Three keys for Ole Miss against South Carolina

Saturday’s game against South Carolina is important for the Rebels–and not only because it is Senior Night in The Pavilion.

With Georgia losing to Arkansas, 85-67, Saturday, the Rebels (18-12, 9-8 SEC) can lock up the No. 6 seed in next week’s conference tournament with a win over the Gamecocks. Ole Miss owns the tiebreaker over Vanderbilt, as it relates to seeding purposes. A loss would drop the Rebels to the seventh seed.

Sebastian Saiz (shown here) and Rasheed Brooks will play for the last time at home Saturday against South Carolina on Senior Night. (Photo credit: Mario Parham, The Rebel Walk)

The last time Ole Miss played South Carolina, it was without its leading scorer Deandre Burnett. The Rebels shot 30.9 percent (17 of 55) from the field in the 67-56 loss. Also, Ole Miss was in foul trouble, with Marcanvis Hymon picking up four fouls in the first half, while four others in the eight-player lineup picked up four each.

On Saturday, the Rebels will need all hands on deck to defeat the Gamecocks (22-8, 12-5). South Carolina has won two straight after losing three in a row to Arkansas, Vanderbilt, and Florida.

Saturday’s game will not only be important for seeding purposes for the SEC Tournament, but it will be an important day for Rasheed Brooks and Sebastian Saiz, who will be honored before the game on Senior Day.

Ole Miss is 8-2 all-time on Senior Day under head coach Andy Kennedy.

Here are three keys for Ole Miss against South Carolina as the Rebels look to send their seniors out with a huge marquee win:

1. Stay out of foul trouble

Marcanvis Hymon fouled out in the last meeting against South Carolina. He also fouled out in Wednesday’s game against Alabama. Ole Miss is thin in its frontcourt, with just three post players. Sebastian Saiz and Justas Furmanavicius each had three fouls Wednesday night, and the Crimson Tide took advantage of it from the free throw line, making 16 of 24 shots. The Rebels will need all three of their post players to stay out of foul trouble against the Gamecocks, who made 25 of 34 shots from the charity stripe against Mississippi State.

2. Deandre Burnett needs to have big game

Deandre Burnett had two points Wednesday night against Alabama. Before that, Burnett had 28 points in an 80-77 home win over Missouri. Burnett will need to have another solid home game for the Rebels to beat the Gamecocks. For the season, he’s averaging 16.5 points per game. In league play, Burnett is averaging 15.3 points a game.

3. Score in the high 80s or 90s

For the season, the Gamecocks are averaging 72.8 points per game. The Rebels are averaging 77.7 points a game. In four of South Carolina’s five league losses, its opponents scored at least 80 points. The Gamecocks reached the 80-point just once in those five losses in a four-overtime defeat to Alabama (90-86).

Game info:

The Rebels and Gamecocks tip off at 7:30 pm on the SEC Network.

(Feature image credit: Mario Parham, The Rebel Walk)