Ole Miss Plays Host to Missouri

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

The Ole Miss men’s basketball team returns to action Tuesday as they play host to the Missouri Tigers inside the Sand and John Black Pavilion. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. on ESPNU.

Ole Miss (9-7, 1-3) is coming off an 80-71 loss to then-No. 4 Auburn on Saturday. The Rebels had four players in double figures led by Tye Fagan with 17 points. Fagan’s was joined by Nysier Brooks (14), Matthew Murrell (13) and Jaemyn Brakefield (10).

Ole Miss led the Tigers by as many as 14 in the first half, led for 23:17 total game time, led 44-38 at halftime. Auburn held the Rebels to  29.2 percent second-half shooting after a 56.7 percent in the first half. 

Against Auburn the Rebels were prefect from the free-throw line going 15-for-15.

The Rebels come into the week holding a three-point overall defense in SEC play at .289 which is second behind the LSU Tigers at .264.

Missouri (7-9, 1-3 SEC) are coming off a narrow loss at home to Texas A&M on Jan. 15, losing by just three at 67-64. The Tigers are led by Kobe Brown, who averages 14.2 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 50.3 percent overall and 75.7 percent from the free throw line.

Tuesday night marks just the 19th all-time meeting between the Rebels and Tigers, a series that has taken place since Missouri joined the SEC in the 2012-13 season. Ole Miss enjoys a wide 15-3 edge in the all-time series, including a 7-1 mark at home, a 6-2 edge at Columbia and a 2-0 record against the Tigers in the SEC Tournament in 2013 (64-62) and 2017 (86-74).

The lone Missouri win in Oxford came on Feb. 6, 2018 (75-69), and the two Tiger wins in Columbia came on Feb. 9, 2013 (98-79) and Feb. 18, 2020 (71-68). Ole Miss is in the midst of a three-game winning streak against Missouri since March 4, 2020, and the longest streak in the series stands at eight straight set by the Rebels from March 15, 2013 to March 9, 2017.

Under head coach Kermit Davis, Ole Miss is 5-1 against the Tigers, which includes two ranked wins against Missouri last season against the 10th-ranked Tigers on Feb. 10, 2021 (80-59) and the 24th-ranked Tigers two weeks later on Feb. 23, 2021 (60-53). Overall in their 15 wins, the Rebels hold an average margin of victory of +8.3 points.