Ole Miss Men’s Basketball Hosts A&M Today

OXFORD, Miss. – (Release) Ole Miss men’s basketball will again square off against Texas A&M, this time playing host to the Aggies on its own turf on Saturday afternoon. Tipoff is set for 2:30 p.m. CT inside The Sandy and John Black Pavilion at Ole Miss and live on SEC Network.

TEAM FACTS

Ole Miss Rebels (13-15, 4-11 SEC)
Head Coach: Kermit Davis • 4th Season at Ole Miss (64-57) • 533-320 career record (27th Season)

Texas A&M Aggies (17-11, 6-9 SEC)
Head Coach: Buzz Williams • 3rd Season at Texas A&M (41-35) • 294-189 career record (15th Season)

ON THE AIR

Television/Online: SEC Network
Play-by-Play: Roy Philpott
Color: Mark Wise

OLE MISS RADIO

Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: David Kellum
Color: John Stroud

SiriusXM
XM: 190
SiriusXM App: 961

SERIES HISTORY VS. TEXAS A&M
Saturday marks just the 13th all-time meeting between the Rebels and the Aggies, their 12th since Texas A&M joined the SEC in the 2012-13 season. Ole Miss and A&M first met at a neutral site matchup in Oklahoma City on Dec. 29, 1972, with the Aggies emerging victorious, 100-83. It wouldn’t be until A&M’s first season in the SEC that the two teams would meet again on Feb. 13, 2013, a narrow 69-67 loss in College Station. Ole Miss got its first win of the series in Oxford later that month on Feb. 27 to the tune of an 82-73 final score. In Oxford, the Rebels lead all-time, 4-1, but Ole Miss has yet to notch a victory at Texas A&M, with the Aggies holding a 6-0 all-time edge on their turf. Under Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis, the series is tied 2-2 against Texas A&M, with the most recent result being a 67-51 loss in College Station back on Jan. 11 this season.

SCOUTING TEXAS A&M
Texas A&M enters Saturday at 17-11 overall and 6-9 in SEC play. The Aggies started off 4-0 in conference action and 14-2 overall, but since a Jan. 15 win at Missouri (67-64), Texas A&M has lost nine of its last 11 games — including eight in a row. The Aggies hold a NET ranking of 72, and hold notable non-conference wins over Butler (57-50), Notre Dame (73-67) and Oregon State (83-73), with Power-5 losses to Wisconsin (69-58) and TCU (69-64).

The Aggies possess a strong on-ball defense, ranking second in the SEC and top-10 in the NCAA in both steals per game (10.4, 5th) and turnovers forced (17.8, 17.8), helping Texas A&M to the SEC’s best turnover margin at +4.4 per game (No. 8 NCAA). Texas A&M also is strong on the offensive glass, ranking fourth in the SEC and 17th in the NCAA at 12.8 offensive rebounds per game.

Leading the way for the Aggies is Quenton Jackson, who has come off the bench in 25 of 28 games played. He leads Texas A&M with 14.1 points per game and an 85 percent clip from the free throw line. Five Aggies have hit 25 or more threes this season, with Andre Gordon (7.9 PPG) leading with 37.

LAST MEETING: Jan. 11, 2022 (L, 67-51, at College Station)
• Rebels trailed by four at halftime, but 9-0 Aggie run that ended up as a 19-3 streak helped Texas A&M pull away
• A&M: 62.5 percent shooting overall, 42-24 points in the paint
• Matthew Murrell: 11 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist
• Daeshun Ruffin: 10 points, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 rebound
• Nysier Brooks: 9 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 steals, 1 assist
• Jaemyn Brakefield: 9 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal
• Luis Rodriguez: 7 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals

LAST MEETING IN OXFORD: Jan. 23, 2021 (W, 61-50)
• Ole Miss: 44 percent shooting overall, 18 turnovers forced (25 points off turnovers)
• Jarkel Joiner: 21 points, 7-of-11 FG, 7 rebounds
• Devontae Shuler: 17 points
• Combined with holding Mississippi State to 46 points in previous game, this constituted the first consecutive games holding SEC opponents to 50 points or fewer since 1982
• Fourth time up to that point holding an opponent to 50 or fewer (first time with four such games since 2011-12)

LAST TIME OUT (at #3 Auburn: L, 77-64)
• Rebels nearly fought even in second half, but three first-half runs of at least 7-0 helped Tigers separate
• Auburn: 45.8 percent overall
• Ole Miss: 37.9 percent overall, 31.6 from three
• Jarkel Joiner: 13 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block
• Luis Rodriguez: 12 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 2-3 3PT
• Nysier Brooks: 11 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 block

LAST RANKED WIN (at #25 LSU: W, 76-72)
• First win vs. ranked LSU since Jan. 18, 2003 against 23rd-ranked Tigers (67-57, in Baton Rouge)
• Second ranked win of the season
• First win in Baton Rouge since March 9, 2013
• Ole Miss led by 24 in first half (largest lead vs. LSU since 2012, largest in Baton Rouge since 2011)
• Led by 13 at halftime, first halftime lead vs. LSU since 2016, largest since 2013
• Shot 65.4 percent in the first half
• Daeshun Ruffin: 19 points, 3 assists, 2 steals (left game with season-ending knee injury)
• Luis Rodriguez: 15 points, 12 rebounds, 3 steals (third career double-double)
• Nysier Brooks: 10 points, 8 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block