TJs Takeaway’s: What We Learned in Ole Miss’ 103-85 Win Over Florida

OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss returned home Wednesday for the Rebels’ first SEC game this season inside the Pavilion. Head coach Chris Beard’s team took care of business, defeating Florida 103-85, and the win improves the Rebels’ record to 14-1 overall and 1-1 in SEC play.

The victory was quite the response to the Rebels’ loss against Tennessee this past weekend. It was the first time Ole Miss scored 100+ points in an SEC matchup since 2001 in a win over Alabama.

Four Ole Miss players scored in double figures — Jaemyn Brakefield, Matthew Murrell, Allen Flanigan and Jaylen Murray — on a night where the team shot 59% from the field. From the perimeter, Ole Miss made 8-of-20 threes. From inside the arc, Ole Miss shot a blistering 67%.

Brakefield led the way scoring a career high 28 points, but we’ll get to more on that later. Murrell would add 23 points, and Flanigan would add 17. The Rebels were ahead for a large majority of the game, leading for 30:13 of this one, and the lead would reach as high as 23 point in the second half.

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.

Now lets’s get into the takeaways.

Chris Beard, Culture, and the Laws of Magnetism

Starting off, I wanted to touch on this. “Culture” has been an important part of Chris Beard’s vision for Ole Miss and this program. He mentioned this to us when we interviewed him in the summer; it’s plastered on signs all over the facility, and we had seen flashes of what that culture looks like as Ole Miss jumped out to this rather unforeseen start to the year.

After the loss to Tennessee, it would have been easy for Ole Miss to take a step back, look at themselves, and rethink who they are. That process could’ve taken multiple games, but that’s not Coach Beard. That’s not the culture he’s built. Leading up to this Florida game, we had seen flashes of this culture. But last night — the culture was apparent. It’s no longer being built; it’s set.

We can see it through the ‘Law of Magnetism.’ This law comes from a book written by John Maxwell and states, “Who you are is who you attract.” Ole Miss churned its roster this offseason and brought-in and retained players who have that same vision. Everyone was connected with it, then momentum hit and the fans started filling the arena, chants burst out, and big plays began happening.

In the second half of this game, you could feel the energy in the arena. The players were having fun and the fans were enjoying themselves — and that is all a part of the culture. Coach Beard allows his players to make plays on offense, given they put in effort on defense — meaning players won’t get punished for trying something on offense if they are working on defense.

Against Florida we saw several key culture moments that all tie in to the buy-in and momentum of this program: plays like Allen Flanigan turning into a baseline fadeaway over two defenders, the multiple alley-oop dunks lobbed up to Jamarion Sharp, the blocks by Sharp that went into the stands, and Matthew Murrell knocking down threes after dropping a defender.

These plays and the players’ response to them, the bench’s response to them, the fans’ response are all byproducts of the culture that has been built.

Playing with Pace

Coming into Wednesday’s game, Florida ranked in the 96th percentile when it came to pace in the NCAA. They were 11th in adjusted tempo by KenPom’s rankings and 1st in the SEC. If one thing was certain, Florida was going to get out and go when they had the ball.

Ole Miss decided to go about it by matching Florida’s pace and outplaying them at it. The Rebels scored 21 points off of the fast break against the Gators. Florida was limited to five. Getting out in transition was favorable for Ole Miss to take an early lead, as players like Flanigan, Murray, and Brakefield took advantage.

One of the benefits of this was Ole Miss being able to get some more touches in the paint, whether it was by easy layups or attacking a recovering defense. On the year, the Rebels averaged 29.6 points in the paint prior to this game, but that was shattered as Ole Miss tallied 42 against Florida.

The Rebels got out and ran, and it was the perfect fight-fire-with-fire approach to cause things to speed up for the Gators. Ole Miss played a more physical style as well that added extra pressure, forcing 13 Florida turnovers that resulted in 24 points for Ole Miss.

A Career Night for Jaemyn Brakefield

It’s not the first time we’ve written about it this season: Jaemyn Brakefield logged another career scoring night on Wednesday. The senior forward has been on a heater recently, averaging 19.4 points per game over his last five games. Last night was no different, as he logged 28 points for a new career high. He amassed that on an 11-for-16 shooting performance, while also making two threes and 4-4 free throws.

From the game’s tip, it was apparent that getting Brakefield involved early was part of the game plan as he notched five of the first seven points for Ole Miss. Brakefield routinely used his skillset to drive down before backing down players, finding angles to attack for layups or turnaround jumpers. He also had plenty of buckets in transition, utilized himself as a floor spacer, and a pick-and-pop threat. Brakefield took a team high in field goal attempts.

His increased production directly correlates to his improved usage percentage. After this stretch, we can expect to see Ole Miss find more ways to get Jaemyn involved in offensive sets.

A Nod to Jaylen Murray

There are a lot of players who deserve praise in this 100+ point performance. One who certainly deserves it but may not get a ton is guard Jaylen Murray. The junior point guard has been the engine for this team all year long, and last night the guard added another impressive performance to his tally. His performance featured 12 points, 4 rebounds, and 8 assists.

In two SEC games, Murray has been tasked with playing against some top-quality guards, including the Florida tandem of Zyon Pullin and Walter Clayton Jr. While that duo led the way for Florida last night, Murray has been right there making his own mark on the game. Against the Gators, it was his decision making that impressed. The guard mastered the pick-n-roll navigation, whether it was attacking the high foot, knifing the defense, or keeping his defender on his back. Murray found his way to some nice floaters after slicing through the Florida defense. When they backed off he scored, when the defense pressed up he was able to hit the big for some lobs.

A Block Party Hosted by Jamarion Sharp

The Rebels’ rim protection was on another level tonight. Ole Miss blocked a season-high 16 shots against Florida. Jamarion Sharp led the way with a season-high 9 blocks. The 7-foot-5 center had been the NCAA’s leader in blocks for two straight seasons before arriving at Ole Miss. His weakside protection gave the Rebels another layer to go out and pressure Florida on the perimeter.

Earlier, we discussed the law of magnetism, and part of that is displayed here as once Sharp got in on the fun other players soon found ways to be apart of it as well. Flanigan added three blocks and Brandon Murray added two in the first half. It was contagious.

Sharp also added 8 points on 3-for-4 shooting. His rim protection led to the Pavilion erupting with some of his emphatic blocks and slams.

Next Up:

The 14-1 Rebels remain home for their next conference game, as they are set to take on Vanderbilt in the SJB Pavilion on Saturday, January 13 at noon on the SEC Network.