The Ole Miss Basketball team will get its first taste of competition with head coach Kermit Davis on the sideline next week. The Rebels will travel north of the border to play four games in two cities against some of Canada’s top college teams, beginning on August 9.
The NCAA allows teams to take international trips every four years and the cycle couldn’t have come at a better time for Ole Miss. Kermit Davis looks to usher in his system as the new coach, and has made a point that this is not a vacation for the team preparing to go up against four competitive Canadian teams.
“Sometimes you go on these foreign trips and you can play bad and just win. Teams aren’t very organized,” Davis said. “These teams from Canada are organized so you’re going to have to go and play.”
Kermit Davis talks about his first few weeks as head coach of men’s basketball at the Touhy Center this past season. File photo by Marlee Crawford
The team’s first test will be against McGill University on August 5 in Montreal. McGill is coming of an RSEQ Championship season and will also face South Dakota State and Duke this summer. The next day, the Rebels will take on Concordia University, who lost to McGill in the RSEQ championship game.
The Rebels will then head to Ottawa on August 8 for a game against their biggest challenger and one of the best squads in Canada, Carleton University. Carleton has won its conference 13 of the last 16 years. Ole Miss will finish up its tour with a game against the University of Ottawa on August 9
While everyone on the team must adjust to life with the new coach, Davis will look to veterans Terence Davis, Breein Tyree and Bruce Stevens to lead a group of promising underclassmen. This young team will have a great opportunity to show coach Davis what can it can do in true road games against worthy opponents.
“Our team is not great right now playing through pockets of adversity, fatigue, different things that teams go through,” Davis said. “You’re going to go through it there because the games are physical.”
Rebel fans looking for something to hold them over before football will have a chance to watch two of the games next week for free. The game against McGill on August 5 will stream at 2 p.m. CT as well as the game against Ottawa on August 9 at 6 p.m.
Terence Davis dribbles the ball towards the basket during Ole Miss’ mens basketball’s victory over the LSU 96-76 at the Pavilion on Tues. Feb. 14, 2017. File photo.
