SB Nation - Malcolm White

Thursday News and Notes

Gamecock Man — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 12:17:20 -0000

Football

Phil Steele on Strength of Schedule. Get ready: Steele has us playing the fourth toughest schedule in the nation--good for toughest in the SEC--based on his previous year W/L percentage statistical analysis. It never gets easier, does it? Now, I'm not one to get too riled up over these rankings, as you never really know how tough your schedule is until about mid-way through the season, after it becomes apparent who's for real and who's not. UGA, for instance, was supposed to have one of the toughest schedules in the nation last year, but many of their opponents--Arizone State, Tennessee, Auburn, us to a certain degree--ended up tanking, thereby devaluing their schedule. Plus, as Get the Picture tells us, there's reason to doubt Steele's particular rankings. However, it certainly seems fair to say that we have a tough schedule, considering that we're playing the usual SEC East slate, inter-divisional games against good Ole Miss and Alabama teams and an Arkansas team that should be improved, and the game with Clemson along with a game at what could be an improved NC State.

Basketball

Charleston Tourney Update. We appear to be set for this event. The lineup isn't particularly impressive. It includes Penn State, Miami, South Florida, College of Charleston, Tulane, La Salle and UNC Wilmington. PSU, Miami, and C of C are good programs, but most of the others are fairly forgetable. Still, I think this is a good opportunity for us to play some at least relatively decent competition during the non-con slate as well as hopefully to get some valuable national exposure.

Baseball

Gamecocks Drop to Clemson. The Tigers really handled us in this one, beating us 12-2. Sigh. Next up: Gators in Gainesville.

Other NCAA News

Malcolm White Transfers from Ole Miss to LSU. Many commentators were recently pegging the Rebels as a dark horse team in the SEC next year. Now, though, they have suffered abrupt departures from two of last year's major contributors, White and David Huertas. It may be another uphill climb for Andy Kennedy's team.

Diamond Dawgs Lose to Jacksonville State. JSU calls themselves the Gamecocks, as you may have known. Too bad it wasn't us, huh? At any rate, this was yet another weird mid-week loss for the Dawgs, who have dominated the better half of the SEC but seem incapable of beating the lowly.

Smart Football Talks Hal Mumme. Here's a good story about one of the game's major innovators over the past twenty years. By the way, if you don't read Smart Football regularly, you're missing out. This is definitely one of the most intelligent, informed football blogs on the web, featuring everything from history lessons to descriptions of tactical strategy.

SEC Tournament: Kentucky Wildcats vs. Ole Miss

Ken Howlett — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 10:42:29 -0000

Kentucky (19-12, 8-8) enters today's 1:00 EST first round SEC Tournament match-up with Ole Miss needing a win to not only preserve hope for an NCAA Tournament bid, but also to calm the gathering storm clouds of scrutiny. UK head man Billy Gillispie is enduring more second-guessing than George Custer, and desperately, urgently requires a victory to keep the media, and the collective wrath of Big Blue Nation from dismantling his troubled regime, piece by battered piece.

Four straight losses, and a 3-8 record over the last 11 games, have led many to question Gillispie's ability to lead college basketball's winningest (for now) program. But, winning three or four games in a row in March oftentimes can cure the worst of maladies. The onset of salvation awaits the troubled 'Cats and their beleaguered chief, in the form of the Mississippi Rebels.

Ironically, Ole Miss represents the beginning of the "dark times" for this UK basketball team: Coming off five straight wins to open SEC play, UK stood tall in the saddle, with talk of 13, 14, even 15 league wins (and sugar plums dancing in their heads) ... until that fateful trip to Oxford on January 27, which resulted in an 85-80 lackluster loss for the 'Cats. And thus began UK's downward death spiral of unparalleled proportions.

But, being the ever-optimistic chap that I am, the question has to be asked -- Will Ole Miss represent another, more palatable turning point? Will today's game launch UK into a new, more successful season?

UK is certainly more talented than the overachieving Rebels, but talent hasn't been the pivotal factor in Kentucky's disappointing results. Heart, determination, will, and execution have been absent without leave for this Wildcat squad, and can be pointed to as the primary culprit for this most disappointing of seasons. But, if the 'Cats can somehow summon from the grave the requisite winning formula long since lost ... well, a four win Georgia team did it last year ... it's certainly "Cat-possible."

First up, the Rebels of Ole Miss

Mississippi Personnel -- Conference Stats Only

Terrico White: 6-5, 211 lb freshman guard -- White averages 18.4 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game (2.3 turnovers per game). He's shooting 44.5% from the field, 35.7% from beyond the arc (46-129), and 63.8% from the free throw line.

He was named SEC Freshman of the Year by the coaches ... In his last six games White is averaging 22.3 points per game ... In his last four games he's taken an average of 10.8 three-pointers per game, and he's making them at a 34.9% clip ... He took 23 shots versus Auburn on February 25, he made only eight (34.8%) ... He had eight rebounds versus Auburn on February 4, and seven rebounds versus Arkansas on March 4 ... White committed eight turnovers in Ole Miss' SEC opener against Florida, in the 15 games since he's averaging only 1.9 per game ... He made over 50.0% of his shots in 18 games this year ... He dished out zero assists in Ole Miss' last game versus Mississippi State ... Versus UK earlier in the year, White scored 21 points on 7-15 shooting (38 threes), grabbed five rebounds, handed out seven assists and had two turnovers.

David Huertas: 6-5, 200 lb junior guard -- The Florida transfer is averaging 16.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game (2.5 turnovers). He making 37.7% of his shots, 30.4% of his three-point tries (35-115), and 78.3% of his free throws.

Huertas has a hurt foot and is listed as a game-time decision ... Baloney ... He'll play ... But, he played only 16 minutes versus Mississippi State in UM's last game ... He has only one steal in his last four games ... Over his last three games he's averaging only 12.0 points per game ... In his last two games he's made only seven of 19 shots (38.6%) ... In that same span he's made three of 12 trifecta attempts (25.0%) ... Versus UK earlier in the season, Huertas scored 21 points, making five of 15 shots (3-9 threes), corralled five rebounds and dished out four assists.

Zach Graham: 6-6, 225 lb sophomore guard -- Graham is averaging 10.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game. He's shooting 38.8% from the field, 39.6% for behind the arc (19-48), and 73.8% from the charity stripe.

Graham is averaging 15.5 points over his last four games ... He's averaging taking nine free throws per game in that same span ... He's made six of his last 17 three-pointers in his last four games (35.3%) ... He's dished out eight dimes over the last two games ... In his first 24 games played this year he took double-digit shots only twice ... He's taken 10 or more shots in four of his last six games ... He's committed five turnovers twice in his last four games ... In their earlier meeting with UK, Graham scored 11 points on 3-9 shooting (3-6 threes), grabbed five rebounds, had two assists, one steal, and two turnovers.

Malcolm White: 6-9, 217 lb sophomore forward -- White is averaging 8.9 points, 6.6 rebounds (2.6 offensive rebounds), and 1.3 blocks per game. He's shooting 51.3% from the field, and 81.8% from the free throw line.

White scored 20 points (7-8 field goals) versus Mississippi State in UM's regular season finale ... Over his last 11 games he's 46-74 from the field (62.2%) ... He nabbed 18 rebounds versus Auburn on February 25, he also had six turnovers in that game ... He's recorded 17 offensive rebounds over his last four games (4.3 per game) ... He blocked five shots versus Georgia on February 21 ... White has 47 rebounds over his last five games (9.4 per game) ... In Ole Miss' first 18 games, White scored in double-digits only twice, in his last 12 games he's scored at least 10 points seven times ... He's made 14-16 free throws over his last five games (87.5%) ... He's dished out only three assists all year ... He's recorded two or more blocks in four of his last six games ... Versus UK, he had 20 points (8-12 field goals), grabbed six rebounds, had one steal and one block.

Murphy Holloway: 6-7, 227 lb freshman forward -- Holloway is averaging 8.9 points, and 7.4 rebounds per game (3.3 offensive rebounds). He's shooting 50.8% from the floor, and 52.3% from the free throw line.

In five of his last seven games Holloway has grabbed double-digit rebounds ... Over his last seven games he's averaging 9.4 rebounds per game ... In UM"s last game versus Mississippi State he gathered in 14 rebounds ... In three of his last seven games he's grabbed at least five offensive boards per game ... In a three game stretch versus LSU, Tennessee, and Georgia, he was 19-32 from the field (59.4%), in the four games since he's only 10-23 (43.5%) ... The freshman has played in all 30 Ole Miss games, and scored in every one of them ... He's scored in double-digits 14 times ... Against UK, he scored five points (2-6 field goals), grabbed six rebounds, had three assists, two steals, and one block.

UK vs. Ole Miss Statistical Comparison -- League Games Only (SEC Rank in Parenthesis)

Kentucky Ole Miss

Points Per Game -- 70.7 (9) 72.2 (8)

Field Goal% -- 45.5 (3) 42.9 (9)

Free Throw% -- 76.9 (1) 68.6 (7)

3-Point% -- 36.6 (3) 33.2 (8)

Rebound Margin -- +3.2 +4.9

Off. Reb. Per Game -- 11.1 (10) 13.8 (1)

Off. Rebound% -- 35.5 (4) 36.6 (2)

Def. Rebound% -- 66.0 (7) 68.5 (3)

Assists Per Game -- 13.6 (4) 11.6 (9)

Turnovers Per Game -- 17.0 (11) 13.7 (6)

Steals Per Game -- 6.6 (8) 4.8 (12)

Blocks Per Game -- 6.4 (1) 3.2 (9)

Rebel "Rousers"

Ole Miss is 1-3 in their last four games, and 4-6 in their last 10 ... In their last three games the Rebels are giving up 87.7 points per game ... In their last three games they've given up 32 made three-point baskets, and are allowing their opponents to shoot 38.6% from beyond the arc ... Ole Miss opponents have scored over 40 points in seven consecutive halves ... Over their last two games 68 free throws have been taken by their opponents ... Over their last four games their opponents are averaging 30.8 free throws per game ... The Rebels shot over 45.0% from the field only three times in SEC play ... Ole Miss conference opponents shot over 45.0% eight times ... In half of their SEC games, Ole Miss recorded single-digit assist totals ... Ole Miss is averaging 23.7 three-point attempts per game, over their last 11 games.

Omen, omens, looking for omens

UK is 13-0 versus Ole Miss in SEC Tournament games ... UK has played Mississippi on a neutral floor a total of 25 times, winning all but one game ... The lone UK loss to UM at a neutral site was in the 1928 Southern Conference Tournament ... Today's date, March 12, is the anniversary of the following UK triumphs -- March 12, 1966; Rupp's Runts defeated Michigan to gain a spot in the Final Four ... March 12 1993; UK annihilated Tennessee 101-40 in a first round SEC Tournament game, ending Allan Houston's college career ... March 12, 1995; UK defeated Arkansas 95-93 in overtime, coming back from 19 points down, to claim the SEC Tournament Championship.

CliffsNotes Analysis

Editors Note -- I refuse to do my normally brilliant? pre-game analysis until UK wins another game.

For a look at the complete boxscore of Ole Miss' 85-80 victory over UK earlier in the year, go here. Go here For Tru's Postmortem, or my post-game thoughts, "It's a 40 Minute Game."

Thanks for reading, and Go 'Cats!

Kentucky 80, Ole Miss 85: Postmortem

Truzenzuzex — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 02:40:27 -0000

Congratulations to a tough, determined and very skillful Ole Miss team. They absolutely wanted this game more, and they earned it. I am not going to insult the Rebels by suggesting it was Kentucky's deficiencies that were the difference. The fact is, Ole Miss simply executed almost to perfection in every single facet of the game. Combine sharp execution with players who were very confident and fearless of the newly-ranked Wildcats, and you have a big, fat upset at the Tad Pad.

Obviously, I am disappointed in the outcome, but UK has been on a long road trip and the road in the SEC can often be cruel. Teams can get hot or just plain outplay you, especially in their own gym. It was definitely the latter tonight for the Rebs. Hotty Toddy, guys, well done.

For Kentucky, obviously this setback is a disappointment. The 'Cats were hoping to find a down team that was undermanned, and instead walked into a team that has nothing to lose, and played without a shred of fear. I will say that it looks clear to me that Kentucky was not well prepared for this Ole Miss team. I think the 'Cats assumed that Jodie Meeks could wear his man down and get his shots, just has he has against many other teams this year. That didn't happen.

Anyway, here are the rest of my observations for this game:

DeAndre Liggins had a good first half, but in the second half he reverted to form. I think we have to be satisfied with that -- for now.
Jodie Meeks could not guard David Huertas. The Rebels did a super job of bouncing Meeks off of screens, and all too many times, Huertas was able to get a good look, and he was very efficient.
Kentucky came back hard on the boards in the second half after being ourebounded soundly in the first. UK wound up losing the rebounding battle by a total of five.
Turnovers did not hurt Kentucky in this game. UK managed only 10 turnovers.
What did hurt UK in this game was a 25% 3-point percentage, and being held to 34.5% by Ole Miss -- 100% due to outstanding Rebel defense. To everyone's surprise, Ole Miss scored as many points in the paint as UK, 28, and more points of turnovers, 18-7.
What did Kentucky in was an unusual lack of offensive efficiency. The 'Cats did not get the ball to Patterson enough, and Stevenson simply vanished into the thick air of the Tad Pad.
Terrico White, Malcolm White and David Huertas were just awesome tonight. Zach Graham was just shy of awesome, but very good.
UK simply could not make up the 15+ points that Meeks was unable to score. That is obviously a weakness that will have to be addressed.
I think Gillispie made a tactical error by allowing Meeks to guard Huertas. That caused Meeks to expend way too much energy defensively, and it clearly affected Meeks' offense.
What happened to the good screens that were freeing up Meeks in the Alabama game? They were absent today.
Defensively, UK never did get a grip on this team, and made number of glaring errors which Ole Miss was able to cash in on.
Darius Miller still has a long way to go offensively, but he did manage an inefficient nine points.
Deandre Liggins should never attempt 16 shots. Ever. He took more shots than Meeks, although they both shot about the same percentage.
Patrick Patterson mistimed virtually every jump today, and every time he did, Ole Miss got an offensive rebound. I can't figure out why that happened, but it was so obvious it was surreal. Perry Stevenson just took this game off.
Ramon Harris needs ... something.
I need a drink.

OK, well, that's that. It's never fun to write postmortems about losses, and this one is no exception. But lets give the Rebels their due -- they took this game with a grunt, grab and growl, and the 'Cats get to go home and dress their wounds -- especially the one to their reputation.

Kentucky at Ole Miss: Pre Game

Truzenzuzex — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 20:07:05 -0000

Tonight, Kentucky once more goes on the road in the SEC to take on the Ole Miss Rebels down in Oxford. Ole Miss has had a really trying year so far, losing several key players to injury. Not even the coach has been immune, with Andy Kennedy having some kind of a physical altercation with a cab driver that has resulted in lawsuits and a charge of criminal assault against Kennedy.

On the basketball court, Ole Miss has struggled since the loss of Chris Warren at the very end of a close game in Louisville. Several players have tried to pick up the slack, but you can't lose someone like Warren and just recover from it, and Ole miss has lost four out of five games in the conference.

So now, let's take a look at Ole Miss from a statistical standpoint

Player Statistics (Courtesy of Statsheet.com)

Normal starters are highlighted in yellow. Players highlighted in gray are out.

Player	GP	GS	MPG	PPG	FG%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	Size/Wt	Year	Pos	Role	Status
Zach Graham	19	11	21.6	7.2	43.9	2.9	0.9	0.5	0.3	6'5''/225	Fr	G	Role Player	Avail
Murphy Holloway	19	12	20.8	8.5	58.4	5.8	0.8	1.3	0.2	6'7''/215	Fr	F	Role Player	Avail
Will Bogan	19	6	14.2	2.4	31.7	0.5	1.3	0.3	0	6'1''/165	Fr	G	Limited	Avail
David Huertas	19	19	32.6	19.5	44.9	4.8	2.4	1.1	0.3	6'5''/197	So	G	Major Cont.	Avail
Malcolm White	19	15	22.3	5.7	42.6	4.9	0.2	0.3	1.4	6'9''/220	So	F	Limited	Avail
Michael Halford	1	0	4	0	0	1	1	0	1	6'3''/185	Fr	G	Non-factor	Avail
Patrick Spach	8	0	3.4	0	0	0.1	0.5	0	0	6'1''/167	Sr	G	Non-factor	Avail
Trevor Gaskins	1	0	10	4	33.3	2	0	0	0	6'2''/203	So	G	Non-factor	Out
Ryan Brown	5	0	1.2	0	0	0	0	0	0	6'1''/200	Sr	G	Non-factor	Avail
Kevin Cantinol	12	1	6.3	0.9	71.4	0.8	0.1	0.1	0.2	6'10''/245	Fr	F	Invisible	Avail
Terrico White	19	9	26.6	9.3	39.8	3.1	1.9	0.9	0	6'5''/195	Fr	G	Sig. Cont.	Avail
Chris Warren	11	11	34.4	19.6	38.6	1.5	4	2.5	0	5'10''/170	So	G	Go-to guy	Out
Terrance Henry	19	3	18.5	4.8	41.3	3.6	1.1	0.2	0.5	6'9''/190	Fr	F	Role Player	Avail
DeAundre Cranston	19	7	16.5	2.8	43.1	4.2	0.7	0.4	0.4	6'9''/245	Fr	F	Limited	Avail

Team Statistics (Courtesy of Kenpom.com)

	Kentucky		Ole Miss
Category	Offense	Defense	Offense	Defense	D-I Avg
Adj. Efficiency:	109.2 [63]	86.3 [9]	108.8 [66]	103.2 [219]	100.5
Adj. Tempo:	70.1 [60]		68.2 [127]		67.1
Four Factors
Effective FG%:	55.7 [9]	41.8 [4]	48.7 [174]	49.8 [212]	48.8
Turnover %:	25.0 [330]	20.7 [171]	18.9 [69]	18.8 [277]	20.9
Off. Reb. %:	35.0 [115]	29.6 [51]	35.7 [86]	37.5 [303]	33.2
FTA/FGA:	43.2 [42]	32.3 [94]	35.1 [192]	34.2 [131]	36.3
Miscellaneous Components
3P%:	35.6 [116]	32.9 [118]	34.4 [156]	33.8 [164]	34
2P%:	56.7 [5]	38.1 [2]	47.4 [190]	49.4 [227]	47.7
FT%:	79.0 [5]	68.6 [167]	75.4 [16]	64.2 [25]	68.6
Block%:	6.9 [55]	18.4 [2]	8.2 [131]	7.8 [211]	8.9
Steal%:	11.0 [259]	9.3 [220]	8.6 [65]	9.3 [217]	10
Style Components
3PA/FGA:	30.5 [234]	32.7 [179]	31.9 [189]	32.5 [169]	33.1
A/FGM:	63.1 [24]	43.9 [9]	46.8 [315]	56.0 [214]	54.3
Point Distribution (% of total points)
3-Pointers:	22.4 [289]	30.5 [68]	26.6 [193]	27.1 [185]	27.5
2-Pointers:	54.2 [128]	48.5 [281]	52.1 [183]	54.8 [80]	52.2
Free Throws:	23.5 [41]	21.0 [151]	21.3 [117]	18.1 [268]	20.3
Strength of Schedule
Components:	101.2 [149]	100.3 [162]	103.0 [62]	97.8 [35]	100.5
Overall:	0.5242 [161]		0.6464 [45]		0.5
Non-conference:	0.4342 [238]		0.5669 [119]		0.5
Personnel
Bench Minutes:	33.0% [130]		34.9% [94]		31.40%
Experience:	1.26 yrs [287]		0.68 yrs [343]		1.65
Effective Height:	+1.6 [74]		+1.5 [83]		0
Average Height:	78.6" [3]		77.2" [77]		76.5"

Analysis

You can see from the above charts that UK is a vastly superior team defensively, and just as efficient as the Rebels offensively. UK's offensive rating suffered a little due to the recent defensive struggle in Alabama, but it is likely to go the other direction tonight.

Because of a multitude of serious injuries, the Ole Miss Rebels have been trying to cobble together something out of spare parts and bailing wire. Florida transfer David Huertas has had to take over almost the complete scoring load from Chris Warren, who went down from a season-ending knee injury at Louisville earlier this year. Huertas is the only player who has started every game this year.

Looking at the starters, you can see why Ole Miss is struggling this year -- not a single upperclassman among them. In fact, there are only two on the team, both seniors and neither of whom see significant minutes. Will Bogan has taken over the point guard duties from Chris Warren. He is a good perimeter shooter, but has not exactly excelled in the point guard role, having an A/TO of just slightly over 1/1. Malcolm White is the biggest player in the starting lineup, but he only manages around five rebounds per game. Zach Graham is a good three-point shooter, and the combination of Huertas, Graham and Boggan make for a dangerous perimeter shooting team. The other starter, Murphy Holloway, is mainly in for rebounding and defense. Terrico White is a significant contributor off the bench, and is the second-leading scorer of the team that the Rebels will put on the floor tonight.

Ole Miss has neither the bodies nor the skill to hold down either Patrick Patterson or Jodie Meeks. They are so depleted and young, it will be hard for them to do anything but zone the Wildcats, with the hope that the 'Cats won't solve it well. This could happen and has happened in the past, but I do think that the 'Cats are now able to effectively attack a zone, especially one in which many of the team's best athletes are currently in rehab.

Defensively, if the 'Cats play like they did against Alabama, this game could get very ugly for Ole Miss. Huertas is a capable scorer, but he needs help to get his shot. Inside, the Rebels are too small and too slow to do much scoring against Kentucky unless Patterson and Stevenson take the night off.

Conclusion

The only way Ole Miss beats Kentucky tonight is by shooting lights-out from three and being extremely effective in holding down Patrick Patterson or Jodie Meeks. Note that they almost must do both, because only one will likely not produce enough points to win, although they could make it interesting.

If the Rebels zone the 'Cats and Meeks is hot, he could set another record against them. Even if he isn't hot, he is likely to shoot well enough to force them to face-guard him and go to a box-and-one. Face-guarding Meeks has not been a successful tactic so far by any team who has tried it, because the 'Cats are getting better at off-the-ball screens and Meeks just seems to have no limit to the energy he can exert to get open. I really don't think Ole Miss can be effective against Kentucky in the man-to-man, as thier relatively poor defensive efficiency illustrates. Ole Miss is OK against the three, but they aren't very good against the 2, and that's where Kentucky excels.

Another problem for the Rebels is offensive rebounding. You can see from their size why this would be an issue, and if UK pounds them on the offensive glass, it will be game over very early. Turnovers for Kentucky are not likely to be as much of a problem tonight, because the Rebels turn the ball over a lot as well.

In the end, this game looks like a big mismatch on paper. The Rebels can beat us if they shoot it well from outside, but a lot of other stuff has to go well for them at the same time in order for them to pull off this upset.

Ole Miss preview

Mike Rutherford — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 11:00:07 -0000

MISSISSIPPI REBELS

Record: 7-3

All-Time Series: Ole Miss leads 2-0

Last Meeting: Ole Miss won 88-69 on Dec. 5, 1998

SEASON RESULTS

Beat Arkansas State (65-52)
Beat South Alabama (89-71)
LOST to Utah (83-72)
Beat Marshall (82-78)
Beat Central Florida (78-46)
Beat Morgan State (78-70)
LOST to West Virginia (80-78)
Beat New Orleans (78-65)
LOST to New Mexico (103-70)
Beat Alabama State (85-81)

PROBABLE STARTING LINEUP

G Chris Warren (19.8 ppg)
G David Huertas (21.0 ppg)
G Zach Graham (5.7 ppg)
F Malcolm White (3.9 ppg)
F Murphy Holloway (7.5 ppg)

Points of Emphasis

1. Chris Warren and David Huertas will be the two best guards U of L will have faced this season. Warren is the Rebels' most reliable all-around player, averaging just under 20 points, 2.4 steals and 4.0 assists to 2.5 turnovers. He can beat you off the dribble, he can beat you on the cut, and even though his three-point percentage is down from last season, he can beat you with the outside shot.

Huertas was a disappointment for most of last season before hitting his stride at the end of the year and averaging 19 points in Ole Miss' four March games. He's kept the momentum rolling in his junior season, leading the Rebels in scoring at 21 ppg, hitting 32-of-68 three-point attempts and scoring less than 20 points just three times.

Needless to say, tonight will be a huge test for the McGee/Sosa/Smith/Knowles quartet.

2. Ole Miss comes into tonight's game playing particularly poorly. They were inexplicably blown out by 33 at New Mexico on Saturday, and then narrowly avoided a disastrous defeat by holding off Alabama State 85-81 two days later.

3. The Rebels are not a good defensive team. They play strictly man-to-man, press occasionally, and are extremely susceptible to backcuts and leaving solid three-point shooters unchecked. They rank 252nd in the nation in scoring defense, surrendering 72 points per game, 172nd in field goal percentage defense and 133rd in three-point field goal percentage defense.

4. They're still adjusting to life without junior forward Eniel Polynice and guard Trevor Gaskins, who are both out for the season after having to undergo knee surgery. The loss of Polynice was an especially large blow for a team already thin in the frontcourt. Freshman Murphy Holloway is still a work in progress and sophomore Malcolm White has not made nearly as long a jump in his second season as Andy Kennedy was hoping. The result is a team that ranks 256th in the country in rebounding margin and has consistently been abused by talented opposing big men.

5. Ole Miss leads all Southeastern Conference teams and ranks 12th in the nation with a 77.5 free-throw percentage. The Rebels set a school-record with a 22-for-22 performance at the line against South Alabama and shot 93.8 percent (15-of-16) from the stripe against Morgan State. Warren ranks fourth in the SEC with his 86.9 percent free-throw shooting (53-of-61), while Huertas ranks seventh at 80.0 (48-of-60). Both players are also among the league’s leaders in free-throw attempts. Zach Graham has only missed one free throw in 20 attempts (95.0 percent), while Terrance Henry is hitting at an 81.8 percent clip (18-of-22).

6. The thing that makes me the most worried about tonight is that this is a team with serious talent whose major flaw has been prolonged stretches of apparent apathy. Inspiration likely won't be a problem playing against the No. 9 team in the country in a nationally televised game on ESPN. Louisville will get the best shot of a team with the potential to hang with just about anyone in the country, and it will come away from home, where the Cards weren't exactly stellar in their only other showing.

7. They're big men are erratic, but surprisingly good passers. Our guards can't take their eyes off of Huertas or Warren or they'll make a quick cut to the hoop or an open spot along the perimeter.

8. Samuels and Clark have to be more active than they have been at times over the last couple of weeks. U of L's size is the single greatest advantage present in this matchup, and the only people who can stop the Cardinal big men are the Cardinal big men.

9. Hold Warren and Huertas below 48 combined points and you win. That's a guarantee.

QUOTABLE

--"This is why you work so hard. This is why you come to an SEC school, to play a game such as this - national television, a big-time opponent, one of the most prestigious powerhouses in college basketball. I know I'm excited. I hope our guys are excited about it." --Andy Kennedy

--"Their guards are not going to take shots that you see on film where seven out of 10 of their shots are coming from this area or this play. That's just not the way it works for them. Mostly if you look at their assist total most of their plays come off one on one, so sometimes you can't plan or choreograph their defense to stop a certain play because these guys can put it on the bounce and create shots for themselves." --Rick Pitino

--"We're struggling. We're young. We make mistakes. When you're looking at 10 healthy guys on the roster and only four have played in a Division I basketball game before this year, realistically, it's just going to take some time. That's what we're facing." --Andy Kennedy

--"I think we break down sometimes, we relax a lot on defense. When we're off the ball we relax and then they get an open shot." --David Huertas

--"We wanted to schedule it, so going into (Big East play), our competition gets better and better. They've still got to go through the real road trips where 18,000 people despise the ground you walk on. That's when you start to get close when you play those road games." --Rick Pitino

--"I don't know what it is - but as a coach I can't infuse somebody with confidence. I can put them in a position where hopefully good things will happen and then ultimately hope it comes. Obviously, for us, we hope it comes sooner rather than later." --Andy Kennedy

Game Reading

Mississippi-Louisville preview (CBS)

Louisville bracing for quick two-game swing (AP)

Working to improve (Scout.com)

Can't Miss week (Tom Heiser)

Cards, we barely know ye (Card Game)

Ole Miss Game Notes

Visuals

The Rebels getting stomped by New Mexico:

Highlights from last year's Ole Miss/Tennessee game where Chris Warren dropped 24 in a two-point loss: