Coach Yo reflects on South Carolina game, discusses importance of Rebels’ final two regular-season games
OXFORD – The Ole Miss women’s basketball team has two games left in the regular season, starting with Senior Day this Thursday against the Missouri Tigers at the SJB Pavilion in Oxford.
The Rebels are coming off back-to-back losses against top-five opponents, including a heartbreaking overtime loss to undefeated-No. 1 South Carolina on Sunday.
Head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin said the emotions of the South Carolina loss will not cause an emotional letdown to finish the regular season for her team.
“It is easy to get them focused because of what is at stake,” McPhee-McCuin said at her press conference Wednesday afternoon.
“There are some personal things that are at stake for the program, Team 48, and what they want to accomplish. These games are so important. We don’t have time to lick our wounds.”
Ole Miss head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin
The past two games were the just the second time the Rebels lost back-to-back games this season, with the first being Alabama and Auburn in mid-January. They answered by winning four of the next five games.
Even in the loss to South Carolina, however, Coach Yo had a lot to praise, including the team’s newfound presence on a national stage and their ability to compete with the reigning national champions.
“[It was good] for our players from a confidence standpoint,” McPhee-McCuin said about Sunday’s game.
“We wanted to get one percent better, and we really made a jump. We are building to try to put ourselves in a position to make a run in the SEC and the NCAA Tournament.”
Coach Yo
The last two games for the Rebels are very important in the race for fourth in the SEC, which is one of the reasons Coach Yo gave for her team not having an emotional letdown come Thursday.
“Luckily, for us, we are playing for something,” McPhee-McCuin said. “We are playing for fourth place. Some people say we are playing for a double-bye [in the SEC Tournament]. We are playing to make history. We are still hunting.”
Senior guard Angel Baker, one of the four seniors being honored at Senior Day on Thursday, said that Sunday’s loss was hard, but she learned a lot about the team and knows that the team has so much ahead of them to finish the season.
“We learned that we could compete with the best. These next two games are important in where we are trying to go, so we are trying to focus on those because these are must wins.”
Angel Baker
The other three seniors who will be celebrated Thursday night are forward Tyia Singleton, guard Myah Taylor and guard Jordan Berry.
The Rebels will finish their home schedule and continue their push for a double-bye in the SEC Tournament this Thursday, February 23, against the Missouri Tigers. Tipoff from the SJB Pavilion in Oxford is set for 6 p.m. CT on SEC Network+.
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!
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