Under interim head coach Win Case, Ole Miss defeats LSU, 82-69, for first home win in SEC play
OXFORD – The Ole Miss men’s basketball team won its first home game in conference play this season with an 82-69 victory over the LSU Tigers at the SJB Pavilion in Oxford Saturday night. The win comes just a day after the school parted ways with former head coach Kermit Davis.
Interim head coach Win Case led the Rebels to their first win in front of the Rebel faithful in Oxford since December 17th. Ole Miss improves to 11-18 on the season and 3-13 in conference play.
The win was in-large part due to the offensive explosion by the Rebels, who shot 55% from the field for the game. This was by far the team’s best field goal percentage in an SEC game this season. The 47-point second half performance was also the highest-scoring half for Ole Miss in league play.
The leader on the offensive end for the Rebels was forward Jaemyn Brakefield, who recorded a double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Three other Rebels finished in double-figures, including guard Amaree Abram (14 points), forward Myles Burns (12 points) and guard Matthew Murrell (11 points).
Case opened his postgame press conference by giving praise to Kermit Davis, who left the program with a 22-47 record in SEC play.
“I have never in my life seen a guy that works as hard as he does. He is a great man. He is a great coach. But the bottom line, we didn’t win enough ball games, and I know he understood that.”
Interim head coach Win Case on Kermit Davis
Case spent 10 seasons on Davis’ staff at Middle Tennessee State, and Davis brought Case with him to Oxford in 2018. Case said that he and the players were very emotional, but he also said that Davis played a part in the win over LSU.
“All the hard work that Coach Davis went through throughout this season with this team played a hand in us winning tonight,” Case said. “I truly believe that.”
Case attributed this first SEC home win to the team’s character through what has been a tumultuous season for the Rebels.
“Character matters, and our team has a lot of character. That is the reason why this team never gave up. Throughout all the heartaches, injuries, all those things, they stayed together. They continued to fight, and this is the result of it tonight.”
Coach Case on the perseverance of the Rebels’ team
Case related the team’s offensive success to their success on the defensive end, as they held the Tigers to 44% shooting for the game. This allowed them to put a full game of good basketball together.
“In basketball, you have got to play for two halves. For a long, we played all the way up to 36 minutes or 37 minutes, and then we let up. Tonight, we finally put two halves together.”
Coach Case
Even though Athletic Director Keith Carter chose Case to wear the interim tag, Case had much praise for his assistant coaches and their performances over the last day.
“I get a lot of credit for this, but we have got some great assistant coaches,” Case said. “I can’t emphasize it enough, and that is the first thing I did when I walked into the locker room. I said that I wanted to thank our assistant coaches because they were a big part of this.”
Myles Burns said the team matured quite a bit with the coaching change, but that maturity led to the win.
“We had something to play for,” Burns said.
“Unfortunately, it takes certain things to give guys a little kick, but I think that was a wake-up call for us. It gave us what we needed to push forward.”
Myles Burns
The Rebels took their largest lead of the game at 13 points with 48 seconds to go in the game. The ensuing timeout was met with a standing ovation from the Rebel crowd, who had not seen a home win since 2022. Case praised the fans for sticking with the team.
“Our fans have supported us through a lot. I want to give a shoutout to our fans. They kept coming to the games. Losses stacked up, but they kept coming to support. It was no different tonight, and they supported us tonight.”
Coach Case
Up Next
The Rebels will look to win back-to-back games for the first time since late-November when they meet up with the Texas A&M Aggies on Senior Night this Tuesday, February 28. Tipoff from the SJB Pavilion in Oxford is set for 8 p.m. CT on ESPNU.
(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!
