TJ’s Takeaways: What We Learned from the Ole Miss men’s basketball 95-78 Win Over Bryant

OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss men’s basketball wrapped up its non-conference slate on Sunday with a 95-78 win over Bryant. The win marks a big milestone in just year one of the Chris Beard era. The Rebels have escaped non-conference play undefeated and now stand at 13-0. With the win, Ole Miss has now surpassed its win total from all of last season.

There was no issue spreading the scoring out today as four Rebels scored in double figures. Three others were close by, finishing with either eight or nine points. In this one, Ole Miss had a notorious size advantage and found quality looks against the visiting Bulldogs. The Rebels finished the game shooting 54% (35-65). Matthew Murrell (18 PTS) and Allen Flanigan (20 PTS) led the way thanks to an explosive second half from both of the wings. Flanigan started the explosion with his own 7-0 run, and after that Murrell matched him by scoring the next 10 for the Rebels en route to the victory.

This series, TJ’s Takeaways, is here to help identify things that really stand out from the games, things you may not be able to find from a box score. If you’re looking for a recap of the game, don’t worry we’ve got you covered. Check it out HERE.

Let’s get to the takeaways! 

High Powered Offense in Basketball?

If you’re a fan of Ole Miss sports you love offense. Football has routinely put together top-10 offenses since the arrival of Lane Kiffin and baseball has had a recent history of knowing how to fill up the box score with home runs. In basketball, however, Ole Miss has seemed to be more of a defensive-minded program since the Andy Kennedy tenure. With Chris Beard being hired and how much emphasis he put on the defensive side of the ball and his teams’ histories, it would make sense to think the same. Right?

Not so fast… This Ole Miss team has figured out how to score. This season the scoring average is up to 77.4 points per game, a feat the program hasn’t reached since the 2016-2017 season. Let’s take it another step. In the past four games, Ole Miss has scored over 80 points three times. In this stretch they have wins over California, Troy, Southern Miss, and Bryant and that average is at 86.5 PPG.

A Halftime Correction

The Achilles heel of this Ole Miss team to date has been their defensive rebounding. If you’ve been following this team, you’ve seen it play out before. In the first half Sunday it looked like more of the same. Ole Miss won the first-half rebounding battle but gave up six offensive rebounds to Bryant. The Bulldogs, more than any team Ole Miss has played this season, takes more threes. They attempted 30, and that does bring up longer rebound and more angles for players to attack given the Bulldogs five-out approach. But with Ole Miss’ size, they should still have the advantage.

It appears some emphasis on the glass was made during halftime. In the second half, the Rebels looked more energized on that end by not giving up another offensive rebound for the first 17 minutes of the second half. Bryant did get three in the game’s final minutes when the outcome was already decided. It was a good sign to see Ole Miss make that emphasis and press on it while not sacrificing in other areas — that’s a sign of growth.

Size Advantage = Paint Advantage

Speaking of Ole Miss’ size, the Rebels found their way into the paint today. A well-prepared Ole Miss team knew where the weak point of this Bryant team was. Bryant had one starter who was 6’8+ and the next tallest was 6’6. Partially due to this size differential, Ole Miss scored 46 points in the paint. There was an emphasis to find looks on the interior from the game’s very tip.

Bryant used a matchup zone to try and minimize their size difference and confuse Ole Miss. The first play found some movement that caused a communication lapse for Jaemyn Brakefield to have an easy drive from the perimeter. The very next offensive possession, Ole Miss found Jamarion Sharp sealing a smaller defender that led to a foul as he was trying to convert an easy field goal. Ten of the first 11 points by Ole Miss were by either Sharp or Brakefield on the interior. Bryant realized the matchup zone wouldn’t work and went to their man defense where a switch-heavy scheme led to several mismatches for the Rebels.

Culture at it’s Finest

The theme of the 2023-2024 Ole Miss basketball team is “culture.” Culture is the word that is everywhere regarding this program. It can mean a lot of different things, but how do we actually see that culture in action? Against Bryant we saw it a lot and it comes from everyone. In Sunday’s contest there were two instances of culture that really stood out. The interesting part is that we saw these in two of the more negative plays of the game.

In the first half at the 8:13 mark, Brakefield fouled a Bryant player running down the court. Not five seconds prior, Brakefield missed a layup that was contested. As things are when playing a team with a smaller lineup, things can become more physical as teams try to compete. Brakefield’s foul knocked the player down and the game was paused to review for a flagrant foul. The response from Chris Beard is what was caught my eye. Beard was rather calm, looked at Brakefield and said a few words. It had a “you know better, don’t let it get the best of you vibe.”

The second instance was (not coincidentally) in the second half. Jaylen Murray was charged with a technical foul after jawing with a Bryant player. Rather quickly, some veterans on the team — Murrell, Brakefield, and Brandon Murray — took Juju to mid-court, huddled and discussed the incident.

Both instances show the culture and the belief of this team. We saw from top to bottom how everyone can have these moments where emotions take over — but are quickly resolved with others coming to aid. There is an understanding that these moments happen, but they how to deal with them. In both instances, nothing was ever escalated and that is a sign of a team who gets it.

Depth from the Bench

Ole Miss has struggled with bench scoring this season. Tonight, the Rebels received big contributions from Moussa Cisse, TJ Caldwell and Murray. Cisse’s rim protection has been the perfect stagger with Sharp’s to give near 35+ minutes of elite rim protection. Tonight that was on full display as Cisse finished with four blocks and made several Bryant players question their intentions in the paint.

TJ Caldwell provided another good game, showcasing a willingness to pass the ball and limit turnovers. The sophomore guard has recently been in an attack mode and found ways to get near the rim. Today he finished with 7 FT attempts which aided to his 6 points. He also added 4 rebounds and 4 assists.

Brandon Murray hasn’t been in the lineup for very long. Having to join a team late and find out how you fit and what the role will be can be a become a chemistry issue for the player and the team. But that hasn’t been the case. The Bryant game marked his best in an Ole Miss uniform as he finished with 9 points on 4-6 shooting while also grabbing four rebounds. His ability to hit the mid-range shot while also using his physicality to back down players gives Ole Miss another unique scorer who can work to many different spots on the court. With SEC play coming Saturday, the Rebels need to have everyone up to speed as they play an experienced Tennessee group.

Next Up:

The Rebels will open SEC play in Knoxville on January 6th when they take on the Tennessee Volunteers in a top-25 matchup. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. CT on the SEC Network.