Ole Miss was able to secure a bounce-back win after a disappointing loss to Arkansas a few days ago as they defeated Kansas State 67-56.
The game was a part of the Big 12/SEC Challenge, and the victory by Ole Miss gave the SEC the lead in the series (3-2). KSU had pulled off some impressive victories throughout the season, getting wins against No. 13 Texas Tech and Texas. The Rebels knew that they were in for a test on their home court.
“We made it a big thing to our team about the Big12/SEC Challenge,” Ole Miss Head Coach Kermit Davis said following the game. “It’s a prestigious thing and all eyes in basketball are on this day between the two leagues.”
Ole Miss was led by freshman guard Daeshun Ruffin, who tallied a game-high 17 points (6-for-16 FG), seven rebounds and three assists. Junior forward Luis Rodriguez was also able to contribute in a big way for the Rebels as he put up 10 points (3-for-5 FG), a block and a couple of much-need three pointers.
Ole Miss realized the importance of being able to do a great job in crashing the boards and it showed as they out-rebounded KSU 43-33.
“I definitely say it’s been a point of emphasis coming into this game,” Ruffin said when asked about how much of a focus rebounding was for this team. “I feel like it helped us. It helped our bigs take a break. With battling all these bigs and guards coming down and getting the 50-50 balls, it definitely carries to our win.”
Rodriguez was asked to switch to the power forward position coming into this game after previously playing as a small forward for the majority of his career.
“I’m still adjusting to the four, but I like it a lot,” Rodriguez said when asked about playing in a new position. “It spread our floor and created lanes for everybody. Offensively, I think it creates mismatches. I’ve embraced playing the four. I like it.”
The Rebels offense was able to create open looks and knock down shots as they shot 45% from the floor (23-for-51 FG). They were aggressive throughout the game, driving hard to the basket and trying to draw fouls. Ole Miss was able to go to the free throw line 20 times.
Aside from making 11 three pointers (on 36 attempts), KSU’s offense was abysmal. The Wildcats shot just 30% (19-for-63 FG). Give credit to Ole Miss’s defense as they were able to make it difficult for KSU to orchestrate any kind of offense, swarming whoever had the ball in their hands.
“Multiple guys played well and we guarded,’” Davis said about the team’s overall performance. “To hold that team to 30% was terrific, outrebounded them by 10. I think we just had a lot of toughness, especially in the last eight or 10 minutes in the game.”
With this victory, Ole Miss improves to 11-10 on the year and are looking to grow their momentum as they travel down to Baton Rouge, to head back into SEC play where they are just 2-6 against opponents in the conference.
That game will be played on Tuesday at 8 p.m. CST on SEC Network.
