Chris Beard details what allowed strong defense for Ole Miss down the stretch vs. Missouri

It wasn’t easy but Ole Miss halted its three-game losing streak with a 79-76 victory over Missouri on Saturday. With 12 minutes left in the game, Ole Miss trailed by double-digits.

However, due to some pesky defense, the Rebels rallied back for the win. After the game, OM head coach Chris Beard pulled back the curtain on his team’s stellar defense down the stretch.

“We had some fortune, they missed some shots during that stretch and some free throws, but I think you have to recognize some of the things we were doing defensively,” Beard said. We changed the lineup a little bit, we got aggressive. Defense is not just hoping they miss, defense is you have to take something away.

“Austin Nunez probably made the best defensive play of the game. We call that a MIG (most important guy), sometimes you just got to make a play. That’s not coaching, that’s just a guy making a play. I thought during that stretch, when we got back into the game and separated enough to get the win, we were aggressive on defense.”

In the win, Ole Miss squeezed eight turnovers out of the Tigers. The Rebels didn’t let Missouri’s mistakes go to waste. The team scored 19 points off Mizzou’s wasted possessions. Ole Miss couldn’t afford a loss in the outing.

With the win, the team is 6-6 in the conference and on the cusp of an NCAA Tournament berth. In contrast, Missouri is now 0-12 against SEC opponents. A loss for Ole Miss would have been a loss for their postseason hopes.

Ole Miss battling through the storm

Ole Miss conference play struggles have been a stark contrast from the beginning of its season. When the calendar flipped to 2024, Ole Miss was undefeated with a 13-0 record and the No. 22 team in the AP Top 25. Last week, Chris Beard addressed the team’s recent troubles.

“We’ve had a tough stretch, no doubt about it,” Beard said. “That’s life in BCS basketball. Especially in leagues like the SEC. I think we’ve lost five games. Four of those five were to ranked teams. I think three of those four ranked teams were on the road. So, we obviously need to play better on the road.

“For 40 minutes, we have to have more consistency,” Beard said. “And all those games, when you look at it, it’s arguably that we’ve had one good half. That’s not going to get it done. We’ve got to find more consistency. Specifically on defense. We’ve got to do a better job guarding the ball.”