On3 Things to Know: Ole Miss basketball back to SEC play, hosting Kentucky

Ole Miss is seeing its season continue to spiral after falling to Oklahoma State in Stillwater on Saturday. Not much has gone right for the Rebels this year after a fast start.

Injuries are piling up again for Ole Miss (9-12, 1-7 Southeastern Conference) but it might be getting those players back soon. The Rebels return to SEC play this week, hosting Kentucky on Tuesday.

Guards Daeshun Ruffin and Matthew Murrell were both out for the Rebels game against Oklahoma State. Murrell was still nursing a right knee injury but Ruffin’s absence was a coach’s decision by head coach Kermit Davis.

Ruffin has been in and out of the lineup this season battling injuries and more recently an illness that kept him out for a pair of games.

“Daeshun is just going through some things that we thought would be better for him to be at home,” Davis said to the media after Saturday’s game. “We’ll meet with him (on Sunday) and we love him, dearly, and pulling for him. Just coming back from a hard injury and he’s not the same. It’s some things that I know we’re going to work through.”

Ole Miss gets another chance to begin turning things around with the Wildcats coming to Oxford, a team that is having its own struggles this year.

Lets take a closer look at the upcoming matchup, with game notes provided by Ole Miss Athletics Media Relations.

SERIES HISTORY VS. KENTUCKY

Over the span of 98 years, the Rebels and Wildcats have met 123 times, with Kentucky topping Ole Miss in 109 of those matchups. After the two teams first met on January 9, 1925, with the Cats topping the Rebs 26-23, Ole Miss won the next two games in 1927 (37-17 in Lexington), and 1928 (41-28 in the SoCon Tournament).

The latest victory for the Rebels in the series came just recently in 2021, when Ole Miss defeated the Wildcats 70-62 in the SJB Pavilion. The Rebels took a three-point lead at halftime and held on through the end for the eight-point victory, with 17 points from Devontae Shuler and 16 from KJ Buffen giving Ole Miss their 14th win ever in the series.

LAST MEETING: MARCH 1, 2022 (L, 72-83, LEXINGTON, KY.)

• Ole Miss was unable to overcome a nine-point deficit at the half, falling by 11 on the road against Kentucky.

• Matthew Murrell had his second game of the season in which he made five three pointers, pacing the Rebels with 25 points while adding four assists.

• Oscar Tshiebwe led the Wildcats with 18 points, picking up a double-double as well with 15 rebounds.

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS

Entering with a 14-7 overall record, Kentucky began the season with a pair of wins before falling to Michigan State in the State Farm Champions Classic. Before their SEC opener on December 28th, the Wildcats picked up wins over South Carolina State, North Florida, Bellarmine, Michigan, Yale, and Florida A&M. In conference play Kentucky has picked up five wins, defeating LSU, Tennessee, Georgia, Texas A&M, and Vanderbilt, while falling to Missouri, Alabama, and South Carolina.

Four Wildcats enter Tuesday night’s game averaging double figures on the year, led by Oscar Tshiebwe at 16.6. The senior forward leads the nation in rebounding as well, averaging 13.7 per game on the year, grabbing an SEC-best 15.0 per contest in conference play. Sahvir Wheeler helps run the offense for Kentucky, ranking in the top-30 nation wide in assists per game (5.5, No. 22) and assist to turnover ratio (2.76, No. 26).

As a team, Kentucky ranks highly among college basketball in rebounding margin (+7.9, No. 7), offensive rebounds per game (13.5, No. 11), assists per game (16.3, No. 23), assist to turnover ratio (1.41, No. 26), and rebounds per game (38.9, No. 32). They lead the conference in three-point shooting percentage as well at 36.2 percent.

BLOCK PARTY

The Ole Miss defense currently averages 67.4 points allowed per game, only letting their opponents top 70 points five times this year. A major part of their defensive identity has been enforcing the paint, as the Rebels rank 29th in the country and fourth in the SEC in blocks per game (4.8). They are led down low by senior transfers Theo Akwuba (26 total blocks, 1.24 per game) and Jayveous McKinnis (25 total blocks, 1.25 per game).

On January 3 at No. 7 Alabama, Akwuba and McKinnis combined for seven blocks, with Akwuba’s four bringing his collegiate career total to 200 (now at 208). He and McKinnis (257 career blocks) are the only two teammates in college basketball with over 200 swats in their careers, and each rank among the top-10 in active career leaders.

A DEFENSIVE GOAT

Recording a steal in the closing moments of the first half against Missouri, senior transfer Myles Burns collected the 400th steal of his collegiate career. Joining the Ole Miss program from Loyola New Orleans of the NAIA, Burns brought 358 steals from his four-time NAIA All-American career and has collected 43 since coming to Oxford.

Counting his stats from the NAIA, Burns would become just the sixth person in NCAA men’s basketball history across all divisions to collect 400 career steals. He is currently on pace to surpass 60 steals this season, and would become the first Rebel to hit that mark since Jason Smith had 73 in 1999.

THROUGH THE FIRE

Ole Miss has faced off with some of the best competition college basketball has to offer, as the Rebels current strength of schedule ranks sixth in the nation. With a combined opponent record of 277-155 (0.641), they have taken on 11 foes with a current NET ranking in the top-100, including eight in the top-50 and two in the top-10.

ANOTHER ONE

With an average of 12.1 offensive rebounds per game, the Rebels have been among the best in the country in earning second chances on the glass, currently ranking 46th in the nation. The team is led by senior transfer Myles Burns with 46 offensive rebounds (2.2 per game).

THEM REBS MOVE FAST

Ole Miss has been quick to react on defensive rebounds and turnovers, outscoring their opponents on fast-break opportunities by 85 this season (230-145). The Rebels has recorded more fast-break points than the other team in 16 of their 21 games so far.