Being the nation’s best two-loss team isn’t exactly a coveted crown. Coaches, players and fans would prefer to own the “undefeated” tag for as long as possible.
Yet, the Ole Miss Rebels, ranked No. 18 in the latest AP poll with a 5-2 record, should be proud to be the nation’s top two-loss team. (Even if the No. 10 Notre Dame Fighting Irish believe the title should belong to them.)
They also might be poised to the disrupt the SEC. While the No. 3 South Carolina Gamecocks, No. 4 Texas Longhorns and No. 5 LSU Tigers have Final Four visions and the new-look No. 14 Kentucky Wildcats and Tennessee Lady Vols appear increasingly frisky, the overlooked team from Oxford could not only obstruct opponents’ aspirations, but also could vault themselves atop the conference.
Rebels with a (defensive) cause
The Rebels opened the season in Paris, expected to be the collateral for the then-No. 3 ranked USC Trojans’ early-season coronation. It was an international stage for sophomore superstar JuJu Watkins, surrounded by a reloaded supporting cast. Ole Miss, of course, had other plans, requiring USC to battle to the buzzer for a hard-fought, ugly 68-66 victory. The Rebels had 15 steals and forced the Trojans into 25 turnovers, including nine by Watkins.
It was the kind of defensive performance that shows the Rebels are capable of competing with any and all comers. As USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb said after the game, “I’m really impressed with Ole Miss. They’re going to win a ton of games.” For the season, Ole Miss is forcing over 24 turnovers per game, a mark that ranks in the top 20 nationally and third in the SEC. It’s a team-wide effort, too. Seven Rebels are snagging at least one steal per game, led by freshman guard Sira Thienou’s 2.3 steals per contest.
The Rebels dialed up a similar defensive performance against another top team last week, meeting the No. 2-ranked UConn Huskies in the Baha Mar Women’s Championship. Ole Miss caused plenty of trouble for UConn, forcing the Huskies into a season-high 17 turnovers.
The Rebels also held the Huskies to a season-low 14 3-point attempts and a season-worst three 3-point makes. Shutting down opponents’ outside shooting has been an essential element in Ole Miss’ fourth-ranked defense, which is allowing only 47.1 points per game. For the season, Rebels’ opponents are shooting just 20 percent from behind the arc. No matter how aggressive the team might be in closing out on…
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