Ole Miss Women’s Basketball Runs Away with Kids Day Dub against Queens, 91-44
OXFORD, Miss. – (Release) No. 12/16 Ole Miss women’s basketball kicked off its 2023-24 campaign with a bang, running away from Queens 91-44 from the SJB Pavilion on Monday in front of a raucous Kids Day crowd. The Rebels have now won 20 of its last 21 at home against non-conference opponents.
“Feels good to be back in the Pavilion for a game that counts on wins and losses. A special thank you to all of the school districts who came out and supported us today. The atmosphere was intense, and we really appreciated it,” said head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin. “My pre-game talk was heavily focused on who are you going to inspire today because there is someone in the crowd who had never been to a women’s game or have never seen team 49 play.”
Ole Miss (1-0) was anchored by its two mainstays in fourth-year Rebels Snudda Collins and Madison Scott in its takedown of Queens (0-1). Collins led all scorers with 17 points off of six field goals, followed by Scott with 15 points and 10 rebounds to record her 22nd double-double of her career.
Newcomers in KK Deans and Kennedy Todd-Williams made an impact in their Rebel debuts, with Deans dishing out six assists and adding six points and Todd-Williams wrapping up her day with 10 points along with seven rebounds.
Ole Miss and Queens traded blows back and forth within the opening minutes, until a 6-0 Rebel run created a flow. Hot hands from Collins with two threes’ in the quarter, allowed Ole Miss to go up 20-13 through one. Each field goal in the quarter came with an assist, dishing out six assists on six made shots.
The feared Ole Miss defense began to lock down the Royals, kicking off the second quarter on a 12-0 run to extend its hold. As a team, the Rebels dropped plenty of dimes early on with 12 assists on 14 made field goals in the first half alone to lead 41-27.
Pressure against the Royals remained strong entering the second half, with the Rebels holding Queens to multiple scoring droughts while making noise at the opposite end of the court. The Rebels took off outscoring queens 15-1 within the first six minutes of the third and went on to restrict the Royals to three points alone in the third to lead 69-30.
Freshman Zakiya Stephenson brought the energy in the fourth quarter, providing a boost off the bench in her collegiate debut with five points in the final frame to end her day with six points as well as five assists. Ole Miss coasted the remainder of the way to an opening day win against Queens, 91-44. The Rebels now move to 46-3 all-time in season openers.
The Rebels continue a three-game homestand with game two for an opening night celebration against Oklahoma on Thursday, Nov. 6 at 6 p.m. CT. The matchup against the Sooners will air nationally on SEC Network.
Season tickets for the 2023-24 season are on sale now at OleMissTix.com, as well as single-game tickets versus the Sooners for $5 each.
Adam Brown
Adam Brown joins The Rebel Walk as the Managing Editor after being on the Ole Miss beat as a Sports Editor for over 11 years. He is a lifelong Oxford resident. Brown graduated from the University of Mississippi with a bachelor’s degree in journalism.
Prior to The Rebel Walk, Brown was the sports editor of HottyToddy.com covering every Ole Miss sport and local high school sports in the community.
