Things finally seemed to be clicking for the Ole Miss Men’s Basketball team, until they ran into TCU. The Rebels (5-2) fell at home to the Horned Frogs (8-0) 66-54 in what did not look like the same Ole Miss team that knocked off Creighton and Cincinnati in the Emerald Coast Classic.
“There was no rhythm (offensively),” head coach Andy Kennedy said. “We’re really searching for options offensively. Defensively, I thought we were locked in early. It’s hard to maintain a certain intensity on the defensive side when you’re so inefficient offensively, and it just spreads throughout.”
The Rebels shot a season-low 29.8% from the field and turned the ball over nine times in their SEC/Big 12 Challenge appearance. On the other hand, TCU knocked down six of twelve three-pointers to propel the Horned Frogs to their sweep of the Magnolia state, after beating Mississippi State on November 29.
Both teams were neck and neck in the first half as TCU held the 27-24 lead over the Rebels. Ole Miss and TCU swapped the lead ten times, and tied three times. TCU never looked back in the second half as they went on a 13-0 run after Ole Miss trailed 42-37 with 13:10 left in the game.
However, a scary moment occurred when TCU freshman center Chauncey Collins jumped up for a rebound, and fell down on his head with eight minutes left in the game. After ten deathly silent minutes in the Tad Pad, Collins got on his feet and the stadium erupted in cheers. The Ole Miss medical team assisted Collins back to the locker room. His injury appears to be concussion related.
The Rebels continued to have no answers for TCU as the Horned Frogs led by as many as 19 points with 5:20 remaining in the game. Head Coach Andy Kennedy played twelve players in the game, and just couldn’t seem to find a consistent lineup on the court.
“I’m playing a bunch of guys a bunch of minutes because I’m just trying to find some consistency in somebody that wants to play, separate themselves, and earn minutes,” Kennedy said.
The triple-guard attack of senior Jarvis Summers, junior Stefan Moody, and senior LaDarius White combined to shoot 8-of-34. Moody led the Rebels in scoring with 12 points.
Next up for the Rebels will be a cross-country battle against Oregon, who defeated Ole Miss last year 115-105 in OT.
“It’s a hard trip, across the country against a quality Pac-12 opponent,” Kennedy said. “After we built some momentum, we won five in a row and played well down in Florida,” said Kennedy. “I have to figure out a way to get this team to play the way I saw them play for two games against Creighton and Cincinnati.”
