We have written this story before, Ole Miss basketball — are they in or out? What do they have to do to get in? What can they do without being out? Name the questions, and Ole Miss fans are thinking of them. Think all you want Rebel fans, but the NCAA Tournament hopes for Andy Kennedy’s squad are falling apart before our eyes.
This week Ole Miss (16-10, 7-6 ) has fallen into a three-game hole, with the fourth game looming Saturday against Florida. The first two losses are just bad. Alabama and Georgia should have been sure wins for the Rebels as neither have been super competitive in the league, but we don’t play games on paper. Ask Syracuse about that. (Too soon?)
After the Georgia loss, the Rebels returned home to face a talented Kentucky team…and boy was it ugly for the majority of the game. So what about Florida? Ole Miss doesn’t match up super well with the Gators led by some big shooters and really an all around good tournament team.
So enough talk about the current losing skid. Here’s the tournament resume, or lack thereof for the Ole Miss Rebels.
Big wins: LSU, @Vanderbilt,
Bad losses: @Mississippi State, @Alabama,@Georgia
RPI Rank: 76
Tough Games Left: Florida, @Texas A&M, @Arkansas, Vanderbilt
Cut and dry, there really aren’t and BIG wins for the Rebels, and by that I mean no resume boosters for the NCAA Tournament.
When looking at some of the losses for Ole Miss you can’t help but notice how high some of the other teams RPI rankings are. Ole Miss has losses to the teams with 93 and 113 next to their names. If that doesn’t toss you out of the big dance I don’t know what does.
Of course many fans are holding out hope that Ole Miss will run the table again in the SEC Tournament in Atlanta. Not so fast. They are sitting at fourth or fifth at seasons end probably meaning they aren’t going to get the best match-ups in the world for the tournament. They will surely meet someone that has beaten them already.
NIT is still on the table but do fans really want to go to the NIT? We’ll see how it goes. As of now we’re out Rebel fans. Ole Miss takes on Florida Saturday at 11 a.m. in Tad Smith Coliseum in Oxford. That game could be huge if the Rebs can pull a crazy upset.
Connor Hennessey is a writer and radio host in Oxford, Miss. He can be reached by email at cmhennes@go.olemiss.edu or @ConnorHennes on Twitter. Visit OleMissSports.com for up-to-date information pertaining to the Ole Miss Rebels.
