole Miss offense in her first season in Oxford, becoming the first Rebel since Shandricka Sessom in 2015-16 to have double-digit points in the first fourteen games of the season. She is also the first Rebel since Bianca Thomas in 2009-10 to have six games or more with over 20 points to commence the year.
In Ole Miss' matchup against MVSU, McMahon became the eighth Rebel in program history to surpass 1,700 career points, currently sitting at 1,742.
STAY CONNECTED WITH THE REBELS
Season and single game tickets for the 2025-26 campaign are on sale now. Click here to secure yours today or visit OleMissTix.com.
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
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballHIGHLIGHTS: Women's Basketball vs Michigan State (12-22-25)
Monday, December 22
PRESSER | Yolett McPhee-McCuin - Postgame vs. Michigan State (12-22-25)
Monday, December 22
PRESSER | Yolett McPhee-McCuin - Postgame vs. Old Dominion (12-21-25)
Sunday, December 21
PRESSER | Latasha Lattimore - Postgame vs. Old Dominion (12-21-25)
Sunday, December 21