Ole Miss Faces Texas With SEC Title Game, NCAA Hosting Hopes on the Line

GREENVILLE, S.C. — For a team that looked like it might be fading down the stretch of the regular season, the Ole Miss Women’s Basketball team suddenly finds itself at the center of possible postseason hosting conversations for the first time since early February, which may feel like ancient history by now.

After closing the regular season with six losses in their final eight games—including a four-game losing streak following the change in their schedule due to Winter Storm Fern—the Rebels have proven that many were far too quick to have counted them out. Ole Miss opened tournament play with a win over Auburn before silencing critics with a resounding 89-78 win over Vanderbilt in yesterday’s quarterfinal round, in a game that was not nearly as competitive as the final score would have you believe.

The Commodores entered the matchup as one of the nation’s top teams, with a No. 5 national ranking and a projected 2 seed, and were favored by 7.5 points, but the Rebels dominated the game from the opening tip, leading by a score of 49 to 17 at halftime (yes, you read that correctly), before allowing a late surge after the contest was well out of reach.

But now, the challenge grows even steeper.

Ole Miss will take on another one of the nation’s best teams in Vic Schaefer’s Texas Longhorns in the conference tournament semifinals, a matchup that also serves as a rematch from early January.

When the two teams met in Austin on January 4, Texas emerged with a 67–64 victory in a game that appeared to be firmly in the Longhorns’ control for most of the night. Texas built a lead as large as 19 points before the Rebels mounted a ferocious second-half comeback, cutting the deficit to just three points in the game’s final seconds but came up short when a would-be game-tying three from Cotie McMahon didn’t fall right as time expired.

By the numbers

As far as the stat books are concerned, it’s not difficult to see why Texas is one of the best teams in the nation.

Schaefer’s squad enters the semifinal averaging 85.2 points per game—fourth-best in the SEC and seventh nationally—while allowing just 56.2 points per contest, the fewest among teams in the conference. Their 50 percent-from-the-floor shooting is good for third-best in the conference and fifth-best in the nation as well.

Ole Miss has built its identity largely on the defensive end as well (as has often been the case in the McPhee-McCuin era), holding opponents to 61.3 points per game while averaging 75.7 points offensively. On the glass, the Rebels hold a slight edge, averaging 40.3 rebounds per contest compared to Texas’s 38.9.

Ball security could also play a key role. Texas commits just 12.2 turnovers per game—the fewest among SEC teams—while Ole Miss averages 14.2, also a respectable number.

Individually, Ole Miss will once again look to star guard Cotie McMahon to lead the way. McMahon has been the centerpiece of the Rebels’ offense throughout the season, averaging 19.8 points per game, a mark that ranks fourth among SEC players.

Texas, meanwhile, features one of the conference’s and one of the nation’s most balanced scoring attacks.

Sophomore standout Madison Booker leads the Longhorns with 18.5 points per game while shooting an impressive 50.9 percent from the field, the fifth-highest field goal percentage among conference players. She is joined in double figures by guard Jordan Lee, who averages 13.2 points per game, and center Kyla Oldacre, who contributes 10.4 points per contest. In other words, this will be one of the deepest teams Ole Miss will face this year.

That trio, along with Schaefer’s coaching prowess, has powered the Longhorns to a 29-3 overall record, with all three losses coming against teams projected as either 1 or 2 seeds in the NCAA Tournament.

Hosting on the line

For Ole Miss, the stakes extend beyond simply advancing to the SEC Tournament championship game.

Earlier in the season, when the Rebels sat at 19–4, they appeared firmly in position to earn a coveted four seed in the NCAA Tournament—the lowest seed a team can get and still host in the NCAA Tournament. The late-season slump, however, caused Coach Yo’s squad to fall to a projected six-seed once the regular season came to a close.

Last night’s win over Vanderbilt lifted the Rebels up to the five-seed line, according to Carlie Creme.

Another, bigger signature victory against a projected 1 seed widely considered to be a national title contender, could possibly push the Ole Miss back to the hosting line, as doing so would also allow the Rebels to put a conference tournament title appearance on their NCAA Tournament resume.

To get there, Ole Miss will need to deliver their most complete, motivated, poised, and disciplined performance of the season in all likelihood.

Texas has already shown the college basketball world what they’re capable of. If Ole Miss hopes to flip the script this time around, the Rebels will need to bring the same level of energy, execution, and confidence that fueled their impressive start to the season as well as last night’s dominant victory over the Commodores. If they do, the reward could be enormous: a trip to the SEC Championship game—and perhaps a return to the NCAA Tournament hosting conversation.

Game Info

Ole Miss takes on Texas tonight at 6:00 p.m. CST in the semifinal round of the SEC Tournament on EPSN2.