Mississippi women’s head coach Matt Insell gives instructions during a game earlier this season. (DM Photo | Jason Zhang)
A year ago, the Ole Miss women’s basketball team went into the SEC Tournament with no postseason hopes whatsoever. This year, the Rebels head to Little Rock, Arkansas, with an opportunity to bolster their NCAA Tournament chances with a strong showing.
It all starts with a game against the sixth-seeded Arkansas Razorbacks (16-12, 6-10 SEC) at noon on Thursday. Sophomore forward Jessica Jackson and sophomore guard Kelsey Brooks lead the team in scoring with 14.6 and 14.4 points per game respectively.
“Really excited about where we’re at going down into the SEC Tournament,” head coach Matt Insell said. “As I just told the players right when we left practice, we’re 0-0 right now. We have had a great season so far. Getting postseason eligible was really huge. We are guaranteed two more games in our season right now, one in the SEC Tournament and whatever tournament we make from that point.”
You have to go way back to the conference opener for the last game these two teams played. The Rebels knocked off the Razorbacks 71-57 Jan. 3. Sophomore transfer guard Erika Sisk led the way with 19 points, and senior forward Tia Faleru had a double-double, scoring 10 points and pulling in 11 rebounds.
It has been an impressive first year for head coach Jimmy Dykes as his team has been talked about being an NCAA Tournament-caliber team. Insell said he has all the respect in the world for Dykes and the Razorbacks but believes his team deserves to be in the NCAA Tournament just as much as they do.
“I think that Arkansas should be in the tournament, but I also think if you’re saying Arkansas is in I think we should be in,” Insell said. “The computers say we’re not in, so I guess we are going to go off the computers.”
The NCAA Tournament talk is one thing, but winning games in the SEC Tournament is what Insell wants his squad to do, though he has sensed some thrill in his team.
“They’re excited. They are really excited,” Insell said. “We are going to go over there and shoot tomorrow morning in the gym and get a feel for the gym. Let them eat a hot dog in the gym. Let them do whatever they want to do there to experience what the tournament is about.”
Insell hopes if the team experiences all of that, the environment won’t intimidate them when they step out onto the court Thursday.
For the players, junior guard Gracie Frizzell is going back home. A native from Little Rock, Arkansas, Frizzell gets to play in front of her hometown friends and family during Thursday’s game and possibly the whole weekend if the Rebels make it that far.
“There have been so many people that have asked for tickets,” Frizzell said. “My family and my friends say they’re coming, so it will be a lot of support for Ole Miss.”
Faleru and freshman guard A’Queen Hayes picked up some postseason accolades Tuesday morning.
Hayes earned first team All-SEC freshman team after scoring 7.2 points per game and pulling down 4.2 rebounds per game.
Faleru earned first team All-SEC honors after a monster year of 14.6 points per game and pulling down 10.5 rebounds per game. She was a walking double-double as she recorded a SEC-best 13 on the year.
“It’s a big honor,” Faleru said. “First team is a huge honor. I’m glad the coaches believe in me and my teammates and the staff here. Like Coach Matt (Insell) said two years ago, no one knew my name, so when he came I stepped up and took the challenge he gave.”
“It made my day because a lot of people told me that I couldn’t play in the SEC,” Hayes said. “I had originally committed to somewhere else, and I de-committed to come here, and they were like, ‘Well that’s out of your league, and you won’t be able to play point guard.’”
Insell and the Rebels look to put a good showing together in Little Rock and prove that they are worthy of high-level postseason play. Ole Miss squares off against the Razorbacks on Thursday at noon. The SEC Network will televise the game.
