GameDay Primer: Well-rested Ole Miss heads back to Lexington, historically a house of horrors

Ole Miss has dropped each of its last two games. So, a weekend free of basketball couldn’t have come at a much better time. 

Unfortunately, the Rebels (18-5, 5-5 SEC) return to action at Kentucky. Lexington has historically been a house of horrors for Ole Miss. The Rebels have just two wins there in their last 60 games.

They’ll give it another go Tuesday, when the Rebels take on the No. 20-ranked Wildcats (16-7, 6-4) at 8 p.m. CT on ESPN.

“Got to get out to a hot start (and) take the crowd out of it,” the Ole Miss Spirit’s Zach Berry said Monday in breaking down the critical late-season showdown. The Rebels last won at Rupp back in 1998.

“Going to have to defend the perimeter, because they shoot the ball well. It’s going to be tough, but if anybody can have a game plan that can challenge (Kentucky head coach John) Calipari and Kentucky, it’s Chris Beard.”

ESPN has Ole Miss as one of the ‘Last Four In’ the NCAA Tournament in its latest bracketology.

Jerry Palm of CBS, meanwhile, is projecting the Rebels as a 10-seed and one of eight SEC teams to make the field. 

Ole Miss has reached the ‘Big Dance’ just nine times in its 100-plus-year history. The Rebels last got there nearly five years ago. Ole Miss would be the fourth separate program first-year Ole Miss head coach Chris Beard has led to the tournament since 2016.

“Big picture, just consistency,” Beard said of his team earlier this month during an appearance on RebTalk. “We’ve proven we can do the right things over the course of the first three months of the season. But can we get a little bit more disciplined? Can we do the right things time after time, no matter the externals (or) what the scoreboard is?

“Offense, we’re still trying to get that balance where we can score inside and on the perimeter. Our fast-break can always get better (and) our ability to get to the free-throw line is a focal point. Defensively, it’s just always the bookends. Defense starts with getting back, transition defense, and ends with rebounding. We definitely have about six to eight objectives on both sides of the ball we’re working really hard at each day trying to improve.”

RELATED: Ole Miss will be thinking about that last shot at South Carolina and two missed opportunities

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS

Kentucky currently sits in a three-way tie for sixth in the SEC standings. Ole Miss is eighth.

The Wildcats have wins over Florida, Missouri, Mississippi State, Georgia, Arkansas, and Vanderbilt. Their losses include Texas A&M, South Carolina, Florida and Tennessee. They most recently stepped out of the conference to take on Gonzaga — a 89-85 loss.

The Wildcats have suffered three straight home losses, the worst stretch ever at Rupp.

“I want to tell our fans how much I appreciate what they’re doing,” Calipari said after the loss to the Bulldogs on Saturday. “They’re here, they’re loud. I would say, stick with them. This team needs them.”

Antonio Reeves is in his fifth college season and second at Kentucky. 

He leads Kentucky in scoring (19.6 points per game) and is one of five Wildcats averaging over 10 points per game. The others are Rob Dillingham (15.0 ppg), Reed Sheppard (12.4 ppg), Tre Mitchell (12.3 pgg), and D.J. Wagner (11.5 pgg).

Mitchell is also chipping in a Kentucky-best 7.6 rebounds, while Kentucky features one of the elite offenses in the nation. The Wildcats are first in the NCAA in three-point percentage (41.0). Ole Miss (38.7) is second to them in the SEC. 

The Wildcats are averaging the third-most points per game (89.5), and their 49.1 team shooting percentage is No. 16 in the country. Kentucky is No. 13 in assists (17.7 per game).

The Wildcats are just as tough on the defensive end. They’re fourth in the nation in blocks per game (6.1). Three players have 20 or more this season: Ugonna Onyenso (38), Mitchell (25) and Reed Sheppard (20). Sheppard has an SEC-best 55 steals. Kentucky is swiping 7.8 on average as a team.

Calipari is in his 32nd season as a college head coach and 15th at Kentucky. He became just the 14th coach in Division I history with at least 800 career wins earlier this season. He’s won 25 games or more in 11 of his previous 14 seasons since taking over at Kentucky in 2009.

Palm, for now, has Kentucky as a 7-seed. 

OLE MISS HEADS TO LEXINGTON