Rebels Look to Get Back on Track Against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

A struggling Ole Miss men’s basketball team returns to the court Tuesday night as they play host to the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m., and the game will be aired on the SEC Network.
Ole Miss (5-5) looks to rebound after a 101-97 loss to the Illinois State Redbirds in overtime on Saturday afternoon. That was the third overtime loss for the Rebels this season, all of them before a hometown crowd. Junior Bruce Stevens had another career-high against the Redbirds with 27 points, which is the most by an Ole Miss player this season.
Coach Andy Kennedy has used six different starting lineups for the Red and Blue through the first ten games this season.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi enters Tuesday night’s game with a 3-6 record following a 71-55 win over St. Mary’s (Texas) on Friday (Dec. 15). Eight of the Islanders’ nine games have been against opponents from Texas, the exception being SEC foe Georgia. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi took the Bulldogs to the wire before falling 68-65 on Nov. 19.
Senior guard Joseph Kilgore leads the Islanders in nearly every category, including scoring (16.7 points per game), rebounds (53), assists (22) and steals (15). Kareem South, a redshirt-sophomore guard, adds 10.7 ppg to the mix, along with a team-best 11 three-pointers. The Islanders are coached by Willis Wilson, who is in his seventh season at the helm of the program.
In the only previous meeting between Ole Miss and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Nov. 29, 2009), Chris Warren and Terrico White scored 19 points apiece as the Rebels won 73-58. Terrance Henry added 12 points for the Rebels, who raced to a 17-4 lead in the opening seven minutes. Ole Miss led 40-23 at halftime and led by as many as 26 points early in the second half. The Rebels shot 27 of 63 from the field in that game but managed only 8 of 31 from three-point range. The Islanders, led by Kevin Palmer with a game-high 23 points, made a belated rally to pull within 11 points with three minutes left. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi shot 21 of 52 from the field but could not overcome a 1-for-11 start. The Islanders managed only 9 of 18 from the free throw line and were out-rebounded 38-36.
Fans that can’t make it into town for this game can watch all of the action on the SEC Network or listen to the call on Ole Miss Sports Radio Network.

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Adam Brown is the sports editor of HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at adam.brown@hottytoddy.com.
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