Ole Miss head basketball coach Andy Kennedy often says, “You are what your numbers say you are,” and that could not be more accurate for his team’s current state.
Mississippi guard Stefan Moody dribbles the ball in a game against Texas A&M. (Photo by: Logan Kirkland)
The Rebels have lost five of their last six games, and most recently fell to Kansas State 69-64 on the road in the Big 12 SEC challenge, a game in which they turned the ball over 17 times.
During this stretch, the team is scoring just under 72 points per game, while giving up 80. The Rebels have struggled all year to score points, so when they struggle on the defensive end, it does not bode well for them.
The Rebels have been hit with the injury bug. Sebastian Saiz has missed the last four games due to an eye injury; Martavius Newby missed time with an eye injury of his own and hasn’t really been the same since. Stefan Moody missed a game because of a hamstring injury, and watching him play, one could gather that it is still bothering him to a degree. The senior is averaging 23.5 points per game, but was held to a season low of ten on Saturday in Manhattan. Moody was not able to get a shot off in the second half. He then missed the last few minutes of the game after an awkward fall late in the second half.
Saiz will likely return some time in the next week, which will help a great deal, but more obstacles lie ahead.
Any team will struggle when it is down three starters, but in the Rebels’ case, depth was already an issue, which makes injuries an even tougher task.
The good and bad news for the Rebels is that the upcoming schedule is about to get tougher. That’s good news if they have any prayer of getting themselves back on the NCAA tournament bubble. That’s bad news because it gives them no time for injured starters to garner any cohesion.
Four of Ole Miss’ next six games are on the road, including one in College Station against No. 5 Texas A&M. Their RPI is currently 100 and their strength of schedule is outside the top 100. It will take a strong finish, to say the least, for the Rebels to be a part of the conversation on selection Sunday. With their RPI being what it is, an 8-2 mark down the stretch in these last 10 games is necessary to have a shot of the NCAA tournament bubble at the SEC tournament in Nashville.
The Rebels return to action at 8 p.m on Wednesday against Missouri in Columbia.
