Matthew Murrell leads Rebels to 70-58 victory over Chattanooga
OXFORD, Miss. – The Ole Miss men’s basketball team improved to 3-0 on the season with a 70-58 victory over Chattanooga Tuesday night.
The Rebels started off slow, including being tied with the Mocs at 33-33 at the half. However, the second half was the Matthew Murrell show. He tallied 25 points for the game, including 6 three-pointers. Seventeen of his points, including 4 threes, came in the second half alone.
Rebel head coach Kermit Davis had high praise for his junior guard after the game.
“He took the game over offensively. Matt had an unbelievable second half. Matt is as good of a guard as anybody in the SEC.“
Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis on Matt Murrell
Murrell played a total of just over 37 minutes for the game, outplaying the next most-played Rebel by 13 minutes. Davis, however, understands that Murrell will be challenged more as the season progresses, which will put more pressure on the team’s depth.
“He is an elite player, and it’s going to get harder and harder for him,” Davis said. “I think he knows that. We have to have other guys with balanced scoring.”
Murrell made sure after the game to give some credit for his success to his teammates.
“I got to see the first few threes go in. From there, my teammates kept finding me, I kept shooting, and shots were going in.”
Matthew Murrell
TJ Caldwell was the only other Rebel in double figures with 10 points. The team shot 49% from the field and 38% from the three-point line. The Rebel bench also outscored the Moc bench 25-2.
Davis emphasized how important these wins at the beginning of the season are for his players, especially being in some tight situations with good mid-major competition.
“This is what we are going to be in for. [We need] to be able to find ways to win games. I have never seen [college basketball] so even. I have never seen anything like it.”
Coach Kermit Davis
The Rebels so far have beaten a reigning conference champion (Alcorn State), a team that beat fellow SEC member Florida this week (FAU), and a tournament team from last year (Chattanooga). Coach Davis attributed the success of these teams to the current era of college sports.
“Everybody thought that the transfer portal and NIL would separate college basketball,” Davis said.
“We all forgot that those teams can get transfers, too. The balance of [college basketball] early on is unbelievable, which is good for college basketball fans.”
Coach Davis on parity in college basketball
Next Up:
The Rebels (3-0) will return to the court this Friday against UT Martin. Tip-off at the SJB Pavilion is set for 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network+.
(Feature image credit: Ole Miss Men’s Basketball)
Trevor Terminie
Trevor is a senior at Ole Miss pursuing a degree in Journalism with an emphasis in Sports Communication and Promotion. He has previous experience covering sports for another site, including a variety of Ole Miss sports. Growing up in New Orleans, La., he has the Pelicans and Saints running through his blood. He also grew up in an LSU family, but his love for Ole Miss continues to grow. Trevor hopes to cover sports back in his hometown after college. Laissez les bons temps rouler!
