Skip to main content
ole-miss logo

Bracket Watch: No. 23 Ole Miss steady in latest 'Bracketology' ahead of game with No. 1 Auburn

11by:Jake Thompson•about 18 hours•

JakeThompsonOn3

NCAA Basketball: Texas at Mississippi
Jan 29, 2025; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Chris Beard talks with Mississippi Rebels forward Malik Dia (0) during the first half against the Texas Longhorns at The Sandy and John Black Pavilion at Ole Miss. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

This weekend is a major opportunity for the Ole Miss men’s basketball team with No. 1 Auburn to coming to Oxford on Saturday.

Getting back in the win column on Wednesday with the win over Texas put the No. 23-ranked Rebels (16-5, 5-3 Southeastern Conference) back on track, snapping a three-game skid. But now the biggest test of the season awaits in the Tigers (19-1, 7-0).

Ahead of that 1 p.m. CT showdown on Saturday there was another round of NCAA Tournament projections released on Friday. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi released his latest ‘Bracketology’ and Ole Miss remains in a good position.

Lunardi has the Rebels still as a 6 Seed in the Midwest Region (Indianapolis), taking on 11 Seed UC Irvine in Milwaukee for a first round matchup. A potential rematch from the regular season could take place if the projections were true. If the Rebels get through the first round then they would play the winner between 3 Seed Purdue and 14 Seed Cleveland State. The Boilermakers pulled out a last-second overtime win over Ole Miss in San Diego over Thanksgiving week.

Earlier this week Jerry Palm of CBS Sports also had Ole Miss as a 6 Seed in his weekly NCAA Tournament projections update. On Friday Jon Rothstein also included the Rebels as one of 13 SEC teams in the hunt for a bid to the tournament in his weekly ‘Bracket Breakdown.’

When looking at the metrics the Rebels are in a strong position, sitting at No. 22 in the latest NET rankings. Auburn is No. 1 in the NET, too, presenting the biggest Quad 1 chance of the season.

“This is an 18-round fight. I don’t know much about momentum,” Beard said postgame on Wednesday. “We’re just trying to put ourselves in a position to have some good practices and give the guys the best possible game plan we can, be prepared and confident to try and play our best on game night. I’ve always thought it was kind of too early for that too.

“Personally, I’ve always thought you get through the first round of conference play, and then you kind of see where you’re at. What’s it going to take to win the league?”

Saturday’s game will mark the midway point of SEC play for Ole Miss.

Ole Miss women’s team inching closer to a host seed?

At the onset of the season the chance to be one of the top four seeds of the NCAA Tournament was strong for the Ole Miss women’s team. But then some setbacks occurred.

After six losses, three in SEC play, that chatter died down and the focus returned to just growing and getting better as the season rolled on.

Well, the Rebels have steadied the ship and are now climbing back towards one of those hosting seeds, according to ESPN’s Charlie Creme.

Releasing his latest ‘Bracketology’ update on Friday Creme moved Ole Miss (14-6, 5-3) back up the seed chart and put them as a 5 Seed in Region 3 Birmingam. This is up from a 6 Seed Creme had the Rebels on Tuesday.

The win at Georgia on Thursday and the close play against No. 7 Texas, nearly upsetting the Longhorns on Sunday, has provided positive momentum for Ole Miss. The Rebels are No. 13 in the latest NET after reaching their highest mark in program history of No. 11 on Thursday.

You may also like