By Adam Brown
Sports Editor
adam.brown@hottytoddy.com
The Ole Miss men’s basketball team travels to Music City to take on the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday. Tipoff is set for noon CT and may seen on the SEC Network.
Ole Miss (9-13, 1-8 SEC) is coming off a 75-66 loss to the Kentucky Wildcats on Tuesday night. The Rebels were led on the court by freshman Amaree Abram with 17 points.
Prior to the game, sophomore Daeshun Ruffin left the team for personal reasons and Matthew Murrell is still recovering from a injury.
Coach Kermit Davis hopes to get Murrell back on the floor against Vanderbilt.
Vanderbilt (10-12, 3-6 SEC) comes into the Saturday’s matchup after a 101-44 loss to No. 4 Alabama.
This season, Vandy dropped games with Missouri and Tennessee. They have since lost to Tennessee, Alabama twice, Kentucky, and Texas A&M, picking up their other two conference wins over Arkansas and Georgia.
Depth has been the strength of Vanderbilt this season, as they lead the SEC and rank sixth in the nation at 32.8 bench points per game. While attempting 25.0 three pointers per game (42nd in the NCAA and third in the SEC), they are shooting just 32.1% from beyond the arc on the year (280th in the NCAA and ninth in the SEC). They also rank among the top-100 as a team in blocks per game (4.5, 47th in NCAA), offensive rebounds per game (11.8, 62nd in NCAA), fewest turnovers per game (11.7, 81st in NCAA), and total rebounds per game (36.6, 96th in NCAA).
Forward Liam Robbins enters as their leading scorer on the season, averaging 13.0 points per game while leading the team in rebounds as well at 5.9 per contest. Standing seven-feet tall, the senior also leads the team and ranks seventh in the nation at 2.78 blocks per game. Forward Myles Stute has been a threat from deep this season, ranking second in the SEC and 17th in the country with a 42.4% mark from three. He’s connected on seven three pointers twice this season, against Temple on November 15 and January 28 at Texas A&M.
Saturday will be the 127th meeting between the Rebels and the Commodores. Vanderbilt leads the series 78-48. The home team has gotten the better of their opponent throughout the 98 years they’ve played, with Vanderbilt leading in Nashville 48-9, and Ole Miss leading in Oxford 34-26. In neutral locations, the Rebels lead 5-4, with the series tied at four wins each during the postseason and in overtime games.
