Strong guard play is a key component to hanging around in the NCAA Tournament. That’s good news for Ole Miss, an 8 seed that will face 9 seed Oklahoma on Friday in Columbia, South Carolina.
The Rebels’ top three scorers, all guards, have played among the most minutes in the SEC — something that coach Kermit Davis knows all to well leading up to the Rebels’ first NCAA Tournament since 2015.
Davis, in his first year at Ole Miss, said he was able to balance rest and work with NCAA teams at Middle Tennessee and will follow a similar plan this week.
“The two tournament games we won at Middle (Tennessee State), I thought we handled it in a good sense to where those guys were really fresh come game day,” Davis said.
Ole Miss (20-12) has avoided major injury setbacks this season while using a mostly eight-player rotation.
“Playing heavy minutes always puts more mileage on your legs, but this is March Madness. I don’t think fatigue will be a factor,” senior guard Terence Davis said.
Tyree ranks No. 3 in the SEC in minutes played, Shuler is No. 12. Davis, who was prone to foul trouble earlier in the season, is farther down the list.
Like the Rebels, Oklahoma has been a team that has struggled rebounding the ball on the year, often due to their basic lack of size on the interior. Of Sooners who average 20 or more minutes per game, only one is taller than 6-foot-7. Sophomore Brady Manek, at 6-foot-9 and 222-pounds, is a little light for players of his typical height. For reference, Ole Miss’ Bruce Stevens stands 6-foot-8 but weighs 252-pounds.
For a team that is very guard oriented, similarly to Ole Miss, Oklahoma has had a lot of games in which it has not shot the ball well. OU is the worst team in the Big12.
