Ole Miss haunted by Cisse’s ‘business decision’ in blowout loss at Memphis
Ole Miss was haunted by a ghost of Rebel past in its 87-70 loss at Memphis on Saturday.
Moussa Cisse was one of two 7-footers the Rebels rostered last season, the first for Chris Beard as head coach. Ole Miss won 20 games for the first time in five years but again missed the NCAA Tournament. The Rebels have been just nine times in their 100-plus-year history.
Cisse was a primary contributor. He re-entered the transfer portal in the off-season and returned to Memphis. Beard had nothing but praise for Cisse in his postgame comments.
However, he noted the business aspect of the sport in why Cisse is no longer at Ole Miss.
“I’m a big fan of Moussa,” Beard said. “We got the Ole Miss job (and) he was the guy we wanted to come in and kind of start the recruiting class. He worked really hard in our program last year. Nothing but praise to say about Moussa as a person and a player.
“Moussa’s one of the best players in college basketball when he knows who he is and does all the things he can do well. That’s what I saw tonight. He rebounded, he affected shots (and) made free throws. He’s worked really hard on that over the years. Congratulations to Moussa. He’s a guy I’ll always pull for. Once a player in our program, always a player in our program. He made a business decision, like all players have the opportunity to do at the end of the season. I’ve always been a fan of Moussa.”
Cisse had a double-double (13 points, 11 rebounds) and blocked three shots in the non-conference finale for the Rebels.
His size was a matchup nightmare for the Rebels, who don’t have a single big over 6-8. Ole Miss (11-2) next opens SEC play against Georgia on January 4, 2025. Tipoff is set for 11 a.m. CT on SECNetwork+.
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The Rebels entered the day at No. 16 in the AP Top 25, their highest ranking in 11 years. They were one of 13 SEC teams in this week’s NCAA Tournament projections by ESPN.
“From where I was sitting Memphis was emotionally attached to the this game,” Beard said. “We matched that part of the game for segments, but nowhere near the 40 minutes that it would have required to win.
“We have to do a better job of embracing each possession. We’ve got some veteran guys that have played a long time. It’s just like they think everything’s just going to be OK. When you’re playing against a team like Memphis you don’t have that margin for error. Certainly the start in the first half and the start of the second half were really the difference in the game.”
REBEL TIP-INS
Sean Pedulla led Ole Miss with 13 points and four assists. … Mikeal Brown-Jones and Malik Dia had six rebounds apiece. … Ole Miss was 2 for 16 from 3 in the second half. … Three Rebels scored double-digit points: Pedulla, Jaylen Murray (12) and Malik Dia (11). … Colby Rogers had a Memphis-high 28 points, including 15 in the second half.
