After taking care of business Thursday against the Tigers of LSU, the Rebs have put themselves in a position to win/tie for the SEC Western division and secure a first round bye in the upcoming SEC tournament. However, a whole lot has to take place for that to happen. First off, the Rebs gotta beat Arkansas. Secondly, Miss State has to lose to Tennessee. This would create a tie and put the Rebs as a #2 seed in the before mentioned SEC tournament. Not bad for a team, at times looked great and at others looked like they didn't know what was going on and that you could actually get points from inside the 3-point line. Yeah, the Rebs like to shoot the long ball. They have chunked up 652 attempts from downtown while making a respectable 36%. Sorta a must win on the road in Fayetteville, so here is to hoping for a Reb win, a State loss and a strong showing in the SEC tournament. The Rebs really don't have a shot at the "Big Dance" without it and it would be nice to get into the tournament that really matters. On that, here are a few notes about the upcoming matchup which will solidify my points and give you something to think about.....
QUICK NOTES
- The winner of today's matchup will be the Western Division No. 2 seed in next week's SEC Tournament.
- If Ole Miss beats Arkansas and Mississippi State loses to Tennessee, the Rebels and Bulldogs would share the SEC Western Division title.
- Andy Kennedy has led Ole Miss to 20 wins for the third time in his first four seasons. He is the second Rebel coach ever to reach the 20-win mark three times.
- Saturday's game will be the 66th meeting between the two schools, with the Razorbacks holding an all-time series lead of 41-24.
- Ole Miss is 5-4 this season in true road games (4-3 in SEC road games).
- The Rebels went 1-3 with freshman Reginald Buckner out with an ankle injury, but are 19-6 when he plays.
- At 78.7 ppg, Ole Miss ranks second in the SEC and 25th in the nation in scoring offense.
- The Rebels have out-rebounded their opponent in nine of the last 12 games.
- Junior guard Chris Warren has hit a 3-pointer in 39 consecutive games, the second-longest streak in school history and seventh-longest in SEC history.
- The winner of today's matchup will be the Western Division No. 2 seed in next week's SEC Tournament.
- If Ole Miss beats Arkansas and Mississippi State loses to Tennessee, the Rebels and Bulldogs would share the SEC Western Division title.
- Andy Kennedy has led Ole Miss to 20 wins for the third time in his first four seasons. He is the second Rebel coach ever to reach the 20-win mark three times.
- Saturday's game will be the 66th meeting between the two schools, with the Razorbacks holding an all-time series lead of 41-24.
- Ole Miss is 5-4 this season in true road games (4-3 in SEC road games).
- The Rebels went 1-3 with freshman Reginald Buckner out with an ankle injury, but are 19-6 when he plays.
- At 78.7 ppg, Ole Miss ranks second in the SEC and 25th in the nation in scoring offense.
- The Rebels have out-rebounded their opponent in nine of the last 12 games.
- Junior guard Chris Warren has hit a 3-pointer in 39 consecutive games, the second-longest streak in school history and seventh-longest in SEC history.
REBS COMPETE FOR A RETURN TO THE BIG DANCE
Ole Miss is looking to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2002, and it has built a strong case starting with some big non-conference results. The Rebels have neutral-site wins over the hot Kansas State Wildcats (RPI No. 5) and C-USA Champion UTEP (No. 44). The win over KSU is the best non-league victory by an SEC team away from its home court this season.
Overall, Ole Miss is 2-5 against top-50 RPI teams and 7-8 against teams in the current RPI top 120. Among the Rebels' losses are five of the RPI's top 16 squads - No. 4 Kentucky, No. 6 West Virginia, No. 7 Villanova, No. 12 Vanderbilt and No. 16 Tennessee - and no loss by more than 12 points. The squad's only loss to a team currently below 100th is to Arkansas (No. 136). The Rebels are 12-4 at home and 8-5 away from home (5-4 road, 3-1 neutral).
The presence of 6-foot-8 freshman Reginald Buckner, the team's best post defender, has been a big key to the Rebels' success. The team is 19-6 when he dresses out but went just 1-3 in the four SEC games he missed with a severe ankle sprain.
Ole Miss is looking to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2002, and it has built a strong case starting with some big non-conference results. The Rebels have neutral-site wins over the hot Kansas State Wildcats (RPI No. 5) and C-USA Champion UTEP (No. 44). The win over KSU is the best non-league victory by an SEC team away from its home court this season.
Overall, Ole Miss is 2-5 against top-50 RPI teams and 7-8 against teams in the current RPI top 120. Among the Rebels' losses are five of the RPI's top 16 squads - No. 4 Kentucky, No. 6 West Virginia, No. 7 Villanova, No. 12 Vanderbilt and No. 16 Tennessee - and no loss by more than 12 points. The squad's only loss to a team currently below 100th is to Arkansas (No. 136). The Rebels are 12-4 at home and 8-5 away from home (5-4 road, 3-1 neutral).
The presence of 6-foot-8 freshman Reginald Buckner, the team's best post defender, has been a big key to the Rebels' success. The team is 19-6 when he dresses out but went just 1-3 in the four SEC games he missed with a severe ankle sprain.
OLE MISS-ARKANSAS SERIES
Saturday's game will be the 66th meeting between the two schools, with the Razorbacks holding an all-time series lead of 41-24. The series began in 1937. Since Arkansas joined the Southeastern Conference in the 1991-92 season, Ole Miss leads the series 19-18 and has won 16 of the last 24 meetings and five of the last eight. Arkansas snapped the Rebels' three-game winning streak in the series with an 80-73 win on Jan. 31 in Oxford, a game that was postponed from Saturday to Sunday due to severe winter weather travel issues. Arkansas owns a 14-7 advantage in games played in Fayetteville, but the Rebels won 98-91 (OT) there last year.
Saturday's game will be the 66th meeting between the two schools, with the Razorbacks holding an all-time series lead of 41-24. The series began in 1937. Since Arkansas joined the Southeastern Conference in the 1991-92 season, Ole Miss leads the series 19-18 and has won 16 of the last 24 meetings and five of the last eight. Arkansas snapped the Rebels' three-game winning streak in the series with an 80-73 win on Jan. 31 in Oxford, a game that was postponed from Saturday to Sunday due to severe winter weather travel issues. Arkansas owns a 14-7 advantage in games played in Fayetteville, but the Rebels won 98-91 (OT) there last year.
SEC TOURNAMENT SCENARIOS
Ole Miss enters today's contest one game ahead of Arkansas for second place in the SEC West standings at 8-7 behind division leader Mississippi State at 9-6. The winner of the Ole Miss-Arkansas contest will be the West's No. 2 seed in the SEC Tournament and receive a first-round bye. An Ole Miss win and Mississippi State loss to Tennessee would result in a Co-Western Division title for those two squads. MSU owns the head-to-head tie-breaker with UM and has clinched the West's No. 1 seed.
Ole Miss enters today's contest one game ahead of Arkansas for second place in the SEC West standings at 8-7 behind division leader Mississippi State at 9-6. The winner of the Ole Miss-Arkansas contest will be the West's No. 2 seed in the SEC Tournament and receive a first-round bye. An Ole Miss win and Mississippi State loss to Tennessee would result in a Co-Western Division title for those two squads. MSU owns the head-to-head tie-breaker with UM and has clinched the West's No. 1 seed.
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