Ole Miss’ Daeshun Ruffin to Miss Remainder of the Season Due to Knee Injury

Ole Miss’ Daeshun Ruffin will miss the rest of the season after going down with a knee injury on Tuesday night in the 76-72 win over No. 25 LSU. 

Ruffin came into the game against the LSU Tigers as the SEC Freshmen of the Week. The Jackson, Miss. native, scored 17 points in the Kansas State Big 12 / SEC Challenge on Saturday.  Against the Tigers in 20 minutes of action he scored 19 points. 

“Daeshun was just hitting his stride and was establishing himself as one of the best point guards in the SEC,” said Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis. “I feel badly for Daeshun, but I know he will attack rehab with a great maturity and will return stronger than ever next season. Our team has been very resilient all season long, and we expect no difference against a really good Florida team on Saturday.”

Ruffin has been electric since returning to the team following an eight-game absence due to a broken right hand suffered in the season opener against New Orleans on Nov. 9. On the season, Ruffin averaged a team-high 2.3 steals per game and led the Rebels with a 52-of-69 (.754) clip from the charity stripe, to go along with 12.6 points, 3.4 assists and 1.5 rebounds per game. In SEC season he’s been just as impressive against some of the best teams in the nation, ranking second in the conference in SEC-only action in steals (2.7/game), ninth in free throw shooting (.833) and 10th in assists (3.9/game). Furthermore, his five steals at No. 18 Tennessee on Jan. 5 ranks tied for the second-most in an SEC game this season.

He was particularly effective for the Rebels stepping up for the injured Jarkel Joiner, averaging 12.5 points, 3.8 assists, 2.5 steals and shooting 36 percent overall and 77.8 percent from the free throw line in Joiner’s absence since Dec. 21.

Staff Report