In what felt like an NCAA Tournament first-round matchup, the Ole Miss Rebels would welcome the Central Arkansas Bears to The Sandy and John Black Pavilion for an exciting early-season matchup between two NCAA Tournament hopefuls.
For Central Arkansas, Friday night was a rare chance to play in an SEC arena and make a statement. However, the Rebels had something else in mind, jumping out on Central Arkansas early with stifling defense that led to points on the other end. In the first half alone, Ole Miss forced Central Arkansas into twelve turnovers, leading to twelve of Ole Miss’s 47 first-half points. In the first half, Patton Pinkins led the Rebels with 16 points. In addition to Pinkins’ 16 points, the Rebels hit seven three-pointers and shot 54.1% from the field while out-rebounding Central Arkansas 18-15.
After halftime, Ole Miss continued its dominance, cruising to a 92-60 win on Friday night to move to 2-0. Ole Miss built its largest lead of the night in the second half, extending its lead over the Bears to 38 points with 4:58 left in the game. Patton Pinkins led the Rebels with 19 points; Adam Clark and Ben Henshall each had 13.
Overall, through two games, Ole Miss has scored 191 points and allowed 118; for the Rebels, that means they’re averaging 95.5 points per game, truly an insane number no matter the opponents. When you watch the Rebels, the one thing that stands out the most is the defense. Through two games, the Ole Miss defense appears to be among one of the best since Coach Chris Beard took over in Oxford. Over two games, the Ole Miss defense has forced 44 turnovers, averaging 22 per game, with 12 steals and four blocks. What we’re seeing with this Ole Miss team so far is straight out of Coach Chris Beard’s playbook, with defense that creates scoring opportunities for the Rebels to build large leads. Will it carry over when the Rebels face opponents of equal quality? More likely, because the coaching staff spent the entire offseason building this roster to play defensive basketball that turns into scoring opportunities.
Ole Miss returns to action Tuesday night as they welcome Southeastern Louisiana to Oxford.
Photo Credits- Ole Miss basketball on X
