Ole Miss Travels to Take on MSU

By Adam Brown
Sports Editor
adam.brown@hottytoddy.com

The Ole Miss Rebels return to the court this evening as they travel to Starkville, Mississippi, to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. inside Humphrey Coliseum on SEC Network.

Ole Miss (6-6, 1-4 SEC) is coming off of a 78-74 loss at Georgia in which Devontae Shuler scored 24 points. Jarkell Joiner scored 22 points, making the match at Georgia his first 20-point game in a Rebel uniform. 

Joiner, an Oxford native, leads the Rebels in scoring during SEC play (12.2 ppg), having come off of the bench in four out of five conference games.

Mississippi State comes into this rivalry matchup with an 9-5 record and a 4-2 mark in conference action. The Bulldogs split their two home games last week, falling to Texas A&M before knocking off Florida.

Mississippi State is led on the floor by Iverson Molinar (18.4 ppg) and D.J. Stewart Jr. (17.4 ppg); both Bulldogs are dishing out 2.6 apg. Tolu Smith leads the rebounding effort, pulling down a conference-best 9.0 boards per game to go along with a 13.8 ppg average.

In their last game, the Rebels shot 50.8% against Georgia, their best shooting percentage in an SEC game this season.

Coach Kermit Davis’ squad ranks 17th in the country in turnovers forced per game (17.7). The Rebels have forced at least 15 turnovers in 11 games this season.

When the ball is tipped off, it will be the 263rd all-time meeting between the Rebels and the Bulldogs. Mississippi State holds a 145-117 lead in the series. In the last meeting, Ole Miss lost 69-44 to the Bulldogs on the road.