We all remember the Marshall Henderson moments from the 2012-13 Rebel team that made it to the NCAA Tournament.
There’s the gator chomp to the crowd in Nashville after the Rebels clinched their second SEC Tournament championship, their first since 1981. There’s the game-tying shot to send the game against Vanderbilt into overtime, where the Rebels ended up winning. And who could not forget Henderson celebrating in front of a riled up Auburn crowd?
That’s the biggest difference between that Ole Miss team and this year’s tournament team. There’s no Henderson, Derrick Millinghaus, Reginald Buckner, Murphy Holloway and Demarco Cox.
No one saw the run the Rebels had in 2013 coming.
No one expected them winning three games in the SEC Tournament, especially against Missouri, Vanderbilt and Florida. They were definitely not predicted to win the SEC Tournament completely. Then watching them upset Wisconsin in the second round of the NCAA Tournament was something no one saw coming.
Can the 2014-15 Rebels make a similar run in the the NCAA Tournament?
It does not look encouraging as of right now.
The Rebels started out strong in conference play, going 10-4 in the SEC, including a six-game winning streak.
The way the Rebels finished off the season, however, is what put a question mark on the Rebels and had Ole Miss fans on the edge of their seats on Selection Sunday. Losing four of their last five games of the season, including a loss in their first game of the SEC Tournament against South Carolina, had Ole Miss on the brink of playing in the NIT.
It was a different kind of drama in 2013 than it was this year.
The 2012-13 team was not expected to make the NCAA Tournament with the resume they had, but a run to win the SEC tournament put them in the field of 68. This year’s team was expected to make the field with ease, but how the team finished the season put them in danger of not seeing the Big Dance at all. The 2012-13 Rebels had to win to get in, and this year’s team stumbled to the finish line.
The 2012-13 team had size and leadership in the front-court. With seniors Reginald Buckner and Murphy Holloway leading the way, the Rebels were a force on the glass and kept the team composure under control at crucial moments in games. Holloway cleaned the glass for the Rebels and was the main low post scoring threat, which freed Henderson to make 3-pointers. Buckner was the shot-blocker at center who kept the paint protected.
There isn’t that same presence with Ole Miss this season. Senior M.J. Rhett and sophomores Dwight Coleby and Sebastian Saiz man the frontcourt but don’t have the same physical presence Holloway and Buckner did.
The style of play on offense is similar between the two teams. Both teams were led by ball-screen shooters in Henderson on the 2012-13 team and junior guard Stefan Moody this year.
Henderson was Ole Miss. The success of the team depended on how well Henderson could shoot the ball from three. However, there isn’t as much pressure on Moody to carry the team as Moody can score shooting threes off screens and standing still, but Moody is also an effective driver to the hoop and can score in a variety of ways.
Senior guard Jarvis Summers was expected to be the leader the Rebels needed this season, but Summers has underwhelmed this season, shooting 34 percent from the field. The senior leader in the backcourt was looked at to carry the team, but Moody has taken over the role.
Both teams had depth coming off the bench, but this year’s team has found more production from the rest of the players on the bench than it did two years ago.
Another difference is free throw shooting. The Rebels are one of the best free throw shooting teams in the country this season while two years ago, free throws doomed the Rebels in the SEC and in their third round NCAA Tournament loss to La Salle.
You can find many similarities and differences between the two teams. The senior leadership, rebounding, shot-blocking presence and scoring ability is what made the 2012-13 team special.
The Rebels could possibly make a run this year. Just don’t expect it to be like two years ago.
