Rebels Face Vanderbilt Saturday
Date: Saturday, March 16, 2013
Time: 2:30 p.m. CT
Location: Nashville, Tenn.
Arena: Bridgestone Arena (13,215)
Television: ABC
Brad Nessler, play-by-play
Jimmy Dykes, analyst
Shannon Spake, sideline
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
David Kellum, play-by-play
Keith Carter, analyst
Live Audio: OleMissSports.com
Satellite Radio: XM 114, Sirius 199
Series: VU leads: 74-40
In SECT: Tied 3-3
Last meeting: UM, 89-79 (OT) (1/15/13)
TIP OFF
• Ole Miss has advanced to the SEC Tournament semifinals for the 11th time in school history and owns a 4-6 record in the semis. The Rebels are facing Vanderbilt in the semifinals for the second-straight season after Ole Miss lost to the `Dores last season in New Orleans.
• The Rebels have eight wins against RPI top-100 teams including a pair of wins over both Missouri and Tennessee.
• With the victory over Auburn, head coach Andy Kennedy passed B.L. Graham for the most wins in Ole Miss
history. Kennedy’s record at Ole Miss is 149-86 in seven seasons, while Graham posted a 144-168 mark over 13 seasons as head coach.
• Senior F Murphy Holloway is the 21st player in SEC history with at least 1,400 points and 1,000 rebounds. Holloway holds the all-time Ole Miss rebounding mark at 1,053 career boards.
• Junior G Marshall Henderson passed Chris Warren for the Ole Miss single-season 3-point field goal record with 125 3FG on the year and ranks second in the nation averaging 3.9 made 3-pointers per game.
• Senior F Reginald Buckner needs three more blocks to move into fifth place in SEC history in career block shots. Buckner ranks sixth in SEC history and is the Ole Miss leader with 315 career blocks.
• The Rebels notched 20 wins for the sixth time in seven seasons under Andy Kennedy. Ole Miss had seven 20-win campaigns in the 96 seasons prior to Kennedy’s arrival in Oxford. He is the fifth coach in SEC history to guide his teams to 20+ wins in six of his first seven seasons in the league.
OLE MISS FACES `DORES IN SEC TOURNEY SEMIS
Ole Miss will take on Vanderbilt in the SEC Tournament semifinals for the second-straight season. The Rebels finished the regular season in a tie for second place in the SEC standings after being pick to finish seventh in the preseason media poll. It is the highest finish for Ole Miss since finishing second overall in 1997-98. Ole Miss started SEC play 6-0 for the first time in school history this year. At 23-8, the Rebels had their best regular-season record since the `00-01 season, while 24 wins in the most since `09-10. Ole Miss also tied the `97-98 squad with a school record 12 league wins this season.
REBELS WIN 20 … AGAIN
The Rebels have notched 20 wins for the sixth time in seven seasons under Andy Kennedy. Ole Miss had seven 20-win campaigns in the 96 seasons prior to Kennedy’s arrival in Oxford. He is the fifth coach in SEC history to guide his teams to 20+ wins in six of his first seven seasons in the league. The others: Dan DeVoe (Tennessee), Joe. B. Hall (Kentucky), Rick Pitino (Kentucky), Tubby Smith (Georgia/Kentucky). Kennedy is also the first coach in Ole Miss history to win 20 games in four-straight season and senior F Reginald Buckner is the first Rebel to win 20 games each of his four seasons in Oxford.
OLE MISS IN THE SEC TOURNAMENT
The Rebels have an overall record of 27-49 in 51 SEC Tournament appearances. The Rebels have reached four SEC championship contests and have a 1-3 record in those games. Ole Miss took home the tournament title in 1981, defeating Georgia in the championship game. Last season in New Orleans, the Rebels beat Auburn, 68-54, in the first round and Tennessee, 78-72, in the quarterfinals before falling to Vanderbilt, 65-53, in the semifinals.
REBELS IN THE SEMIFINALS
Ole Miss is playing in the SEC Tournament semifinals for the 11th time in its history and for the second time in as many years. The Rebels are seeking their fifth trip to the SEC Tournament Championship Game. This is the third time Ole Miss has advanced to the semis under head coach Andy Kennedy, as the Rebels also advanced in 2007. The Rebels own a 4-6 record in semifinal games all-time.
SEC TOURNAMENT IN NASHVILLE
This year marks the sixth time that the SEC Tournament will be held in Nashville and the 12th time in the state of Tennessee. Ole Miss has a 3-5 record in SEC Tournament games in Nashville, including an appearance in the championship game in 2001, which the Rebels lost to Kentucky.
KENNEDY NAMED SEC COACH OF THE YEAR
Ole Miss head coach Andy Kennedy, the winningest coach in school history, was recently named the SEC Coach of the Year by NBCSports.com after guiding the Rebels to a 24-8 record, a 12-6 league mark and a second-place finish in the league standings. Ole Miss, who was predicted seventh in the preseason media poll, made the highest jump from preseason predictions by moving up five places in the final standings.
TRIO OF REBELS EARN SEC HONORS
Rebels Reginald Buckner, Marshall Henderson and Murphy Holloway recently all earned SEC postseason honors. Henderson was voted first team All-SEC by Blue Ribbon College Basketball and NBCSports.com, second team all-conference by the league’s coaches and All-District honors from the USBWA, while Holloway also earned first team All-SEC honors from Blue Ribbon and second-team accolades from the league’s coaches. Buckner was voted to the SEC All-Defensive squad by the league’s coaches for the third-straight year.
HOLLOWAY IS MASTER OF THE GLASS
In his final season in Oxford, F Murphy Holloway has become Ole Miss’ all-time rebounding leader with 1,053 career boards. With nine boards against Kentucky, Holloway passed Walter Actwood’s career total of 945 rebound for first place on the Rebel rebound list. Holloway is the SEC active career leader in rebounds and double-doubles, ranks second in steals and third in points. He ranks first in the conference and 23rd in the nation in rebounding at 9.6 rpg. Holloway became only the 21st player in SEC history to score at least 1,400 points and pull down 1,000 boards in their career, a list that includes Shaquille O’Neal, Dan Issell, Bob Pettit and Bernand King. With 14 more steals, Holloway would become the first player in SEC history with 1,400 points, 1,000 rebounds and 200 steals in a career.
HENDERSON HOT SHOOTER
Junior G Marshall Henderson was known as a scorer when coach Andy Kennedy signed the guard out of South Plains Junior College, and the Hurst, Texas native has definitely lived up to that billing so far this season, as he is averaging a team-best 19.9 ppg. He leads the SEC and ranks second in the nation in 3-pointers made (3.9 pg) and leads the conference in scoring. The 49 points Henderson scored in his first two games is the most by a Rebel to start his career since “World Class” Gerald Glass scored 59 points in 1988. Against Indiana State, he posted 27 points on 7-of-16 from 3-point, which is just one 3-pointer shy of the school record and is tied for third all time. Henderson scored a career-high 32 points in the SEC opener at Tennessee, which is the most points scored by a Rebel in their first league game since Ole Miss great Johnny Neumann scored 39 versus Auburn in 1970. Henderson earned SEC Player of the Week honors after averaging 21.0 ppg in a pair of wins at Vanderbilt and against Arkansas. Against the Commodores, he scored a game-high 26 points, including a 35-foot buzzer beater that sent the game into overtime. Versus the Vols, Henderson scored a career-high 24 second half points to spur a Rebel rally and help Ole Miss knock off Tennessee at home. On the road at No. 4 Florida, he scored a game-high 25 points, including hitting on 7-of-11 shots from behind the arc. Against Mississippi State the junior posted 31 points, on 6-of-14 from three, and dished out four assists. He scored 25 points, including 14 in the final 3:36 of regulation to force overtime, in the Rebels’ come-from-behind win against Georgia. Henderson was a perfect 14-of-14 from the free throw line, which is the second-best mark in school history behind Denver Brackeen’s record of 15-of-15 in 1955. He tied the school record for 3-pointers in a game after hitting 8-of-12 attempts and scoring 28 points versus Auburn.
REBELS AMONG NATION’S BEST
Ole Miss rates highly in the latest NCAA national stats (games through March 14), as the Rebels rank sixth in the nation in scoring (79.2 ppg), ninth in turnover margin (+4.3), 17th in block shots (5.4 pg), 22nd in scoring margin (+11.1), 29th steals (8.5 pg) and 44th in turnovers (11.5 pg).
HENDERSON TOPS 3-POINTER CHART
In his first season in Oxford, junior G Marshall Henderson has already climbed to the top of the 3-pointer season charts, as he currently ranks first on the Ole Miss single-season list for 3-point field goal attempts (348) and first in 3-pointers made (125). Henderson ranks first in SEC history for attempts in one season and third on the SEC season-single list for 3-point field goals. The NCAA record for attempts in a season is 380 by Kevin Foster, of Santa Clara, in 2011. The junior has hit a 3-pointer in every game this season.
DOUBLE TROUBLE
Rebel big men Murphy Holloway and Reginald Buckner have been impressive for Ole Miss in the paint during their careers. Holloway leads all active SEC players, and ranks seventh in the nation, with 37 career double-doubles and ranks third in the league and 28th in the nation this year with 12 double-doubles. Buckner is second to Holloway among active SEC players with 16 career double-doubles and is fifth in the conference this year with eight double-doubles. The duo’s combined 1,901 career rebounds is second best among active players in the nation and 53 combined double-doubles ranks first among active players in the SEC and third in the nation. Ole Miss is 9-3 this season when Holloway records a double-double and 6-2 this year when Buckner pulls off the feat.
KENNEDY’S FIRST SEVEN YEARS RANKS AMONG ALL-TIME SEC GREATS
With Friday’s win, Andy Kennedy moved into a tie with Billy Donovan and Rick Stansbury for the fourth-most wins by a head coach in their first seven years in the league at one school.
1. Rick Pitino (Kentucky) – 184
2. Wimp Sanderson (Alabama) – 155
3. Joe B. Hall (Kentucky) – 154
4. Billy Donovan (Florida) – 149
Rick Stansbury (Mississippi State) – 149
Andy Kennedy (Ole Miss) – 149
QUITE THE RESUME
Ole Miss checks in at No. 51 in the ever-present Ratings Percentage Index (WarrenNolan.com). The Rebels have built an impressive resume this season including a 8-6 mark this season against RPI top-100 teams. Ole Miss has notched a pair of wins over No. 35 Missouri and No. 59 Tennessee and posted wins over No. 60 Alabama, No. 86 Arkansas, at No. 83 LSU and No. 100 Texas A&M. The Rebels have four wins against project NCAA tournament teams (Jerry Palm/CBSSports.com). Compared to teams joining the Rebels on the bubble (Alabama, LaSalle, UMass and Tennessee), Ole Miss has more top-100 RPI wins than any other team.
OLE MISS-VANDERBILT SERIES
Saturday’s semifinal will be the 115th meeting between Ole Miss and Vanderbilt on the hardwood. The Commodores hold a 74-40 lead in the series, which began in 1925, and are 47-6 in games in Nashville. This year’s win in Nashville snapped a six-game losing streak to the `Dores in Nashville and was the first win in Memorial Gym since 2001. The series is tied at 3-3 in the SEC Tournament including a 65-53 VU win last year. Vanderbilt had prevailed in five-straight before Ole Miss’ victory earlier this year, but has won 10 of the last 12 meetings overall. Rebel head coach Andy Kennedy is 3-6 against Vandy in his career. In addition to a 2-6 mark with Ole Miss, he picked up a 92-83 victory at Vanderbilt during the 2005-06 campaign, his lone season as Cincinnati mentor.
70 USUALLY MEANS W
Ole Miss is 20-3 this season when scoring 70-plus points this season and just 4-5 when scoring fewer than 70. Ole Miss ranks fifth in the nation in scoring offense averaging 79.3 ppg this year.
AS SUMMERS GOES, SO GOES THE REBELS
The play of sophomore PG Jarvis Summers has been of particular importance for the Rebels in SEC action. Summers is averaging 12.6 points per game, 4.4 assists per game, 2.2 turnovers per game and shooting 44.2% from the floor in Ole Miss’ 12 SEC victories, while posting just 3.0 points per game, 2.6 assists per game, 3.3 turnovers per game and shooting 17.2% in the Rebels’ last three conference losses to Mississippi State, South Carolina and Texas A&M.
OLE MISS WINS THRILLER IN NASHVILLE
Ole Miss’ thrilling overtime victory at Vanderbilt gave the Rebels a 3-0 SEC start for the first time since 2005-06. The win was Ole Miss’ first in Nashville since 2001 and it also marked the first time since 1980 that the Rebels have won road games at Tennessee and at Vanderbilt in the same season. Down 13 points with eight minutes remaining, Ole Miss closed the game on a 34-12 run including overtime.
TURNOVERS THE KEY
Ole Miss is 18-1 this season when the Rebels force 15-plus turnovers and just 6-7 when they force fewer than 15. The Rebels are 22-4 this season when they have the same or less TOs than opponent and 2-4 when turning the ball over more than their opponent.
SUMMERS SHINES IN SEC PLAY
Sophomore PG Jarvis Summers has shined in league play averaging 10.8 ppg in SEC games this season after averaging 7.1 ppg in non-conference action. Summers ranks fifth in the conference in assists in league games dishing out 3.8/game and seventh in assist/turnover ratio at 1.7.
LOCK-DOWN DEFENSE
Ole Miss has been particularity stingy on defense this season as the Rebels rank second in the league and 17th in the nation in blocks (5.4 bpg), fourth in the SEC and 29th in the NCAA steals (8.5 spg). Ole Miss has forced 416 turnovers this season and is second in the league forcing an average of 15.8 turnovers per game, and currently ranks second in the SEC and ninth in the nation in turnover margin at +4.3.
BUCKNER MOVES UP IN SEC CAREER BLOCKS LIST
Senior F Reginald Buckner became the Rebels’ all-time career leader in blocked shots last year. In just 128 games, the Memphis native has now accumulated 315 blocks, and moved passed Robert Horry, of Alabama, into sixth place in SEC history. The school record was previously held by Sean Murphy, who had 180 blocks in 117 games from 1988-91. Buckner’s 2.7 average this season ranks second among SEC players and 15th in the nation, and he ranks first in conference games with 2.5 bpg. He now holds the school record for blocks in a career, season and game. He blocked at least one shot in every game this season, 31-of-33 games last year and 116-of-128 games over his four-year career. His total of 84 blocks this season is the most ever by a Rebel senior and second-most in school history. His total of 69 blocks last season is the Ole Miss record by a junior and is the third-most in a season in school history. His sophomore season total of 95 is the school record.
SEC Career Blocks Leaders
1. 564 Jarvis Varnado, Mississippi State (2007-10)
2. 412 Shaquille O’Neal, LSU (1990-92)
3. 360 Kyle Davis, Auburn (2001-04)
4. 327 Lavon Mercer, Georgia (1977-80)
5. 318 Steven Hill, Arkansas (2005-08)
6. 315 Reginald Buckner, Ole Miss (2009-)
7. 285 Robert Horry, Alabama (1989-92)
8. 275 Sam Muldrow, South Carolina (2008-11)
9. 272 Dwayne Schintzius, Florida (1986-90)
10. 268 Jamaal Magloire, Kentucky (1997-2000)
11. 266 Roy Rogers, Alabama (1993-96)
12. 249 Brandon Wallace, South Carolina (2004-07)
249 Erick Dampier, Mississippi State (1994-96)
14. 247 Charles Claxton, Georgia (1992-95)
15. 241 Mamadou N’diaye, Auburn (1997-2000)
WE MUST PROTECT THIS BALL
Sophomore point guard Jarvis Summers has done a particularly great job of limiting turnovers this season, as he ranks second in the SEC and ranks 39th in the nation in assist/turnover ratio at 2.3. Summers has only committed 51 turnovers on the season compared to 119 assists.
REBELS TAME TIGERS
Ole Miss’ win over No. 10 Missouri earlier this season was the Rebels’ first victory over a top-10 team since knocking off No. 10 Kentucky in 2011. Senior F Murphy Holloway’s 22 points marked a career-best versus SEC opponents at the time. The Rebels held Missouri to 22 points in the first half, the fewest points the Tigers had scored in a game this season, and to 49 points for the game, which is the fewest points Mizzou had scored since 2003. Ole Miss also improved to 5-2 in its last six home SEC openers.
HISTORIC WIN IN KNOXVILLE
Ole Miss’ win at Tennessee was historic for several reasons: It was only the Rebels’ second-ever win in Thompson-Boling Arena and the first since 1991 … It was Ole Miss’ first win in an SEC opener since 2006 … The win moved Ole Miss’ record 12-2 which equals its best start since 2009-10 … Ole Miss’ 38-of-44 effort from the charity stripe marked a pair of Thompson-Boling Arena opponent records … Marshall Henderson’s 32 points were the most allowed by Tennessee since 2011 and the Rebels’ 92 points were the most the Vols has given up at home since allowing 105 points to Texas in overtime in 2006 and 103 points to Kentucky in regulation in 2001 … It was also the most points Ole Miss has scored against an SEC opponent since tallying 98 in overtime against Arkansas in 2009 and was the most in regulation since scoring 105 points vs. Alabama in 2001.
HOLLOWAY JOINS THE 1,000-POINT CLUB
With 15 points vs. McNeese State, senior F Murphy Holloway became the 34th member of the Ole Miss 1,000-point club. Holloway now ranks 14th in school history with 1,417 career points, just four points behind Eric Laird for 13th on the list. He currently ranks second in the SEC and 34th in the nation in field goal percentage (.550) and ranks eighth in the league in scoring at 14.6 ppg.