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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Wednesday, January 14
Athens, Ga.
6 p.m.
Ole Miss
at
Georgia
Men's Basketball Gears Up for SEC Road Game at Georgia
1/13/2026 | Men's Basketball
ATHENS, Ga. – Following a conference victory this past weekend at home, the Ole Miss men's basketball team will hit the road for a ranked SEC game at No. 21 Georgia on Wednesday, January 14 at 6 p.m. CT on ESPNU.
TEAM FACTS
Ole Miss Rebels (Record: 9-7, 1-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Chris Beard • 3rd Season at Ole Miss (53-31) • 290-129 career record (14th Season)
Georgia Bulldogs (Record: 14-2, 2-1 SEC)
Head Coach: Mike White • 4th Season at Georgia (70-48) • 313-176 career record (15th Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: ESPNU
Play-by-Play: Tom Hart
Analyst: Dane Bradshaw
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Gary Darby
Analyst: Murphy Holloway
SERIES HISTORY VS. GEORGIA
The Rebels and Bulldogs have played in 126 total games, beginning with a 44-37 win for Ole Miss back in 1928 in Athens. Georgia enters this matchup with a lead in the series 78-48, including a 44-16 advantage when playing at home in the Peach State.
LAST MEETING: January 4, 2025 (W, 63-51, Oxford, Miss.)
• No. 23 Ole Miss was cold in the first half, shooting just 33.3 percent from the floor and trailing by two at the break. The Rebels bounced back in the second half by shooting 50.0 percent from the floor and outscoring the Dawgs by 14.
•Matthew Murrell (Ole Miss): 15 points, six rebounds, three assists, one steal.
• Asa Newell (Georgia): 13 points, 13 rebounds, one assist, two blocks, two steals.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
At 14-2 and with a record of 2-1 to open conference action, Georgia currently sits in third in the SEC standings. They began their season with key victories in non-con play over Georgia Tech, Xavier, Florida State, and Cincinnati, and have begun their SEC slate with wins over Auburn and South Carolina while falling to Florida. The Bulldogs currently rank 21st in the latest AP Poll and 22nd in the Coaches Poll, and hold a NET Ranking of 25th.
Four players average 10 or more points per game for Georgia, led by sophomore guard Jeremiah Wilkinson at 16.9. The team's leading rebounder at 6.1 per outing is Somtochukwu Cyril, who has been one of the nation's best shot blockers paired with Justin Abson who each average over two per game.
Statistically, Georgia has been a juggernaut to begin the 2025-26 season, currently leading all of college basketball in blocks per game (7.8), fastbreak points per game (25.4), and points per game (96.4). The team has scored 100 or more points in seven games this year, including 123 against Tennessee Tech for their third most in school history and most since 1990. The Bulldogs also rank among the best in the nation in made free throws per game (21.5, No. 2 in NCAA), free throw attempts per game (28.6, No. 4 in NCAA), bench points per game (39.2, No. 5 in NCAA), scoring margin (+21.6, No. 7 in NCAA), rebounds per game (42.6, No. 11 in NCAA), turnover margin (+4.6, No. 14 in NCAA), and forced turnovers per game (15.8, No. 15 in NCAA).
Head coach Mike White is in his fourth year with the Georgia program, holding a record of 70-48 in Athens. He previously spent seven seasons at Florida, where he compiled a 142-88 record and earned four NCAA Tournament berths. 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.
TIGER TAMER
Ole Miss picked up their first conference victory with a 76-69 victory over Missouri in the SJB Pavilion on January 10. The Rebels survived an early onslaught of threes from the Tigers, overcoming a 10-point deficit in the first half to eventually win by seven. Coming off the bench, AJ Storr played 33 minutes and scored a game-high 26 points while grabbing five rebounds with zero turnovers. Ole Miss got another elite performance from forward Malik Dia, who recorded yet another double-double with 21 points and 11 boards, adding a steal and three blocks on the defensive end.
MALIK DIA-DIA
Entering this season with four career double-doubles, senior forward Malik Dia has matched that total number to begin this year, hitting the milestone against St. John's, NC State, Alcorn State, and Missouri. Each of those double-doubles has come over the past eight games alone, a stretch in which Dia is averaging 17.8 points and 8.5 boards per game.
THA BLOCK IS HOT
A strong defense has been a staple for Ole Miss under head coach Chris Beard, and this year's team has used their length and athleticism to average 5.0 blocks per game, the 27th-best mark in the nation. They have been led by forward James Scott, who's average of 1.4 blocks per contest ranks among the top 10 among SEC programs. So far this season, 12 different players have recorded a block paced by Scott's 23, 16 from Malik Dia, 15 from Corey Chest, and eight from Ilias Kamardine.
PATTON PINKINS PHRESHMAN PHENOM
In the team's SEC opener at Oklahoma, freshman guard Patton Pinkins scored a career-best 25 points on an impressive 9-11 (.818) shooting while draining four three pointers. His game-high 25 points were the most for a freshman at Ole Miss since November 2022, when Amaree Abram score 26 against Stanford.
NON-CONFERENCE CLOSER
In their final game before SEC action, Ole Miss hosted Alcorn State on December 29, picking up a dominating 79-43 victory. Their success stemmed from impressive rebounding, posting a margin of +25 for the first time since 2008, led by Malik Dia and James Scott with 11 rebounds, and Corey Chest with 10. It had been nearly a decade since the Rebels had a trio of players with 10+ boards in a single game.
Paired with their 11 rebounds, both Dia and Scott posted double-doubles as well, marking the first time Ole Miss had two double-doubles in a single game since 2021. For Dia, that was his third double-double of the season, all of which occurred in a five-game stretch, and second in a row. He became the latest Ole Miss player to record double-doubles in back-to-back games since Sebastian Saiz in 2017. After beginning the season with an average of 4.8 rebounds per contest over the first six games of the season, Dia averaged 9.0 per game over the final seven in non-conference action.
SHAKE, RATTLE, AND WIN
For the first time since 2004, Ole Miss traveled down to Tupelo, Mississippi for a game, taking on Alabama A&M in Cadence Bank Arena. The Rebels jumped out to an early lead and never looked back, leading by 15 at the half before winning 80-66. Malik Dia set a new high for his Ole Miss career with 27 points while grabbing seven rebounds and blocking two shots. Ilias Kamardine ran an efficient offense at point guard, dishing out eight assists with just one turnover. As a team, the Rebels set a new season-high by shooting 54.0 percent from the floor.
50 VICTORIES
With an Ole Miss win over Southern Miss on Saturday, December 13, head coach Chris Beard picked up his 50th win at the helm in Oxford. He became the 13th coach to win 50 games at Ole Miss, the fifth coach to reach that mark in their third season, and the third-fastest to 50 in school history.
"WHEN IT'S TIME TO EAT A MEAL, I ROB AND STEAL"
In a heated road battle in Madison Square Garden with St. John's, Kezza Giffa played a key part in the Ole Miss second-half comeback attempt. On the floor for 17 of the final 20 minutes of action, Giffa helped keep one of the nation's best offenses at bay, collecting six steals to bring his game total to seven. He became one of 11 Rebels all-time to grab seven or more steals in a game, tying him for the fifth-most in school history. It was the most steals for an Ole Miss player in a single game since Matthew Murrell had seven as well against Grambling State on November 8, 2024.
BLACKJACK
For the third season in a row, the Ole Miss Rebels traveled down to Biloxi, Mississippi to take on Southern Miss in the Mississippi Coast Coliseum. Holding a narrow lead at halftime, 31-29, guard AJ Storr helped fuel a second-half surge where the team shot 63.6 percent from the field, their second-best shooting performance in a half this season. The senior guard finished with a season-best eight made shots and a game-high 21 points while adding three offensive rebounds, and a pair of steals.
The Ole Miss bench outscored Southern Miss 29-6, led by 13 points from Kezza Giffa and 12 from Patton Pinkins. For the third game in a row, the Ole Miss defense had 10 or more steals, led by Giffa with three.
ONE LAST GOODBYE TO THE TAD PAD
Nearly 60 years ago, the C.M. "Tad" Smith Coliseum opened its doors for the first Ole Miss basketball game, when they hosted Kentucky on February 21, 1966. Decades of memories and historic moments later, what was thought to be the final game in the arena was played on December 22, 2015 as the Rebels defeated Troy in a thrilling overtime victory. With the hiring of current head coach Chris Beard came the throwback games, as Ole Miss has since played a pair of games in the former arena still standing on campus. However, the University announced in the fall of 2025 that the coliseum would be demolished in 2026, opening the door for one final game in the Tad Pad early in the 2025-26 season.
Hosting Cal State Bakersfield, Ole Miss earned one final victory in front of a capacity sellout crowd, defeating the Roadrunners 82-60.
"WHOOP" THERE IT IS
Ole Miss defended their home court to move to 3-0 on the new season in their toughest matchup to date, taking down Memphis 83-77 in front of a raucous crowd. While the two would go back-and-forth to begin the matchup, the Tigers held their final lead midway through the first half as Ole Miss stepped in front and held the visitors at bay.
Newcomer Ilias Kamardine continued to dazzle and impress, as he paced the Rebels with 26 points by going 11-14 from the field, knocking down a trio of three pointers while adding four rebounds, four assists and a block and steal on defense. Senior guard Kezza Giffa made his first start of the season and took advantage of his opportunity with 15 points while dishing out five assists with zero turnovers.
The win gave Ole Miss a win in six of the last nine meetings with Memphis, while the Rebels have won five straight games when playing in Oxford.
CONVINCING OPENER
One of the most anticipated seasons in program history got off to a great start, as Ole Miss took down Southeastern Louisiana in their opener 88-58 on Monday, November 3. The Rebels out-rebounded the Lions 44 to 26, posting their best rebound margin of +18 under head coach Chris Beard. The team was paced offensively by Malik Dia, who scored 20 points with four rebounds, an assist, and two steals.
In his Ole Miss debut, AJ Storr dropped 18 points while going 4-5 from beyond the arc, adding six rebounds and four assists. His 18 were the most for a Rebel debut in a season opener since 2016, when Deandre Burnett scored 23 vs. UT Martin.
International guard Ilias Kamardine flashed his skill on both ends of the floor in his first college game, scoring 13 points with three boards, four assists, and a pair of steals. James Scott led the team on the boards with nine while blocking three shots (eighth career game with 3 or more blocks), while Kezza Giffa came off the bench and added 12 points in just 15 minutes.
KEEP THE FUTURE BRIGHT
The Ole Miss men's basketball program recently welcomed two signees to their 2026 recruiting class, adding small forward Jaron Saulsberry and combo guard Yohance Connor.
Saulsberry will come to Oxford from Marietta, Georgia and Wheeler High School, and is ranked as a top-10 player in his home state by both ESPN and 247Sports. A 6'6" four-star recruit, he is ranked as the No. 28 small forward in the class of 2026.
Hailing from Charlotte, N.C., Connor ranks among the best in his state, tabbed the No. 3 player in North Carolina by 247Sports and No. 5 by Rivals. He is listed as a four-star recruit by ESPN and 247Sports, and ranked as the No. 5 combo guard in the class of 2026 by Rivals.
For the latest news and updates regarding Ole Miss Men's Basketball, follow the Rebels on X at @OleMissMBB, on Facebook at Ole Miss Men's Basketball and on Instagram at olemissmbb.
TEAM FACTS
Ole Miss Rebels (Record: 9-7, 1-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Chris Beard • 3rd Season at Ole Miss (53-31) • 290-129 career record (14th Season)
Georgia Bulldogs (Record: 14-2, 2-1 SEC)
Head Coach: Mike White • 4th Season at Georgia (70-48) • 313-176 career record (15th Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: ESPNU
Play-by-Play: Tom Hart
Analyst: Dane Bradshaw
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Gary Darby
Analyst: Murphy Holloway
SERIES HISTORY VS. GEORGIA
The Rebels and Bulldogs have played in 126 total games, beginning with a 44-37 win for Ole Miss back in 1928 in Athens. Georgia enters this matchup with a lead in the series 78-48, including a 44-16 advantage when playing at home in the Peach State.
LAST MEETING: January 4, 2025 (W, 63-51, Oxford, Miss.)
• No. 23 Ole Miss was cold in the first half, shooting just 33.3 percent from the floor and trailing by two at the break. The Rebels bounced back in the second half by shooting 50.0 percent from the floor and outscoring the Dawgs by 14.
•Matthew Murrell (Ole Miss): 15 points, six rebounds, three assists, one steal.
• Asa Newell (Georgia): 13 points, 13 rebounds, one assist, two blocks, two steals.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
At 14-2 and with a record of 2-1 to open conference action, Georgia currently sits in third in the SEC standings. They began their season with key victories in non-con play over Georgia Tech, Xavier, Florida State, and Cincinnati, and have begun their SEC slate with wins over Auburn and South Carolina while falling to Florida. The Bulldogs currently rank 21st in the latest AP Poll and 22nd in the Coaches Poll, and hold a NET Ranking of 25th.
Four players average 10 or more points per game for Georgia, led by sophomore guard Jeremiah Wilkinson at 16.9. The team's leading rebounder at 6.1 per outing is Somtochukwu Cyril, who has been one of the nation's best shot blockers paired with Justin Abson who each average over two per game.
Statistically, Georgia has been a juggernaut to begin the 2025-26 season, currently leading all of college basketball in blocks per game (7.8), fastbreak points per game (25.4), and points per game (96.4). The team has scored 100 or more points in seven games this year, including 123 against Tennessee Tech for their third most in school history and most since 1990. The Bulldogs also rank among the best in the nation in made free throws per game (21.5, No. 2 in NCAA), free throw attempts per game (28.6, No. 4 in NCAA), bench points per game (39.2, No. 5 in NCAA), scoring margin (+21.6, No. 7 in NCAA), rebounds per game (42.6, No. 11 in NCAA), turnover margin (+4.6, No. 14 in NCAA), and forced turnovers per game (15.8, No. 15 in NCAA).
Head coach Mike White is in his fourth year with the Georgia program, holding a record of 70-48 in Athens. He previously spent seven seasons at Florida, where he compiled a 142-88 record and earned four NCAA Tournament berths. 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.
TIGER TAMER
Ole Miss picked up their first conference victory with a 76-69 victory over Missouri in the SJB Pavilion on January 10. The Rebels survived an early onslaught of threes from the Tigers, overcoming a 10-point deficit in the first half to eventually win by seven. Coming off the bench, AJ Storr played 33 minutes and scored a game-high 26 points while grabbing five rebounds with zero turnovers. Ole Miss got another elite performance from forward Malik Dia, who recorded yet another double-double with 21 points and 11 boards, adding a steal and three blocks on the defensive end.
MALIK DIA-DIA
Entering this season with four career double-doubles, senior forward Malik Dia has matched that total number to begin this year, hitting the milestone against St. John's, NC State, Alcorn State, and Missouri. Each of those double-doubles has come over the past eight games alone, a stretch in which Dia is averaging 17.8 points and 8.5 boards per game.
THA BLOCK IS HOT
A strong defense has been a staple for Ole Miss under head coach Chris Beard, and this year's team has used their length and athleticism to average 5.0 blocks per game, the 27th-best mark in the nation. They have been led by forward James Scott, who's average of 1.4 blocks per contest ranks among the top 10 among SEC programs. So far this season, 12 different players have recorded a block paced by Scott's 23, 16 from Malik Dia, 15 from Corey Chest, and eight from Ilias Kamardine.
PATTON PINKINS PHRESHMAN PHENOM
In the team's SEC opener at Oklahoma, freshman guard Patton Pinkins scored a career-best 25 points on an impressive 9-11 (.818) shooting while draining four three pointers. His game-high 25 points were the most for a freshman at Ole Miss since November 2022, when Amaree Abram score 26 against Stanford.
NON-CONFERENCE CLOSER
In their final game before SEC action, Ole Miss hosted Alcorn State on December 29, picking up a dominating 79-43 victory. Their success stemmed from impressive rebounding, posting a margin of +25 for the first time since 2008, led by Malik Dia and James Scott with 11 rebounds, and Corey Chest with 10. It had been nearly a decade since the Rebels had a trio of players with 10+ boards in a single game.
Paired with their 11 rebounds, both Dia and Scott posted double-doubles as well, marking the first time Ole Miss had two double-doubles in a single game since 2021. For Dia, that was his third double-double of the season, all of which occurred in a five-game stretch, and second in a row. He became the latest Ole Miss player to record double-doubles in back-to-back games since Sebastian Saiz in 2017. After beginning the season with an average of 4.8 rebounds per contest over the first six games of the season, Dia averaged 9.0 per game over the final seven in non-conference action.
SHAKE, RATTLE, AND WIN
For the first time since 2004, Ole Miss traveled down to Tupelo, Mississippi for a game, taking on Alabama A&M in Cadence Bank Arena. The Rebels jumped out to an early lead and never looked back, leading by 15 at the half before winning 80-66. Malik Dia set a new high for his Ole Miss career with 27 points while grabbing seven rebounds and blocking two shots. Ilias Kamardine ran an efficient offense at point guard, dishing out eight assists with just one turnover. As a team, the Rebels set a new season-high by shooting 54.0 percent from the floor.
50 VICTORIES
With an Ole Miss win over Southern Miss on Saturday, December 13, head coach Chris Beard picked up his 50th win at the helm in Oxford. He became the 13th coach to win 50 games at Ole Miss, the fifth coach to reach that mark in their third season, and the third-fastest to 50 in school history.
"WHEN IT'S TIME TO EAT A MEAL, I ROB AND STEAL"
In a heated road battle in Madison Square Garden with St. John's, Kezza Giffa played a key part in the Ole Miss second-half comeback attempt. On the floor for 17 of the final 20 minutes of action, Giffa helped keep one of the nation's best offenses at bay, collecting six steals to bring his game total to seven. He became one of 11 Rebels all-time to grab seven or more steals in a game, tying him for the fifth-most in school history. It was the most steals for an Ole Miss player in a single game since Matthew Murrell had seven as well against Grambling State on November 8, 2024.
BLACKJACK
For the third season in a row, the Ole Miss Rebels traveled down to Biloxi, Mississippi to take on Southern Miss in the Mississippi Coast Coliseum. Holding a narrow lead at halftime, 31-29, guard AJ Storr helped fuel a second-half surge where the team shot 63.6 percent from the field, their second-best shooting performance in a half this season. The senior guard finished with a season-best eight made shots and a game-high 21 points while adding three offensive rebounds, and a pair of steals.
The Ole Miss bench outscored Southern Miss 29-6, led by 13 points from Kezza Giffa and 12 from Patton Pinkins. For the third game in a row, the Ole Miss defense had 10 or more steals, led by Giffa with three.
ONE LAST GOODBYE TO THE TAD PAD
Nearly 60 years ago, the C.M. "Tad" Smith Coliseum opened its doors for the first Ole Miss basketball game, when they hosted Kentucky on February 21, 1966. Decades of memories and historic moments later, what was thought to be the final game in the arena was played on December 22, 2015 as the Rebels defeated Troy in a thrilling overtime victory. With the hiring of current head coach Chris Beard came the throwback games, as Ole Miss has since played a pair of games in the former arena still standing on campus. However, the University announced in the fall of 2025 that the coliseum would be demolished in 2026, opening the door for one final game in the Tad Pad early in the 2025-26 season.
Hosting Cal State Bakersfield, Ole Miss earned one final victory in front of a capacity sellout crowd, defeating the Roadrunners 82-60.
"WHOOP" THERE IT IS
Ole Miss defended their home court to move to 3-0 on the new season in their toughest matchup to date, taking down Memphis 83-77 in front of a raucous crowd. While the two would go back-and-forth to begin the matchup, the Tigers held their final lead midway through the first half as Ole Miss stepped in front and held the visitors at bay.
Newcomer Ilias Kamardine continued to dazzle and impress, as he paced the Rebels with 26 points by going 11-14 from the field, knocking down a trio of three pointers while adding four rebounds, four assists and a block and steal on defense. Senior guard Kezza Giffa made his first start of the season and took advantage of his opportunity with 15 points while dishing out five assists with zero turnovers.
The win gave Ole Miss a win in six of the last nine meetings with Memphis, while the Rebels have won five straight games when playing in Oxford.
CONVINCING OPENER
One of the most anticipated seasons in program history got off to a great start, as Ole Miss took down Southeastern Louisiana in their opener 88-58 on Monday, November 3. The Rebels out-rebounded the Lions 44 to 26, posting their best rebound margin of +18 under head coach Chris Beard. The team was paced offensively by Malik Dia, who scored 20 points with four rebounds, an assist, and two steals.
In his Ole Miss debut, AJ Storr dropped 18 points while going 4-5 from beyond the arc, adding six rebounds and four assists. His 18 were the most for a Rebel debut in a season opener since 2016, when Deandre Burnett scored 23 vs. UT Martin.
International guard Ilias Kamardine flashed his skill on both ends of the floor in his first college game, scoring 13 points with three boards, four assists, and a pair of steals. James Scott led the team on the boards with nine while blocking three shots (eighth career game with 3 or more blocks), while Kezza Giffa came off the bench and added 12 points in just 15 minutes.
KEEP THE FUTURE BRIGHT
The Ole Miss men's basketball program recently welcomed two signees to their 2026 recruiting class, adding small forward Jaron Saulsberry and combo guard Yohance Connor.
Saulsberry will come to Oxford from Marietta, Georgia and Wheeler High School, and is ranked as a top-10 player in his home state by both ESPN and 247Sports. A 6'6" four-star recruit, he is ranked as the No. 28 small forward in the class of 2026.
Hailing from Charlotte, N.C., Connor ranks among the best in his state, tabbed the No. 3 player in North Carolina by 247Sports and No. 5 by Rivals. He is listed as a four-star recruit by ESPN and 247Sports, and ranked as the No. 5 combo guard in the class of 2026 by Rivals.
For the latest news and updates regarding Ole Miss Men's Basketball, follow the Rebels on X at @OleMissMBB, on Facebook at Ole Miss Men's Basketball and on Instagram at olemissmbb.
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PRESSER | Chris Beard (01-12-26)
Monday, January 12
PRESSER | Ilias Kamardine (01-12-26)
Monday, January 12
PRESSER: Chris Beard & AJ Storr (Missouri Postgame)
Saturday, January 10
HIGHLIGHTS: Men's Basketball vs. Missouri (1/10/26)
Saturday, January 10