Ole Miss Opens 2018 on the Road Against a Formidable UGA

Deandre Burnett and the Rebels travel to Athens for an SEC mid-week tilt. Photo courtesy of Joshua McCoy/Ole Miss Athletics

The Ole Miss men’s basketball team opens the 2018 calendar year on the road Wednesday night, taking on the Georgia Bulldogs. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. on the SEC Network.

Ole Miss (8-5, 1-0 SEC) is riding a three-game winning streak, including a 74-69 win over South Carolina on New Year’s Eve to open up SEC play.
The Rebels made 20 of 23 free throws in the second half of that game to hold on for the victory. Senior Deandre Burnett led Ole Miss with 18 points and six assists.
Georgia enters Wednesday’s matchup at 9-3 coming off a loss at Kentucky to start SEC play. In non-conference action, the Bulldogs lost to San Diego State and UMass; however, they won all six of their home games.
UGA is led by the formidable senior Yante Maten, who nearly averages a double-double. Ranking second in the SEC with 19.9 ppg and leading the conference in rebounding (9.5 per game), Maten has produced an SEC-best six double-doubles this season. Pulling down 4.2 offensive boards per game, he ranks seventh in the country.
Junior guard William Jackson II follows Maten with 11.5 ppg while leading the Bulldogs in assists (46) and three-point shooting (25 of 60). UGA is coached by Mark Fox, who is in his sixth season at the helm of the program.
The Rebels and Bulldogs last met just less than one year ago (Jan. 11, 2017). Terence Davis scored 12 points and Sebastian Saiz added 11, but Ole Miss dropped the home matchup to Georgia 69-47. It was the lowest scoring output ever for the Rebels in The Pavilion at Ole Miss, which opened in January 2016. Georgia jumped out to a 30-18 halftime lead after the Rebels shot just 5 of 30 (16.7 percent) from the field. The Ole Miss offense was hobbled when Deandre Burnett, who was the team’s leading scorer at the time with 19 points per game, sprained his ankle in the first half and didn’t return.

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