Ole Miss (9-3) finishes up the nonconference schedule Saturday with Dayton (11-3), whose three-point shooting will test the Rebels. Dayton has knocked down 38.5 percent of its threes this season, second best in the Atlantic 10.
Tipoff is set for 7 p.m., and the game can be seen on CSS. Ole Miss is a 3.5-point favorite.
The Rebels will have to defend one of the best shooters in country, as Dayton’s leading scorer, Jordan Sibert shoots 49 percent from three. He’s attempting 4.5 threes per game and scoring 13.3 points per game.
Sibert has been extremely effective in transition this season, scoring 1.36 points per possession. His field goal percentage in transition is 64 percent, and his three-point percentage is even higher at 71.
Unlike Henderson, Sibert doesn’t hunt transition threes with the dribble. All of his three-point attempts in transition have come without a dribble; they are catch and shoot. However, when he does attack off the dribble in transition, he draws fouls, as he gets to the free throw line 27.8 percent of the time.
In the half court, Ole Miss needs to run Sibert off of the three-point line. In catch-and-shoot scenarios, Sibert is scoring 1.27 points per possession, but when he dribbles before taking a jumper, he is scoring .60 points per possession.
Another concern for Ole Miss will be Flyer big man Devin Oliver. Oliver is the number one rebounder for Dayton, and keeping him off of the glass will be key for Ole Miss to fix their rebounding woes. Oliver is grabbing 2.8 offensive rebounds per game and 7.4 total rebounds per game.
But the bigger problem for Ole Miss is Oliver’s ability to shoot outside. Oliver is knocking down 32 percent of his threes and shooting 2.2 per game. Ole Miss struggled last year and this year at defending big men that can score from outside.
Oliver stands at 6-foot-7. Another forward for Dayton, at 6-foot-6, is Dyshawn Pierre. Pierre shoots better than Oliver from three at 36.4 percent. Pierre shoots 1.7 threes per game.
Along with Sibert in the backcourt, Khari Price shoots 43 percent on threes, while attempting 3.8 per game.
Dayton isn’t the best three-point shooting team Ole Miss has faced – Oregon is better – but their shooting will test Ole Miss and may keep them out of a zone.
Graphic By Tyler Bischoff | The Daily Mississippian
Notes
* Dayton’s best win this season came at the Maui Invitational when they knocked off No. 24 Gonzaga, 84-79. They also fell to No. 9 Baylor 67-66 in Maui. (Current AP Rankings)
* Ole Miss has never beaten Dayton; the Flyers are 4-0 all time against Ole Miss.
* Dayton’s winning percentage has decreased every season since the 2008-09 season.
* Seventy-eight percent of Marshall Henderson’s field goal attempts have been three pointers. He has made 39 percent of his threes but just 25 percent of his twos. Against Western Kentucky, Henderson was 7-for-13 on threes but 0-for-2 on twos.
* Henderson leads the NCAA at 11.82 three pointers attempted per game, but is second in the country with 4.64 made threes per game.
* Henderson is 31st in the SEC with 3.14 assists per 40 minutes. LaDarius White, Jarvis Summers and Derrick Millinghaus are 9th, 11th and 13th, respectively.
* Henderson is first in the SEC in points per 40 minutes at 28.67; Summers is 4th with 24.94.
* Sebastian Saiz started his first career game against Western Kentucky and scored 11 points and grabbed seven rebounds. But he did foul out in the closing minutes.
* Saiz replaced Aaron Jones in the starting lineup. Jones hasn’t started the last two games as Kennedy started Anthony Perez to matchup with Mercer.
* Jones only scored two points in 28 minutes against Western Kentucky. He’s averaging 6.2 points and shooting 45.5 percent from the field. Jones hasn’t shown any offensive ability to create his own shot.
* Jones has blocked a shot in every game this season. He has 33 blocks this season (2.8 per game), which puts him in the top 30 in the NCAA.
* Ole Miss is third in the SEC at forcing 14.75 turnovers per game.
* Ole Miss is allowing the second most points per game, 71.08. But the Rebels are ninth in the conference in defensive rating (points allowed per 100 possessions) at 97.9.
* Ole Miss’ opponents are getting assists on 51.72 percent of their made shots, second highest in the SEC.
For continuing coverage of Ole Miss men’s basketball, follow @Tyler_RSR and @thedm_sports on Twitter.
— Tyler Bischoff
tfbischo@go.olemiss.edu
