Mississippi center Dwight Coleby (23) shoots the ball in a game earlier this season. (File Photo | Logan Kirkland)
On Dec. 13, Ole Miss dropped an 81-74 contest to Western Kentucky, a game in which the Rebels gave up 49 second half points, blowing a 13 point half time lead. They fell to an abysmal 2-3 record at home. A team seemingly at a loss for consistency was desperately trying to find its way with a number of new faces playing together.
Fast forward two months later and you might not recognize the team that took the floor that night. An Ole Miss squad on a winning streak is coming off an extremely tough 86-79 road win at Auburn in front of a sell-out crowd. In an unbelievably physical game, the Rebels stood tall in a hostile environment and matched the physicality of a tough Auburn team.
The win makes it easy for me to say that this team has grown up. They have found their way and meshed together into a NCAA tournament-caliber team.
This team plays extremely hard and possesses more fight and toughness than most thought this bunch had. They are now 16-7 and for the moment have, seemingly, slid out of the bubble and sit inside the field of 68, according to many experts.
Though controlling the theatrics of Marshall Henderson wasn’t exactly a walk in the park, I believe this has been Andy Kennedy’s best coaching job. He has gotten the most out of a team that is very diverse in the skill sets they possess. He has put players in the right position and wisely used a deep bench to aid in the current success the team is having.
It is remarkable how much better this team is now than it was in November and December. Andy Kennedy deserves a tremendous amount of credit for this team’s improvement.
With that being said, I best online casino strongly encourage all Rebel fans to raise the support for this team. This Rebel team deserves much more than to play in front of a half-filled gym at home games. They have turned the corner and have become a legitimate NCAA tournament team, and they deserve the support of one. Stuck in the middle of the social events that football and baseball games have become, the basketball team is often overlooked by Rebel Nation.
I, like most fans, appreciate when a team has a great amount of hustle and toughness. Watching the toughness and fight the Rebels gave during the Auburn game Saturday night made it hard not to be proud that those guys play for our school.
I understand the need for a new arena. I also understand the excitement the new arena will create when it is ready next fall. But at the same time, fans should not miss out on the success this team is having right now.
The Rebels have much work to do before punching their ticket to the big dance: road games at Florida, Mississippi State, LSU and Alabama accompanied by home games against Tennessee, Arkansas and Georgia will not be an easy task.
Ole Miss remains on the road Thursday night in primetime action at 6 p.m. on ESPN against a Florida team that just gave Kentucky all it could handle. They return home Saturday night to take on an Arkansas team that remains the Rebels’ best win of the season after beating them on the road earlier this year.
I strongly encourage all of Rebel Nation to get on board and help support this team on its journey to the post-season.
