Ole Miss, coming off a self-described “must-win” victory over Southern Miss on Saturday, will strive to keep the momentum going when it faces Alabama A&M in a neutral-site matchup Wednesday night in Tupelo, Miss.
The Rebels (6-4) opened the season 5-0 before going on a four-game losing streak. That skid ended with a 71-67 victory over Southern Miss, a pivotal early-season victory for a program that reached the Sweet 16 last year.
“People outside the program wouldn’t understand this, but we put a lot of pressure on our team (to win),” Ole Miss coach Chris Beard said. “These guys understand to have the season we want to have, to get this thing turned around, today’s the game we have to win.”
Beard went on to say, “We’re in the middle of a hard (run) right now. We’ve got a lot of expectations in our program. We’ve got great fans we’d like to play well for.”
AJ Storr has been the Rebels’ top scoring threat, averaging 13.3 points per game. Storr, who poured in 21 points in the victory over Southern Miss, has also shot well from 3-point range, knocking down 45.2% of his shots from deep. Ilias Kamardine is averaging 13.0 points, and Malik Dia is averaging 12.9 points and a team-high 6.3 rebounds.
Alabama A&M (6-4), meanwhile, will be playing its third game in a five-day stretch. The Bulldogs knocked off NAIA school Arkansas Baptist on Saturday and North Alabama on Monday. Kintavious Dozier, a Grambling transfer, leads the team with 13.9 points per game. Dozier scored 24 points in the victory over North Alabama, his second 20-point performance of the season.
The Bulldogs’ other players averaging double figures are Sami Pissis (11.6 points) and Koron Davis (11.0 points).
Alabama A&M ranks first in the SWAC in scoring defense (71.0) but 11th in scoring offense (66.2).
–Field Level Media
