Ole Miss Basketball: Rebels overlooked as NCAA Tournament team

NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 30: Mississippi Rebels head coach Andy Kennedy directs his team during the first half against the Penn State Nittany Lions during their championshiop game of the Barclays Center Classic at Barclays Center on November 30, 2013 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

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ATLANTA, GA – MARCH 14: Head coach Andy Kennedy of the Mississippi Rebels reacts during the quarterfinals of the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament against the Georgia Bulldogs at Georgia Dome on March 14, 2014 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

The Rebels’ Strong Backcourt

The other reason why people are down on Ole Miss is that they lost their best player from last season, double-double machine Sebastian Saiz, and two other rotation players (Cullen Neal and Rasheed Brooks). What these people are overlooking is that the Rebels return four quality starters from last season.

Deandre Burnett, Terrence Davis, and Breein Tyree were the starters on the perimeter, and all three of them return. Burnett is a transfer from Miami who led Ole Miss in scoring and assists. The combo-guard averaged 16.5 points, 3.2 assists, and shot 37.6% from three. Davis was one of the most improved players in the country last season, improving his scoring average from 1.9ppg to 14.9ppg. Davis also led Ole Miss in steals with 1.4 per game and was second in rebounding with 5.3 per game. Lastly, Tyree earned a place in the starting lineup even though he was a freshman which shows how highly regarded he was in the eyes of the coaching staff.

These three players form a formidable backcourt that is underrated nationally, but they have more help on the way. Transfer Markel Crawford has averaged over 20 minutes per game in each of his three seasons with Memphis and will be immediately eligible as a grad transfer. The 6’5 guard had a great junior season where he averaged 12.3 points and 4.4 rebounds per game.

The Ole Miss backcourt will definitely be improved from last season since adding a quality veteran like Crawford will provide a major boost to an already talented and experienced group. Also, when you include highly regarded freshman Devonte Shuler (109^th in 247 composite rankings), Ole Miss has five legitimate options on the perimeter.

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