Battle-Tested Ole Miss Women’s Basketball Set to Face Sharpshooting Gonzaga in NCAA Tournament Opener

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MINNEAPOLIS — Well, the moment has finally arrived. After a long and grueling season in the Southeastern Conference, head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin’s Rebels are raring to go for their fifth-straight NCAA Tournament appearance.

It’s Gameday!
⏰ 2:30PM
📍Williams Arena
🆚 Gonzaga
📺 ESPN2
➡️ NCAA Tournament | First Round#HottyToddy x #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/mFt8blunBz

— Ole Miss Women’s BB (@OleMissWBB) March 20, 2026

The road to this moment concluded with a seventeen-point loss in the semifinal round of the SEC Tournament to Vic Schaefer’s Texas Longhorns, but the road to the conference tournament’s semifinals—one that saw Ole Miss dominate one of the best teams in the nation in No. 2 seed Vanderbilt—lifted the Rebels up to the five seed line, after being projected as a six seed entering Greenville.

Earlier in the year, however, Ole Miss was widely considered to be a frontrunner to secure a 4 seed, the lowest seed a team can get and host in the NCAA Tournament. That peak came in early February, when the Rebels were sitting pretty at 19-4 overall and 6-2 in conference play, with wins over NCAA Tournament teams such as Notre Dame, Georgia, Oklahoma, and Vanderbilt… then things started to go south with some help from Winter Storm Fern that necessitated Ole Miss playing four games in a seven-day period. That’s brutal in any conference, much less the SEC.

The Rebels dropped six of their final eight regular-season games which effectively ended their hosting hopes, but if the team’s thumping of Vanderbilt proved anything, it’s that writing off the Rebels would have been far too premature. And as memories from both last season and two seasons ago are still fresh on the minds of the Ole Miss faithful — and McPhee-McCuin herself — it’s no secret to anyone that hosting is not a requirement to advance.

But for now, the Rebels turn their attention to Lisa Fortier’s Gonzaga Bulldogs, who arrived in Minneapolis bringing some impressive stats with them.

A clash of styles

Gonzaga enters the tournament fresh off a West Coast Conference title, boasting one of the most efficient offensive profiles in the country. The Bulldogs average 74.4 points per game while shooting 39 percent from three-point range—second-best in the nation. They also defend the arc well, holding opponents to just 29.4 percent shooting from deep, and they average over 40 rebounds per contest.

Individually, forward Lauren Whittaker leads the way with 19.4 points per game (the highest mark among any player in the West Coast Conference), while guard Allie Turner’s 46.7 percent three-point shooting leads all players in the nation.

But there’s an obvious caveat here: those numbers were built in the WCC, a conference that does not hold a candle to the SEC. The Bulldogs did not face a single ranked opponent during the regular season, fueling doubt that they’ll be able to hold their own against Coach Yo’s squad.

Rebels regain key piece

Ole Miss, meanwhile, brings its own firepower—and a major boost heading into the tournament.

Star guard Sira Thienou, who missed much of the latter half of the regular season, is expected to return for the NCAA Tournament opener. Her absence coincided with the Rebels’ late-season struggles, and her presence should provide a much-needed spark on both ends of the floor.

Leading the way, of course, is forward Cotie McMahon, whose 19.9 points per game rank third among SEC players. As a team, Ole Miss averages 75.4 points per game—nearly identical to Gonzaga’s output—but against that aforementioned far more difficult competition.

Defensively, the Rebels allow just 62 points per game and have been particularly effective on the glass, pulling down 40 rebounds per contest while limiting opponents to 32.5—the third-best mark in the SEC.

Keys to the game

The most important aspect of the game for the Rebels may well be chasing the Bulldogs away from the three-point line whenever possible. Coach Yo’s team has held opponents to only 31.2 percent from three-point range this season and has done so against much stiffer competition than what Gonzaga has faced, so the capability of doing so is certainly there. But of course, the execution must be there as well.

On the offensive side of the ball, Ole Miss will need to focus on getting into the paint as much as possible; the Rebels have averaged only 29.4 percent from beyond the arc, the fourth-worst mark in the conference, while the Bulldogs, as referenced earlier, have allowed that exact same number from three-point range (good for second-best in the WCC in that department).

If the Rebels can shut down the three-point line, control the boards, and impose their physicality, they’ll be in position to dictate the pace. But allowing Gonzaga to get comfortable from deep could quickly swing momentum the other way.

History—and opportunity

The NCAA Tournament will always have the potential to bring jitters to coaches and players alike, but this is very much familiar territory for Coach Yo and the Rebels by now. With a win, the Rebels would mark their fourth-straight season with at least one victory in the ‘Big Dance,’ a streak that started in the 2022-23 season with a beat down of the same program they’re set to take on today.

And if Ole Miss can in fact get past the Bulldogs this time around as well, they’ll be only a single win away from their third Sweet 16 appearance in four years, a remarkable turnaround for a program that hadn’t made it to the tournament at all since 2007 — prior to McPhee-McCuin’s arrival. But this time of year is not called March Madness for nothing—anything could certainly happen, and the intensity and will to win must be there in full force for the Rebels if they plan on making another deep run.

Final outlook

On paper, the edge leans toward Ole Miss. The Rebels’ experience, physicality, and battle-tested résumé in the SEC provide a strong counter to Gonzaga’s perimeter-heavy attack.

But Gonzaga’s shooting ability makes the Bulldogs a legitimate threat, and Ole Miss will need to play with the energy, confidence, and urgency that fueled its impressive early and mid-season showings. If they do, the Rebels may once again prove they’re far more dangerous than what they showed in the regular season’s final month.

Next Up:

Ole Miss takes on Gonzaga in the Round of 64 of the NCAA Tournament today, March 20, at 2:30 p.m. CST on ESPN2.