Ole Miss Men’s Basketball Hosting No. 24 Vanderbilt, Looking to Extend Win Streak

OXFORD, Miss. — The Rebels finally got back in the win column with a win over Auburn on Saturday, and they’re now headed back home for a matchup with the No. 24-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores tonight. The teams will tip off at 8:00 p.m. CT.

ON THE AIR

Television: SEC Network+
Play-by-Play: Jake Hromada
Analyst: Kermit Davis

OLE MISS RADIO

Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Gary Darby
Analyst: Murphy Holloway

Where they stand

Ole Miss secured its first win in over a month when it traveled to Auburn and upset the Tigers on Saturday, which means the Rebels now sit with a 4-12 record, which propelled them from last place in the SEC to No. 14, two spots up. Overall, the Rebels have attained a 12-17 record, which has come largely in part due to the 10-game losing streak they just ended with the win over Auburn. Ole Miss will hope that its first win since Jan. 17 will provide some momentum for its ranked matchup with Vanderbilt.

Vanderbilt is tied with Alabama for the second-best overall record in the SEC, sitting at 22-7. However, with a 9-7 record in conference, the Commodores currently sit at No. 7 in the league. They got the season off to a surprisingly great start, earning a 16-0 record and a ranking as high as No. 11, before losing three straight games early into conference play. Vanderbilt will be arriving in Oxford fresh off a visit to Lexington, where it suffered a 14-point loss to the Wildcats. The Commodores have not been playing their best basketball as of late, with three of their seven losses having come in the past four games.

Scouting the Commodores

The Commodores are in their second year of the Mark Byington era, which has gone fairly well so far. Vanderbilt went 9-23 during the 2023 season, in their last year of being led by Jerry Stackhouse. Last season, the Commodores earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament, but made their exit in the first round. Vanderbilt will now be hoping for an improvement after an improved regular season, which it started by winning 16 straight. It was able to secure a win over an Alabama team ranked No. 13 in early January, which is still the only ranked win under its belt. SEC play has proven to be a bit of a struggle for the Commodores, as they haven’t secured many other notable wins, but have incurred losses to high and low-tier conference opponents.

Vanderbilt has many players scoring quite efficiently, with four reaching double figures and two right under 10 points per game. Guard Tyler Tanner leads the team, averaging 18.5 points per game. Guard Duke Miles and forward Tyler Nickel backed Tanner up, scoring 16 and 14.1, respectively. Forward Devin McGlockton guides the team on the backboards, though, grabbing 6.8 rebounds per game on average. Center Jalen Washington sits close behind, averaging 5.7 per game. Nickel leads the Commodores from behind the arc, having made close to 100 three-pointers on the season with 92, while shooting 40.9%.

Vanderbilt’s Notable NCAA Team Statistical Rankings:

– Assist-to-turnover ratio: 1.73, 13th
– Points per game: 86.9, 14th
– Free throw percentage: 78.2, 16th
– Blocks per game: 4.9, 20th
– Scoring margin: +12.4, 24th
– Turnover margin: +3.2, 26th
– Fewest turnovers per game: 9.6, 26th

Keys to the game

1. Offensive aggressiveness: The Rebels will need to exploit Vanderbilt’s defensive weaknesses, which got exposed quite frequently in its loss to Kentucky, often fouling and showing a general inability to stop offensive momentum when its opponents get hot and shoot well. Ole Miss will need to play fast and aggressively on offense, setting the tone early and getting key contributions from everyone on the court. It will need to take quality shots from behind the line, while also driving to the paint.

2. Consistency from behind the line: Ole Miss shot quite well from behind the line in its win against Auburn, making 10 from deep while shooting 40%. Vanderbilt’s perimeter defense is not great, allowing its opponents to hit about seven three-pointers per game. This is something the Rebels must take advantage of by using ball movement to create open shots.

3. Run the boards: The Commodores score plenty because of their success running a fast-paced offense, but they don’t dominate the boards. Ole Miss will need to take control of the game by establishing men in the paint, allowing for offensive rebounds to create second-chance points, while acquiring defensive rebounds to prevent the same for Vanderbilt.

Why this game matters

After a long struggle streak, the Rebels finally found the spark they needed to get going. If one thing is certain, it’s that the Rebels must not let go of the momentum they created for themselves with the win on Saturday. Ole Miss needs to bring that energy back to Oxford and do what it can to knock off the Commodores, which could be the second ranked win this season after it beat Georgia earlier in the year. If it can secure a win over Vanderbilt, a second straight victory,  it would be quite a nice way to enter its game against South Carolina on Saturday. Three straight wins would be an impressive way to end the regular season.

But the season will not end with the Gamecocks; the Rebels will still need to make the trip to Nashville for the SEC Tournament. Although the season has not gone the way that head coach Chris Beard and the team may have hoped, there’s still time for the team to make an impact on the league. All the Rebels need to do is figure out how to stay hot, consistent and successful, so that it can take this spark to Nashville and make a run that nobody expected. The team controls its own destiny.

Game info

• Matchup: No. 24 Vanderbilt at Ole Miss
• Time: 8 p.m. CT
• Location: SJB Pavilion, Oxford, MS.
• TV: SEC Network+