Rebels Face Texas Tech for Big 12/SEC Challenge

			OLE MISS (5-3, 0-0 SEC) at TEXAS TECH (5-0, 0-0 Big 12) Wednesday, Dec. 4 • 7 p.m. • Lubbock, Texas United Supermarkets Arena (15,098)
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LUBBOCK, Texas – Ole Miss women's basketball will run into undefeated Texas Tech when the Rebels travel west to Lubbock for the Big 12/SEC Challenge this Wednesday night. The game will air live on Fox Sports Southwest and the Fox Sports Go app for those that have access through their cable provider.

TEAM FACTS

Ole Miss Rebels (5-3, 0-0 SEC)
Head Coach: Yolett McPhee-McCuin • 2nd Season at Ole Miss (14-25) • 108-88 career record (7th Season)

Texas Tech Lady Raiders (5-0, 0-0 Big 12)
Head Coach: Marlene Stollings • 2nd Season at Texas Tech (19-17) • 161-109 career record (9th season)

ON THE AIR

Television/Online: Fox Sports Southwest / Fox Sports Go
Play-by-Play: Cindy Brunson
Color: Brian Agler

OLE MISS RADIO

Radio: 105.1 FM
Audio: TuneIn
Play-by-Play: Graham Doty

SERIES NOTES vs. TEXAS TECH

Series History
Ole Miss leads, 2-1

Current Streak
Ole Miss, 1

First Meeting
Dec. 8, 1979
• W, 70-56, in Oxford
• Van Chancellor's first season at Ole Miss

Last Meeting
Nov. 23, 2005
• W, 72-69, in Oxford
• Armintie Herrington: 24 pts., 15 reb.
• Ole Miss: 51 percent shooting
• Out-rebounded Texas Tech, 42-28

Last Meeting in Lubbock
Dec. 12, 2004
• L, 86-38
• Texas Tech ended season in Sweet 16
• Second-largest loss in Ole Miss history

SCOUTING TEXAS TECH

Record
5-0, 0-0 Big 12

Last Game
W, 64-60, vs. San Diego
• Won San Diego Thanksgiving Tournament
• First tournament title in five years
• Defeated IPFW, 82-48, previous night
• Top Scorers: Brittany Brewer (16 points), Chrislyn Carr (14 points), Andrayah Adams (12 points), Alexis Tucker (11 points)
• Brewer:16 points, 9 rebounds, 7 blocks in 39 minutes

Notes
• Return Big 12 Freshman of the Year Chrislyn Carr, as well as Honorable Mention Big 12 honorees Brittany Brewer and Sydney Goodson
• One of 18 undefeated teams remaining, one of three in the Big 12
• Have held all five opponents to 60 points or fewer
• Leads NCAA in fewest fouls (55), second in fewest fouls per game (11.0)
• Also in NCAA top-50 in: field goal percentage (4th, .497), assists per game (5th, 20.8), scoring margin (7th, 29.6), blocks per game (8th, 6.4), scoring offense (8th, 84.4 PPG), rebounding margin (14th, 12.2), three-point percentage (19th, .388), field goal defense (31st, .339), scoring defense (31st, 54.8 PPG) and rebounds per game (40th, 43.4)
• Current starting lineup of Chrislyn Carr, Jo'Nah Johnson, Sydney Goodson, Alexis Tucker and Brittany Brewer are 4-0 this season
• Top scorer: Brittany Brewer (17.8 PPG)
• Brewer leads NCAA in blocks (29) and blocks per game (5.8)
• Brewer also ranks in the NCAA top-50 in: double-doubles (12th, 4), rebounds per game (13th, 11.4) and defensive rebounds per game (28th, 7.4)
• Brewer ranks third all-time at Texas Tech in blocks (191)
• Chrislyn Carr: Leads Big 12, 10th NCAA in assists per game (6.4)
• Alexis Tucker: Leads Big 12, 9th NCAA in field goal percentage (.667)
• Jo'Nah Johnson: Leads Big 12, 17th NCAA in free throw percentage (.929)

TEAM NOTES

LAST TIME OUT (vs. Pitt)
The Ole Miss women's basketball team battled back from a rough first quarter and slowed a potent Pitt offense to a crawl, but couldn't quite catch the Panthers in a 58-50 loss as they pulled away with less than 30 seconds left to close the Daytona Beach Invitational on Nov. 30.

It looked as if Pitt (3-4) would run with the game after an electric first quarter that saw five Panther three-pointers, but the Rebels (5-3) buckled down on defense, stymieing the Panthers to just two treys the remainder of the game and forcing 20 total turnovers. Ole Miss responded offensively as well, ripping off what amounted to a 20-5 run across the second and third quarters that included a 4:28 Pitt scoring drought, but the Rebels ended up getting out-rebounded 45-32 and missed a handful of opportunities to keep the game within reach down the stretch.

"We just couldn't get stops and make shots when we needed to," said Ole Miss head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin. "We didn't get rebounds when we needed to. If we want to win games, we have to get stops. We had opportunities to get the ball so we could go in transition, and we didn't. We gave them offensive rebounds. The rebounds hurt us tonight."

That first quarter belonged solely to Pitt's Aysia Bugg, who dropped nine of her 20 points and all three of her three-pointers in the opening frame amidst a flurry of Panther three-point shooting. No Rebel opponent had hit more than five threes in a game this season, but Pitt matched that in the first frame before hitting seven total on the evening.

The Rebels did not panic, though, closing the first half on an 11-3 run while hitting six of its last eight field goals in the quarter to pull within seven points at the break, trailing 34-27.

"They were just hot, we had to weather the storm," McPhee-McCuin said. "We knew that it wasn't going to keep happening the rest of the game. They hit one three in the second half. We just had to weather the storm."

Ole Miss brought unrivaled energy out of halftime, with Mimi Reid getting the party started with her patented jelly roll, kicking off a 9-2 run amidst the aforementioned Panther scoring drought. The Rebels snagged their first and only lead of the night after Valerie Nesbitt (14 points, six rebounds, five steals, two assists) caught an errant pass and laid it in on the other end of the court for a 41-40 Ole Miss lead with 2:22 left in the third quarter.

Pitt drained a late three-pointer, though, in the closing minutes to take a 43-41 lead and some momentum into the final frame. That setup what wound up as a war of attrition in the fourth quarter, with neither offense pulling away. A Deja Cage (10 points, five rebounds, three assists) floater with 48.1 seconds remaining brought it back to a three-point game at 53-50, but a foul called on Mimi Reid beyond the three-point arc with 22.3 seconds left gave Pitt three free tries from the charity stripe. Aysia Bugg hit all three of them to make it a 56-50 game, putting the game out of reach prior to the 58-50 final.

"I felt like it was going to be a low scoring game," McPhee-McCuin said. "I just thought that we needed to make winning plays and we didn't. In order to win games like this, you have to make winning plays and I don't think that we did."

Valerie Nesbitt was the star of the show again for Ole Miss, putting the team on her back down the stretch with 10 of her 14 points coming in the second half. Across both games at the Daytona Beach Invitational, Nesbitt averaged 17.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.0 steals and 2.5 assists per game – including 13.5 points per game in the second half alone. Dominique Banks was also crucial for the Rebels again, recording her third career double-digit game with 10 points and four rebounds. Sophomore Iyanla Kitchens chipped in seven points and four boards as well.

"(Tonight) was our first time playing a team like this, a power five team," McPhee-McCuin said. "(Pitt) came out and punched us in the mouth. Now we know what it's like. You have to play every possession versus power five teams. You can't just come out and be bigger and stronger, that is not going to happen. Because of it, we did not come out of it with a victory. So, we have to learn from this and keep going."

BIG 12/SEC CHALLENGE
The inaugural Challenge was held in 2014, with the first 10-game slate occurring in 2016. The SEC edged the Big 12, 6-4, that year, with the conferences splitting the Challenge, 5-5, the past two seasons. Each season, 10 institutions from the SEC will square off against all 10 schools from the Big 12. The format includes five home games on campus sites for each conference per season, and teams will not face the same opponent twice.

Ole Miss has taken part in the Challenge twice, traveling to No. 16 West Virginia on Dec. 4, 2016 (L, 66-61) before falling to TCU last season in a 55-50 heartbreaker at home in The Pavilion on Nov. 29, 2018.

ALL-TIME VS. BIG 12 SCHOOLS
Ole Miss has a 16-13 all-time edge against current Big 12 schools. The Rebels hold winning records against Kansas (2-0), Kansas State (1-0), Oklahoma (2-1), Oklahoma State (2-0), TCU (3-1) and Texas Tech (2-1), with an even record against West Virginia (2-2) and losing records against Baylor (1-2) and Texas (1-6).

DEFENSE! DEFENSE!
Ole Miss is currently yielding just 57.2 points per game through eight contests thus far. Furthermore, the Rebels have held six of its eight opponents to 60 points or fewer to start this season -- just the seventh such instance in Ole Miss history. No Rebel opponent has scored 70 points this season, the sixth time that has occured through eight games in program history.

The Rebel defense put on a show against an electric Louisiana Tech offense on Nov. 23, holding the Lady Techsters to 53 points after they entered the game averaging 83.3 per contest. Ole Miss forced at least 29 turnovers in back-to-back games after forcing 29 against LA Tech and 31 against Sam Houston State -- the first instance of consecutive games with at least 29 since forcing 33 against McNeese State on Dec. 19, 2015 and 39 against Alabama A&M on Dec. 29. The 31 that the Rebel defense caused against Sam Houston stand as the most by Ole Miss since forcing 40 against Mississippi Valley State on Dec. 28, 2016.

STEAL YO BALL
The Rebel defense have been masters of theft, recording 13 steals vs. Louisiana Tech and 15 against Sam Houston State. Ole Miss ranks fifth in the SEC in steals (9.0/game), and those two games mark the first consecutive games of at least 13 steals since notching 13 against Austin Peay on Dec. 20, 2016 and 24 vs. Mississippi Valley State on Dec. 28, 2016.

OFF THE LINE
Ole Miss has proved difficult to damage from distance, holding opponents to five or fewer three-pointers in seven of eight games this season and a season opponent clip of 30 percent. Just one Rebel opponent has shot better than 33 percent from distance, with Pitt shooting 41.2 on Nov. 30. In the Coach Yo era, three-point defense has been a point of emphasis, holding opponents to five threes or fewer in 24 of 39 games in her two seasons. Last season, Ole Miss held 17 opponents to 30 percent or less from three, including 12 that shot 25 percent or worse and four that haven't been able to break 20 percent. The year before, Ole Miss held opponents under 30 percent just 10 times all season.

SHARING IS CARING
Ole Miss currently ranks sixth in the SEC in assists, averaging 14.5 per game through eight games played. The Rebels have recorded two separate 20-assist games, notching 20 on 30 made field goals in the season opener vs. Mississippi Valley State on Nov. 5 before recording 20 on 26 made shots against Louisiana Tech on Nov. 23.

Ole Miss had five games with at least 20 assists in 2018-19 after doing so only three times the year prior. Last season, Ole Miss was 6-5 when recording more assists than its opponent, but 3-16 on the opposite end of the spectrum.

VARIETY IN THE STARTING LINEUP
Ole Miss has used six different starting lineups in its first eight games of the 2019-20 season. In Coach Yo's first season with the Rebels, Ole Miss used 17 different starting lineups through 31 total games played.

OPTIONS IN THE SCORING COLUMN
Versatility has been the name of the game on offense, as five different Rebels have led Ole Miss in scoring this season after having just four unique top scorers throughout the entire 2018-19 season. Juniors Deja Cage and Valerie Nesbitt are the lone Rebels to have repeated, with Cage doing so three times and Nesbitt twice. Other top Rebel scorers include sophomore Taylor Smith in the season opener vs. MVSU (18), freshman Jayla Alexander vs. UNO (21) and junior Dominique Banks at Southern Miss (13).

BENCH COMING THROUGH
The Rebel bench has been active in the scoring department, out-scoring opponents in seven of eight games thus far for a season total of 195-105.

REBELS DOMINANT IN THE PAINT
Ole Miss has been active in attacking the rim and working the low post into the offense, as the Rebels have won the points in the paint battle six times this season. In 2018-19, Ole Miss did so only nine times all season. Currently, the Rebels are outscoring opponents in the paint by a total of 262-198.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES

NESBITT STRONG IN SECOND HALF
Junior Valerie Nesbitt has risen as one of the top scoring threats for Ole Miss, but her prowess in the second half has been remarkable as well. Nesbitt averaged 17.0 points in two games at the Daytona Beach Invitational against Alcorn State and Pitt, with an impressive 13.5 points in the second half of those two games alone. On the season, Nesbitt is averaging 11.5 points overall and 7.5 points in the second half. She has five double digit games, including each of the last four.

NESBITT STUFFS THE STAT SHEET
Junior Valerie Nesbitt has been a force to reckon with on every side of the ball this season, averaging 11.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.8 steals and 3.1 assists. Stealing the ball has been her bread and butter, though, currently leading the SEC and ranking 11th in the NCAA at her 3.8 steals per game average. Nesbitt had an all-around superb game against Louisiana Tech on Nov. 23, recording an incredible line of 12 points, eight assists, eight steals and six rebounds. Her eight steals rank as the most by any player in the SEC this season, as well as tied for No. 4 on the Ole Miss single-game list. Additionally, it is the first game in available records at Ole Miss in which a Rebel has recorded at least eight assists and eight steals in the same game. She is also one of just two in the NCAA this season to have recorded such a game alongside Norfolk State's Chanette Hicks (20 points, 14 assists, 11 steals vs. Virginia-Lynchburg, Nov. 14).

OH MY, SHE'S ON FIRE!
Junior Deja Cage has been a dynamic scorer for the Rebels, recording six different double-digit game through eight contests this season and standing as the top Ole Miss scorer in three contests. Her 15.3 points per game ranks ninth in the SEC. Cage has also been one of the most consistent three-point shooters in the league, ranking fourth in threes per game (2.1).

Cage lit the net on fire with a career-high 30-point performance on 10-of-18 shooting and 5-of-8 three-point shooting against Louisiana Tech, one of just two 30-point games in the SEC this season. She is one of just four Rebels in the last five years to have recorded a 30-point game.

CLUTCH FROM THE CHARITY STRIPE
Freshman and Pearl, Mississippi native Jayla Alexander has been money from the free throw line, currently ranking second in the SEC and 27th in the NCAA at her 91.3 percent clip on a 21-of-23 line. Alexander has been a key reserve off the bench, scoring 56 points in her last five games. Alexander went off against New Orleans, more than doubling her previous career high of 10 points with a 21-point outing against the Privateers. She followed that up with an 11-point performance at Southern Miss and a 13-point outing against Sam Houston State.

Alexander, the No. 1 rated recruit out of the state of Mississippi last year, has played at least 18 minutes in each of her first six games as a Rebel. Helping her against UNO was a 5-of-8 clip from beyond the arc, tied for the second-most threes in a game among SEC players this season.

COOKING WITH KITCHENS
Sophomore Iyanla Kitchens blossomed in a big way against ULM, recording her first double-double with career highs in points (10) and rebounds (10). Kitchens, who averaged 6.2 minutes per game her freshman season, is currently averaging 5.4 points and 4.3 rebounds through eight games played in 2019-20.

SMITH IN SPOTLIGHT AS SOPHOMORE
Sophomore Taylor Smith emerged as a potent scoring threat for the Rebels after a career day against Mississippi Valley State. Smith, who entered this season with a career-high of nine points scored against Florida last season, doubled that with a demonstrative 18-point performance on 9-of-17 shooting. Smith started off a perfect 4-of-4 from the field thanks to a deadly mid-range jumper.

AIR IT OUT, TORRI!
Senior three-point specialist Torri Lewis picked up right where she left off two years ago, draining 3-of-5 from beyond the arc for 11 total points against MVSU to start the season. Lewis, who returned for her redshirt senior season at Ole Miss after sitting out last year due to the birth of her son, A.J., is a career 33.8 percent three-point shooter. In her career, 85 percent of all of her field goals have come from three-point distance.

In her career, Lewis owns 27 games with multiple threes -- hitting seven or more threes in a game twice. She knocked down a school-record 10 in a game vs. New Orleans as a freshman in 2015 (the third-most in a single-game in NCAA history), and during her junior year, she nailed seven against Alabama.

During that junior season, Lewis was on fire from downtown in the final month of the season, going 16-of-32 in a stretch from deep from Feb. 1-11. That season, 90 percent of her made field goals were three-pointers and 131 of her 150 attempts were from beyond the arc (87.3 percent).

MIMI DIRECTING TRAFFIC
Sophomore guard Mimi Reid returned to her role as the floor general for the Rebels, notching six assists against MVSU and New Orleans -- the 11th and 12th times in her young career she has recorded at least six in a game. Reid was unflappable in this role as a redshirt freshman in 2018-19, spearheading what was an efficient Rebel offensive attack. She was the only player in the SEC last year with separate games of 11+ assists (vs. Louisiana) and 11+ rebounds (vs. Western Michigan), and she led all SEC freshmen with 4.3 assists per game (sixth overall). Reid was also the most efficient shooter for the Rebels last season, knocking down a team-high 40.2 percent of her field goal tries.

DOM ON THE BLOCK
Junior transfer Dominique Banks has been a force to reckon with on the block, averaging 7.3 rebounds and 2.5 blocks to go along with her 8.3 points per game average at the moment. Banks recently recorded her first career double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds vs. Alcorn State, the most boards by a Rebel since Bretta Hart hauled in 18 against Western Kentucky on Dec. 2, 2015. Banks has started two games for the Rebels at the five position, and she currently ranks fifth in the SEC with her 2.5 blocks per game.

DUMITRESCU OUT FOR SEASON
Ole Miss suffered a heartbreaking setback after freshman Sarah Dumitrescu tore her ACL against Sam Houston State on Nov. 26, ending her season in the process.

"As much joy as sports brings, there is an ugly side to it and that is unfortunately injuries," said Ole Miss head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin. "My heart is broken for Sarah, as she has worked extremely hard to buy into the role we envisioned for her on both ends of the floor. She is loved by her teammates, staff and the Oxford community, and I'm certain that she will not only bounce back from this, but come back even stronger."

Dumitrescu entered that contest as the top rebounder for the Rebels, averaging 7.8 boards per game, which ranked 13th in the SEC at the time. She started each of her last four games played, notching at least 23 minutes played in every game prior to her injury. Dumitrescu had at least seven rebounds in four games played, and already had five boards in the first quarter before her injury.

A native of Bucharest, Romania, Dumitrescu was a four-star recruit out of IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida and is a two-time member of Romania's national team.

Follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB and on Instagram at Ole MissWBB. You can also follow head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin on Twitter at @YolettMcCuin

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Players Mentioned

Jayla Alexander

Dominique Banks

Deja Cage

Sarah Dumitrescu

Iyanla Kitchens

Torri Lewis

Mimi Reid

Taylor Smith

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