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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Saturday, January 17
Starkville, Miss.
7:30 p.m.
Ole Miss
at
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Mississippi State
Men's Basketball Heads South for Rivalry Game at Mississippi State
1/16/2026 | Men's Basketball
STARKVILLE, Miss. – The Ole Miss men's basketball team looks to ride their momentum following a ranked conference road win, as they gear up for a Saturday night game with in-state rival Mississippi State on January 17 at 7:30 p.m. in Humphery Coliseum on the SEC Network.
TEAM FACTS
Ole Miss Rebels (Record: 10-7, 2-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Chris Beard • 3rd Season at Ole Miss (54-31) • 291-129 career record (14th Season)
Mississippi State Bulldogs (Record: 10-7, 2-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Chris Jans • 4th Season at Mississippi State (73-47) • 216-91 career record (10th Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: SEC Network
Play-by-Play: Matt Schumacker
Analyst: Rodney Terry
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Gary Darby
Analyst: Murphy Holloway
SERIES HISTORY VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE
The 12th-most played rivalry in the history of college basketball, this will be the 273rd time Ole Miss and Mississippi State have faced each other. The Bulldogs lead 152-120 in the series that dates back to 1914, holding a 99-26 advantage when playing in Starkville.
LAST MEETING: February 15, 2025 (L, 71-81, Oxford, Miss.)
• A ranked matchup for the first time last season, this was the second iteration of the rivalry game in 2024-25, with the No. 22 Bulldogs claiming an early lead before winning by 10 over No. 19 Ole Miss.
• Jaylen Murray (Ole Miss): 14 points, two rebounds, one assist, one steal.
• RJ Melendez (Miss. St.): 17 points, five rebounds, one steal.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Entering with an identical record to Ole Miss, Mississippi State is 10-7 on the season with a 2-2 record in conference action. Picking up wins over Georgia Tech, Utah, and Memphis in 2025, they've defeated Texas in overtime and Oklahoma to start SEC action before dropping back-to-back games with Kentucky and No. 18 Alabama. The Bulldogs currently sit in 78th in the latest KenPom rankings and 92nd in the NET Rankings.
State has been paced by their two guards so far this season, led by one of the best scorers in the nation in Josh Hubbard (22.8 points per game) and Jayden Epps (15.6 points per game). One of the stronger rebounding teams in the country, they are led on the boards by Wichita State transfer Quincy Ballard at 7.5 per game and Kansas State transfer Achor Achor at 7.0 per outing.
A strong presence in the frontcourt paired with their high-scoring guards has been the identity for Mississippi State this season, as they ranked 24th in the country in defensive rebounds per game (28.2) and 28th in total rebounds per game (40.7). Their bigs have also had an impact down low on defense, averaging 4.6 blocks per game to rank 43rd in the nation, as Ballard and Jamarion Davis-Fleming each have over 20 blocks on the season.
Currently in his fourth year with the program, head coach Chris Jans has won just over 70 games during his time in Starkville. He's won 21 games in each of his first three seasons with State, and joined the program from New Mexico State, where he accumulated 122 wins to just 32 losses over five seasons. He got his first Division I head coaching position at Bowling Green during the 2014-15 season, after years of success at the junior college level.
AS SWEET AS SUGAR
Heading into hostile territory against a ranked opponent, Ole Miss entered Stegeman Coliseum on January 14 to take on the No. 21 Georgia Bulldogs, a facility that had the longest active win streak in the SEC against unranked foes. Trailing by five at the half, the Rebels continued to scrap with the top-ranked scoring offense in all of college basketball, keeping pace behind 16 second-half points from AJ Storr and 14 from Travis Perry. Trailing by four with under a minute to play, Storr cut the deficit to two, 87-85 with 38 seconds remaining. Following a missed layup from the Bulldogs, Storr collected the rebound and drove the length of the floor for a bucket to force overtime.
With 18 seconds left in OT, Storr dropped in a quick layup off an inbound pass to go up 95-94. The home team would go 1-2 on the other end of the floor from the free throw line, before a missed floater from Storr was batted to Patton Pinkins, who tipped in the rebound as the clock hit zeros for a game-winning score.
The 97 points from Ole Miss marked the most scored against a ranked opponent on the road in school history.
I THOUGHT I TOLD YA, I'M A STARR
A key component in the consecutive SEC wins over Missouri and No. 21 Georgia was senior guard AJ Storr. In a home game with Mizzou, Storr caught fire early, knocking down four three-point shots in the first half before finishing with a then season-best 26 points. He followed that up with a strong game on the road at No. 21 Georgia, scoring 18 points in the second half and overtime period combined to finish with a season-best 27 points and eight rebounds, adding three steals on defense.
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 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 nine games alone.
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.
Shooting an impressive 52.1 percent from the floor on the season, Pinkins is up to 60.5 percent (23-38) over the past five games, averaging 13.2 points while shooting 52.4 percent (11-21) from three.
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.
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.
"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.
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: 10-7, 2-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Chris Beard • 3rd Season at Ole Miss (54-31) • 291-129 career record (14th Season)
Mississippi State Bulldogs (Record: 10-7, 2-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Chris Jans • 4th Season at Mississippi State (73-47) • 216-91 career record (10th Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: SEC Network
Play-by-Play: Matt Schumacker
Analyst: Rodney Terry
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Gary Darby
Analyst: Murphy Holloway
SERIES HISTORY VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE
The 12th-most played rivalry in the history of college basketball, this will be the 273rd time Ole Miss and Mississippi State have faced each other. The Bulldogs lead 152-120 in the series that dates back to 1914, holding a 99-26 advantage when playing in Starkville.
LAST MEETING: February 15, 2025 (L, 71-81, Oxford, Miss.)
• A ranked matchup for the first time last season, this was the second iteration of the rivalry game in 2024-25, with the No. 22 Bulldogs claiming an early lead before winning by 10 over No. 19 Ole Miss.
• Jaylen Murray (Ole Miss): 14 points, two rebounds, one assist, one steal.
• RJ Melendez (Miss. St.): 17 points, five rebounds, one steal.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Entering with an identical record to Ole Miss, Mississippi State is 10-7 on the season with a 2-2 record in conference action. Picking up wins over Georgia Tech, Utah, and Memphis in 2025, they've defeated Texas in overtime and Oklahoma to start SEC action before dropping back-to-back games with Kentucky and No. 18 Alabama. The Bulldogs currently sit in 78th in the latest KenPom rankings and 92nd in the NET Rankings.
State has been paced by their two guards so far this season, led by one of the best scorers in the nation in Josh Hubbard (22.8 points per game) and Jayden Epps (15.6 points per game). One of the stronger rebounding teams in the country, they are led on the boards by Wichita State transfer Quincy Ballard at 7.5 per game and Kansas State transfer Achor Achor at 7.0 per outing.
A strong presence in the frontcourt paired with their high-scoring guards has been the identity for Mississippi State this season, as they ranked 24th in the country in defensive rebounds per game (28.2) and 28th in total rebounds per game (40.7). Their bigs have also had an impact down low on defense, averaging 4.6 blocks per game to rank 43rd in the nation, as Ballard and Jamarion Davis-Fleming each have over 20 blocks on the season.
Currently in his fourth year with the program, head coach Chris Jans has won just over 70 games during his time in Starkville. He's won 21 games in each of his first three seasons with State, and joined the program from New Mexico State, where he accumulated 122 wins to just 32 losses over five seasons. He got his first Division I head coaching position at Bowling Green during the 2014-15 season, after years of success at the junior college level.
AS SWEET AS SUGAR
Heading into hostile territory against a ranked opponent, Ole Miss entered Stegeman Coliseum on January 14 to take on the No. 21 Georgia Bulldogs, a facility that had the longest active win streak in the SEC against unranked foes. Trailing by five at the half, the Rebels continued to scrap with the top-ranked scoring offense in all of college basketball, keeping pace behind 16 second-half points from AJ Storr and 14 from Travis Perry. Trailing by four with under a minute to play, Storr cut the deficit to two, 87-85 with 38 seconds remaining. Following a missed layup from the Bulldogs, Storr collected the rebound and drove the length of the floor for a bucket to force overtime.
With 18 seconds left in OT, Storr dropped in a quick layup off an inbound pass to go up 95-94. The home team would go 1-2 on the other end of the floor from the free throw line, before a missed floater from Storr was batted to Patton Pinkins, who tipped in the rebound as the clock hit zeros for a game-winning score.
The 97 points from Ole Miss marked the most scored against a ranked opponent on the road in school history.
I THOUGHT I TOLD YA, I'M A STARR
A key component in the consecutive SEC wins over Missouri and No. 21 Georgia was senior guard AJ Storr. In a home game with Mizzou, Storr caught fire early, knocking down four three-point shots in the first half before finishing with a then season-best 26 points. He followed that up with a strong game on the road at No. 21 Georgia, scoring 18 points in the second half and overtime period combined to finish with a season-best 27 points and eight rebounds, adding three steals on defense.
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 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 nine games alone.
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.
Shooting an impressive 52.1 percent from the floor on the season, Pinkins is up to 60.5 percent (23-38) over the past five games, averaging 13.2 points while shooting 52.4 percent (11-21) from three.
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.
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.
"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.
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 - Postgame at Georgia (01-14-26)
Wednesday, January 14
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