Coach Kermit Davis and no.18 Ole Miss basketball was back in SEC action Saturday afternoon as they hosted the Arkansas Razorbacks in The Pavilion.
The 2018-2019 Ole Miss basketball season has been an exciting one so far and the Rebels (14-3, 4-1) have performed way beyond most fans expectations. After a midweek loss to the LSU Tigers at home the Rebels were back in action Saturday against the Arkansas Razorbacks (10-7, 1-4). While Kermit Davis and the Rebels were coming off the LSU loss the Hogs also came into the matchup off an SEC loss. The Hogs dropped a midweek game to UT.
In front of a fiery sellout crowd the Rebels came out with something to prove and ran wire to wire to get the 84-67 SEC win. The Rebels started strong and had a 7-0 lead shortly into the first half. The game was never really close in the first frame and the Rebels took the 46-35 lead into the locker room at the half. The second half was more of the same Ole Miss domination and while the Hogs came close in the frame they couldn’t stop the inevitable. We can take a closer look at the game by the numbers.
By The Numbers
Ole Miss Rebels
This was a college basketball clinic by coach Kermit Davis and the Rebels. When you look at the numbers this was a game in which the Rebels not only dominated and led from wire to wire but also led in every major statistical category. From the field the Rebels shot .484 while the Hogs shot just .400. Ole Miss also out-shot the Hogs from beyond the arc hitting .318 while Arkansas shot just .261 from 3-point distance.
As a team the Rebels took advantage at the charity stripe shooting .882 while Arkansas shot just .810 from the line. Defensively, The Ole Miss Rebels out-rebounded the Hogs 40-31 in the game while forcing 17 Hogs turnovers while committing only 13 turnovers on their own. In the game the Rebels created 13 steals while only allowing 6 steals by the Hogs. This game belonged to the Rebels from start to finish and the Rebels ended up with the 17 point win.
Individual Rebels Numbers
Saturday afternoon there were four Rebels who scored in double-digits. Leading all Rebels was junior Breein Tyree who had 22 points in the contest. Tyree also had 4 boards, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot in the game against the Hogs. Senior Terence Davis added 18 points to go with 9 boards, 7 assists and 5 steals. Senior Bruce Stevens added 14 points against the Hogs. Stevens also had 7 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal. Junior Dominik Olejniczak added 13 points while pulling down 5 boards. Olejniczak also had 1 assist and 2 blocked shots in the game.
Observations
With a 17 point wire to wire win we know coach Kermit Davis had the Rebels very focused and prepared to bounce back from their first and only SEC loss. The Rebels dominated the floor at both ends of the court and made improvements from the LSU game minimizing mistakes and turnovers. The Rebels shooting also improved and they played much better in the paint where they were exposed against the Tigers. Right now the Rebels are playing very good basketball.
Coach Kermit Davis and the Rebels will be back in action Tuesday night as they travel to take on Alabama. Please be sure to check back here for the OHT Ole Miss/Alabama preview. Tipoff from T-town is set for 8pm CT and the game will be televised via ESPNU. Congrats to coach Kerm and the Rebels on their huge win over the Hogs. Hotty Toddy!