Leave of Absence

Of course the first time Ole Miss makes it to a big event I will be out of the country. I am going to leave it with you guys to sweat out the Bama baseball series and the NIT. I feel like the Rebs will probably go 1-2 in Tuscaloosa against what I think is a bad Bama baseball team. Vandy comes to town next weekend, and we all know how the Dores are. Will the Rebs lose back to back home conference series? It is highly likely that may happen.

The NIT should be interesting, I do not know much about Ohio State, but do know they are a very good team. If the Rebs play like they did tonight, they should be able to make it to the finals. My luck they will win it all since I am gone.

For all of you coming to Birmingham this weekend thank you and if you make the trip to T-Town yell louder for me.

To the rest of you I will be back in about a week and a half.

Start Spreading the News

The Rebels have made it to the Championship Game of the NIT. Yeah I know it is the NIT, but this is a pretty big step for the Ole Miss basketball program. A program that has struggled over the years and has had very little success. The sad thing is I do not feel like there are that many Ole Miss fans that appreciate the fact they have made it to the final four of the NIT. Take a look at the VA Tech game tonight, there were 10,000 screaming fans in attendance, we would never have that in Oxford.

I can say that I am very proud of this team. They showed me tonight what I have been looking for for several months. I wrote several months ago that I would not support them until they showed effort like they wanted to play-win or lose. Well tonight I felt like it was probably their best game of the entire year. Yeah that is maybe a stretch, but they really looked good tonight. Never dropping back and allowing the Hokies to go on a run, which has been the main reason for alot of our losses this year. All and all a great game for the Rebs, and glad to see them in NY for the NIT.

They will take on Ohio State on Tuesday in Madison Square Garden, a big time stage I doubt the Rebels have ever played on. Ohio State is a good team and they will definitely be looking to play Florida in the championship game.

(UMAA)
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) - Chris Warren scored five of his 22 points during a 9-0 second half run Wednesday night and Ole Mis beat Virginia Tech 81-72 in the NIT quarterfinals to earn a trip to Madison Square Garden in New York.
Ole Miss (24-10) led 51-49 with 10-49 to play before Warren's layup sparked the burst. He later added a 3-pointer, Eniel Polynice hit a jumper and Kenny Williams made a layup to cap the spurt, which gave the Rebels a 60-49 led with 8:22 to play.
The Hokies (21-14), who got 23 points from Deron Washington in the final game of his college career, never got closer than seven thereafter in a game that wasn't really as close as the score. Virginia Tech was outrebounded 46-23 and shot under 40 percent.
Dwayne Curtis added 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Rebels, Williams had 10 points and 11 rebounds and David Huertas finished with 16 points and seven rebounds.
Ole Miss shot better than 49 percent and grabbed 16 offensive rebounds.
A.D. Vassallo scored 16 points for the Hokies, but missed 15 of his 21 field goal tries, and Malcolm Delaney scored 14. Vassallo had seven assists and Delaney five.
The Rebels led 33-31 at halftime and never trailed again. Virginia Tech drew even at 49 with 12 minutes left on J.T. Thompson's layup, but Huertas hit one of his four 3-pointers 14 seconds later and the Hokies eventually fell as many as 13 points down.
Virginia Tech, which blew out UAB on Monday night, 75-49, started the same way against Ole Miss, scoring 12 of the first 15 points to fire up the crowd of 9,615.
But the Rebels responded quickly with an 18-5 run and led 21-17 after 11:30.

NIT at Blacksburg

A quick note on the NIT. The Rebs wil head to Blacksburg to take on Virginia Tech tomorrow night. The game will be televised on ESPN and broadcasted by our own Ron Franklin. This is going to be a tough matchup for the Rebels. VA Tech is a tough team that has had a good record recently and give alot of effort. The Rebs have had little time to prepare and have spent alot of time traveling. I don't look for the Rebs to win this one.

(UMAA Game Notes)
SCOUTING THE HOKIES Virginia Tech advanced to the quarterfinals of the NIT with wins over Morgan State and UAB in the first two rounds. The Hokies boast an overall record of 21-13 under the direction of ACC Coach of the Year Seth Greenberg and earned a No. 1 seed in the NIT following a strong finish to the regular season which saw them win four of their last five contests. Virginia Tech won its first-round ACC Tournament game over Miami before losing 68-66 to North Carolina in the second round. VT is 14-2 at home this season, with its lone losses to Duke and Miami. Junior forward and Puerto Rico native A.D. Vassallo tops the team with 16.9 points per game and has drained a team-high 81 3-pointers. Senior forward Deron Washington adds 12.8 ppg and 6.6 rebounds per contest, while freshman forward Jeff Allen chips in 11.9 ppg and a team-high 7.7 boards per game. The Hokies get over 35 percent of their scoring from freshmen. The team averages 70.1 ppg and allows 64.2 ppg.

OLE MISS-VIRGINIA TECH SERIES Wednesday’s NIT matchup is the third meeting between the two schools all-time. They have split the first two encounters, with Ole Miss prevailing 70-66 in a holiday tournament in New Orleans in December 1980 and Virginia Tech earning a 61-59 victory in the 1982 NIT in Oxford, Ole Miss’ only home NIT loss ever.

Another Dissapointing Outing

It was another dissapointing loss for the Rebels as they lost in the bottom of the tenth in a walk off homer by USM. Personally, I am tired of watching this team and glad to be leaving the radio and computer for a while as I am worn out and extremely disspointed with these guys.

This team no doubt has the talent, has the experience, and has just about everything they need to be a top ten team in the country, but as of now they do not belong in the top 25. They continue to drop easy outs and can not hit. Phillip Irwin had a great night on the mound, but we could not close with Bittle and Cryer, could Bittle be back into last year's form? I hope not.

The Rebels loss of yet another mid week non conference games continues to kill the confidence of the team and the fan base. I am down and out on this team and will check back with them later. Call me fair weather if you want to, you can't be an Ole Miss fan and be happy with this team now.

(UMAA)
PEARL, Miss. – The Rebels led for eight and a half innings on Tuesday, but the Southern Miss (15-7) mounted a rally in the ninth before claiming a 3-2 win over No. 15 Ole Miss (15-9) in 10 innings with a walk-off home run.

The Rebels led for eight and a half innings before the Golden Eagles would push two runs across in the ninth to tie the game and force extra innings. After a strikeout of the leadoff hitter in the 10th, Cory Stevens hit a walk-off homer run to straight away center to claim the win for Southern Miss.

The two teams have split the season series the last four seasons with the home team winning each game.

Cody Overbeck and Logan Power led the Rebels at the plate with two hits each. Overbeck was 2-for-5 with a run scored and carried his hit streak to 24 games, while Power was 2-for-4 with a run scored.

Justin Cryer (1-3) suffered the loss as he entered in the 10th inning to relieve Scott Bittle. Cryer struck out one before giving up the game winning hit. Phillip Irwin was masterful for a career-long 6.0 innings, allowing seven hits, but holding the Golden Eagles off the board as he walked one batter and struck out a career-high eight.

Tyler Conn (1-0) picked up the win in relief as he entered the game with two on and two out in the top of the 10th and struck out Matt Smith to end the Rebel scoring threat.

“Phillip gave us the effort we needed for six straight innings” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “He wasn’t in many jams, but when he did get in one he made the pitches to get out of it. We played well defensively, but the way Phillip pitched made it easy.”

Still Playinh

The always unreliable Ole Miss Dot TV cut out in the last minute and was not able to hear the Rebel victory, but Ole Miss defeated Nebraska tonight for their final game in Tad Smith Coliseum of the year. With the victory the Rebels will travel to take on Virginia Tech on Wednesday as they routed the UAB Blazers tonight.

Since the game was on ESPNU, a channel no one has, I had to listen to the game. It sounded like the game was up and down for the Rebs, but for the most part they executed very well and played a good game. This win puts the Rebels one game away from the Big Apple and the NIT semifinals for the second year in a row. Last year the Rebels ended their season at Clemson in the NIT Quarter Finals. Maybe I am a homer, but I still believe the Rebels deserved a Number 1 seed in the NIT and should be playing at home. VA Tech is going to be a tough matchup for the Rebs.

(C-L)
OXFORD - Ole Miss is within one victory of playing in the National Invitation Tournament Final Four in New York City.
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The Rebels reached that position tonight by beating Nebraska 85-75 in overtime in a second-round NIT game at Tad Smith Coliseum.Chris Warren scored 18 points to lead five Rebels in double figures. Zach Graham scored 10 of his 14 points in OT. Eneil Polynice had 15 points. Kenny Williamd had 14 points and 9 rebounds, and Dwayne Curtis had 10 points and 8 boards for Ole Miss, which at 23-10 has now won the second-most games in school history.Nebraska finished at 20-13.The Rebels' next game is Wednesday at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va. The Hokies reached the quarterfinals by beating Alabama-Birmingham 75-49 tonight at home. The Ole Miss-Va. Tech game will start at 6 p.m. CDT and will be televised by ESPN2. The starting time will be announced later.The trip to the NIT quarterfinals will be the third in school history. Ole Miss advanced that far in 1983 and 2000, losing both games.The winner of Wednesday's game will advance to the NIT Final Four, which is set for April 2 and 4 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Gators Coming to Town

The Florida Gators come to Oxford this weekend for a three game series at Swayze Field. I do not know much about the Gators, except they are very good. They swept their first conference series and followed that up with a win over highly ranked Florida State.

It will be interesting to see what Ole Miss team shows up to play. Will it be the team that plays Friday and Saturday baseball or the team that plays Sunday Tuesday baseball. If the Rebels play like "cowards" like they did against Central Arkansas they will be killed by the Gators. I feel like the Rebs will show up to play and this will be a very tight series, however I think the Rebs will pull it out in the end and win the series 2-1.

Here is a preview of the weekend from the UF Athletic Department:

Gainesville, FL -
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Following a 6-1 conquest of No. 3 Florida State on Tuesday night that stretched its winning streak to seven games, Florida (15-3/3-0 SEC) visits Western Division leader Ole Miss (14-6/2-1 SEC) for three games at Oxford-University Stadium at Swayze Field. The Gators and Rebels have not met since the 2005 season, when UM captured the regular-season series in Oxford and then upended the Orange and Blue twice in three meetings at the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala.

Kevin O'Sullivan's squad started SEC play 3-0 for the first time since 2002 by defeating Auburn three times (7-1, 12-8, 6-2) at McKethan Stadium and joins Kentucky and Tennessee atop the Eastern Division standings. Meanwhile, Ole Miss claimed its first two meetings at Mississippi State (15-6, 11-6), before dropping the finale, 4-0.

Sophomore right-hander Billy Bullock (Balm, Fla.) (2-2, 2.78) will start game one Friday at 7:30 p.m. live on FSN Florida against UM junior right-hander Lance Lynn (4-0, 1.23). Bullock collected his first-ever SEC victory last Friday night by limiting Auburn to one run on five hits over 6.1 innings and matched his career high of six strikeouts.

In a matchup of right-handers on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. live on FSN Florida, junior Patrick Keating (Harrisburg, Ill.) (2-0, 2.41) will face Rebel junior Cody Satterwhite (2-0, 4.50). Keating worked five innings in his last outing, a 12-8 triumph over Auburn, in which he scattered seven hits and permitted one run.

Sunday's series finale can be viewed on GatorVision Online at 1 p.m. and will feature rookie righty Tommy Toledo (Tampa, Fla.) (3-0, 2.14) opposing Ole Miss sophomore left-hander Nathan Baker (1-2, 4.19). Toledo has worked at least five innings in each of his four starts and helped the Gators complete the sweep of the Tigers on Sunday afternoon by surrendering two hits and zero runs over a career-high six frames.

Rebs Back in the Pads

I will not report much on Spring Training, but thought I would pass along to those that do not know that spring practice has begun. From all accounts practice ran very smooth today and very different from the O regime. This will probably be the only copied report until the Spring Game.

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. -- The Ole Miss football team held its first practice of the Houston Nutt era Thursday, as the Rebels opened 2008 spring drills under sunny skies in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium/Hollingsworth Field. More than 300 fans were on hand for the practice.
Wearing helmets and shorts, the team worked out for two and a half hours, doing extensive skill position work.
“This was a fun day today. There is nothing like spring football," said Nutt. "They were good listeners. There’s a reason why the good Lord gave them two ears and one mouth, to listen twice as much as they talk. The guys listened. They hustled. They have a good attitude. We’ll see if we can come back tomorrow with a little soreness and have a very good second practice."
Nutt particularly praised the effort of the linemen on both sides of the ball.
“I was really proud of the defensive line. I thought they showed some quickness," he said. "I was proud of the offensive line, as much as we threw at them the first day with the run and pass mixture. Michael Oher, Reid Neely, Rishaw Johnson, Bradley Sowell and Maurice Miller are all doing well.

"Mike Wallace caught the ball well. Jason Cook is a great leader for us.”

The offense also had quarterback Jevan Snead under center, as he grasps the new playbook. Nutt said the sophomore signal-caller showed glimpses of greatness.

“I thought Jevan had some moments when he threw the ball very well," said Nutt. "Quarterbacks have the toughest job. We expect them to know what everybody else is doing. There was a stretch in practice where I thought he was very sharp. He got us in and out of the huddle and executed very well. We all have a long way to go. That’s what spring is for.”

Ole Miss continues spring drills Friday at 2:20 p.m. and will once again be in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Fans wishing to attend should enter through Gate 7 on the west side of the stadium.

The Rebels will work out Saturday at 8:30 a.m., when the team will be in full pads for the first time. Saturday's location will be determined at that time.

Rebs Defeat UALR

Fuller Smith belongs in the lineup on a daily basis in my opinion. I think he has earned a spot.I can think of an outfielder that might need to see a little time on the pine to allow Fuller to play. Can you?

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. – Fuller Smith continued to perform well at the plate, leading the Rebel offense with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate as No. 8 Ole Miss (14-6, 2-1 SEC) defeated UALR (4-13) by a score of 12-5 on Wednesday.

Smith also scored two runs and notched an RBI, while Cody Overbeck hit his sixth home run of the season. Jeremy Travis, who drew the start in right field, also came up big for the Rebels with a 2-for-3 performance with a walk and three RBI.

Jake Morgan (1-0) picked up the win as he worked 5.0 innings, allowing four runs – three earned – on seven hits with a walk and two strikeouts.

Adam Champion (1-2) took the loss for the Trojans as he allowed six runs on four hits with a walk and no strikeouts in 2.1 innings of work.

“It was a good night for us offensively. We did a good job and swung the bat well. Fuller Smith continues to swing a great bat and Matt Smith looked like he did a week ago. I thought we did a good job. We wanted Jake Morgan to give us some innings and he certainly did that.”

Rebs Advance in NIT

What in the world? Where did Rodney Jones come from? Interesting he played very few minutes all year and had a great performance tonight for the Rebs. Having to get going and motivated for an NIT has to be pretty hard for these guys, but they will live to play another day.

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) – Ole Miss reserve guard Rodney Jones had no expectations of playing a critical role in Wednesday’s 83-68 win over UC Santa Barbara in the opening round of the National Invitational Tournament.
Jones, who played only 20 minutes in the regular season, turned in 22 minutes of brilliant defense against Alex Harris, the Co-Player of the Year in the Big West Conference.
The unexpected defensive contribution pushed the Rebels (22-10) into the quarterfinals Monday against the Nebraska-Charlotte winner. The loss finished UCSB, making their first NIT appearance in five years, to 23-9.
Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy, without the services of starting guard Eniel Polynice, sidelined indefinitely with a knee injury, turned to Jones after the opening five minutes. By that time, the Gauchos had a 17-6 lead and Harris had connected on his first three shots from the field.
“My role is definitely defense and I tried to provide energy,” Jones said. “I just tried to lock down the guy I guarded.”
Harris finished with 20 points, but managed only 2-of-11 from the field against Jones and scored most of those points after the Rebels had built a double-digit lead in the final 15 minutes of play.
“Rodney Jones is a winner and he really brought something that our team really lacked, especially with Polynice out,” Kennedy said. “The game began to turn around for us and he had a lot to do with that.”

Another Pathetic Showing

This is getting to be a trend in mid week games for the Ole Miss baseball team, losing against very bad no name teams. Honestly, I know baseball is a long season and you do not win them all, but you do win mid week games against Central Arkansas. This is getting to be pathetic, way to much talent for this.

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. – Fuller Smith turned in a perfect night at the plate, going 4-for-4 with a run scored, but it wasn’t enough as the No. 8 Ole Miss (13-6, 2-1 SEC) didn’t take advantage of opportunities down the stretch in a 4-3 loss to Central Arkansas (8-11) on Tuesday.

Despite recording 10 hits on the night, the Rebels left 15 men stranded on the night in the loss.

Fuller Smith led the Rebels with his four hit performance, while Logan Power and Cody Overbeck also recorded two hits each.

Justin Cryer (1-2) suffered the loss as he gave up one run on two hits with three walks and two strikeouts in 1.0 inning of work. Cryer entered the game in the ninth and held the Bears off the board, but gave up the go-ahead run in the 10th.

Matt Humphrey (2-2) picked up the win as he worked the final 2.2 innings and allowed two hits with two walks and four strikeouts.

“It’s a disappointing loss,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “We had opportunities tonight and we didn’t take advantage of them. We didn’t get the hit when we needed it and we didn’t go out and win it on the mound.”

Bianco's Boys Claim Fifth Straight Over Polk

With the series win over M$U last weekend the Rebels won their fifth straight series win over the Dogs and have won 15 of the last 21 meetings between the two. The Rebels played a great two games on Friday and Saturday in which they racked up numerous hits. Sunday was a different story as it has been all season. The Rebs nearly went through a no hitter before two clutch hits in the bottom of the ninth. Not really sure what this teams problem is with Sunday but they have been their worst outings the past few weeks. The Rebs are looking pretty atop the West with a 2-1 recordm the only West team with a series win last week. It does not get any easier this weekend as Florida heads to town for a three game series.

Reb Golfers Win Tourney

It should be interesting to watch this team this Spring. Some say this team has a chance to make a hard run at the SEC Championship if they can pull it together, as they have the talent. Take note of the double eagle by Kyle Ellis below. That is very impressive.

(UMAA)
GREENSBORO, Ga. – The 26th-ranked Ole Miss men’s golf team, led by senior David Marino, held off No. 2 Georgia to capture the Linger-Longer Invitational at Reynolds Plantation Sunday. This marks the team’s fourth win of the year and first of the spring, after three straight victories to end the fall.

The Rebels raced out to a seven-shot lead on Friday with a season-low 277 and then maintained their lead Saturday with a 292. Sunday’s final round 287 left them with an 856 total, their lowest of the year and five better than No. 2 Georgia (861). Tennessee-Chattanooga finished third at 868, Georgia State took fourth with an 880, and Memphis rounded out the top five with an 881.

“This is the biggest win for our program in the last four years,” head coach Ernest Ross said. “All week we preached persistence, and it paid off. We played the back nine better than any other team again today. I am really excited for our players, to beat No. 2 Georgia and No. 14 Clemson, among others.”

Marino had his best 54-hole tournament finish as a Rebel, taking third with a 67-77—69—213. His first-round 67 was a career-low. In the final round, Marino eagled the par-4 13th hole.

Senatobia native Kyle Ellis carded a 72-71-72—215 to finish tied for sixth. His final round included three birdies and a double-eagle on the par-5 14th. He now has four top-10 finishes on the year and 14 for his career.

Houston Responds to Rebs in NIT

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. -­ Spring football drills at Ole Miss were scheduled to begin here Wednesday afternoon, but head coach Houston Nutt announced Monday that he is pushing back the start until Thursday since the University is hosting an opening round game of the National Invitation Tournament here Wednesday night.

“We want to do everything we can to show our support to Coach (Andy) Kennedy and the basketball program,” Nutt said. “Hosting the NIT on campus is important, and I know our fans and students will be there for this team.”

Kennedy’s Rebels (21-10) are a No. 2 seed and will host UC Santa Barbara (23-8) in opening round action Wednesday night at 7 in Tad Smith Coliseum. The game will be telecast on ESPNU. Tickets cost $15 for adults and $4 for students and may be purchaed online or by calling 662-915-7167.

Update

Yes I am still alive, have a few other things on my plate right now. Will try and still post off and on over the next several weeks but it will be scattered.

Ridiculous

Not Going As Planned

The Ole Miss baseball team's season is not going as planned, as the Rebels lost another mid week game. As they lost 8-5 to the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers tonight in Oxford. This team does not seem to be concentrating and giving full effort. I have seen more dropped fly balls and errors thus far this season than any I can remember in recent memory. Production at the plate seems to be down significantly when runners are in scoring position. They just can not seem to get runners home. All they are getting is infield hits that turn into outs. Very little production at plate.

SEC play starts this weekend as they open with the M$U Bulldogs. The Dog$ have struggled some this year also, so it should be interesting to see how the series goes.

All in all pretty disappointed with the play of the Rebs for the most part this year. But hey the season is early, so hopefully they will pull it together.

A Look Ahead

Well the SEC Tournament is finally upon us and the Rebels have some work to do. It is my belief that Ole Miss must win two games in the SEC Tournament to make it to the Big Dance. The Rebs will tip off in the late game tomorrow night against Georgia. The Rebels just played Georgia on Saturday and were able to beat the Bulldogs in Athens. The Rebs are a better team than Georgia, it is a matter of them executing the way they have over the past 3 or 4 games if they want to beat Georgia. I think the Rebels should beat the Dogs.

With that being said, they would move on to battle Kentucky on Firday. The Cats are always a vey difficult team to beat in the SEC Tournament and without looking at stats, I would say the Rebels have never beaten Kentucky in the tournament. There is a reason they call it Catlanta. The KY fans take over the town and the tournament. I don't see the Rebels getting passed Kentucky. Some of you will say they only won by a few points last game and they have a key player injured. I don't care. It is something about playing Kentucky in the tourney, they are extremely difficult to beat.

On that same note, the Rebels will not make it to the Big Dance, just not enough spots open this year. The Rebs will get a bid to the NIT, but who wants to play in that-nobody. All in all the Rebels, played terrible in easy games they should have one. They lost twice to Auburn and once to South Carolina at home a game they clearly gave away. In this league you have to come to play everyday and the Rebs did not do it.

Don't get me wrong, I will still watch every last second of the games the Rebels will play this weekend. I just dont think they can pull it out and win enough to get into the Big Dance.

Does anyone else disagree that Arkansas does not belong in the NCAA's? Everyone seems to be putting them in the tournament, but I just don't think they belong?

Thoughts of how the Rebs will perform this weekend?

Rebs Defeat Hilltoppers

The Rebels got back on track tonight as they defeated the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers 10-3 in front of a rowdy home crowd at OU Stadium tonight. Phillip Irwin got off to a rocky start and was relieved by Josh Morgan to finish things out for the Rebels on the mound. Brett Basham, who has been hit or miss this season from the plate, had a great outing tonight for the Rebels. The wonderful SID department at Ole Miss did not put up a postgame report after the game, so I do not have specifics of the game to post.


Also, tomorrow I will dive into the SEC Tournament and give my thoughts on how the Rebels must perform.

Where Are They Now?

So I am sitting here watching the UALR-Western Kentucky game and I recognize this large mass shooting free throws, but could not put a face with the game, and then turn to the almighty internet. Come to find out, that face I recognize is Mike Smith who was recruited to Ole Miss by Barnes and is only a sophomore at UALR. I was totally shocked to see that he was a Soph, as it seems like years ago he was at Ole Miss. His current body mass of 286 would not fit well into Kennedy's uptempo style.

But it aint over, as I continued to scan over the roster, I found another former Rebel in Brandon Patterson. Patterson played two years under the Barnes administration before transferring to UALR with Smith. Patterson is listed as a Junior on the roster and will be returning for one more year with the Trojans.

It appears that these two may have landed at UALR through Wes Flanigan, brother of former Ole Miss player Buck Flanigan. The elder Flanigan was a pretty decent player at Auburn in his day.

Who knows more former Rebels may appear as March Madness continues.

Baseball America Top 25

1. Arizona 10-1
2.Arizona State 12-0
3.North Carolina 10-2
4.Missouri 9-2
5.Mississippi 10-3
6.Vanderbilt 8-3
7.Miami 9-1
8.South Carolina 8-2
9.Long Beach State 9-2
10.Baylor 10-1
11.UCLA 7-4
12.California 9-1
13.UC Irvine 10-1
14.Florida State 12-0
15.Rice 8-5
16. Virginia 11-2
17. Kentucky 11-0
18. Stanford 8-4
19. Texas 9-4
20. Cal State Fullerton 8-4
21.San Diego 7-7
22.Oregon State 5-5
23.Oklahoma State 9-3
24.Wichita State 7-3
25.Michigan 5-5

Bittle Named Pitcher of the Week

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. – Following a week that saw him pick up a pair of saves, Ole Miss junior right-hander Scott Bittle was named Southeastern Conference Pitcher of the Week the league office announced on Monday.

Bittle made two appearances on the week, picking up saves against Southern Miss and TCU as he worked 6.0 innings combined in the two appearances. In his time on the mound, Bittle allowed only one hit and struck out nine batters while holding opponents to a .056 batting average. The junior faced only one batter above the minimum in his time on the mound as he faced 19 batters in 18 possible outs.

He also did not allow a run in his time on the mound.

Bittle and the Rebels will return to action on Tuesday when Ole Miss will play host to Western Kentucky in the first game of a two game set. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field.

Not a Good Week

The Ole Miss baseball team rounded out a not so good week, losing the final of a three game series on the road at TCU. I did not get to listen to much of the game, but understand it was another example where the Rebels left way to many runners on base and the inablity to score.

The loss in the series hurts a little. I really expected us to win 2 0f 3 on the road and win this series. SEC play begins this weekend, and it is a very big one as the Rebels head to $tarkville to take on PolksDogs. I have not followed the Bulldogs too much this season to know how their team is going to be and who will be the stars for them this season. I will say, I like the time of year we are playing the Dogs. I would rather play them early than late in the season this year.

More of that preview later this week. In the meantime the Rebels will take on the Hilltoppers of Western Kentucky in midweek action.

(UMAA Notes of TCU Game)
FORT WORTH, Texas – Cody Overbeck went 2-for-4 at the plate with an RBI on Sunday, but it wasn’t enough as No. 2 Ole Miss (10-3) couldn’t scratch out the run it needed in a 2-1 loss at TCU (7-5).

The Rebels, who had split a doubleheader with the Horned Frogs on Saturday, dropped the first series of the season with the loss.

Nathan Baker (1-1) suffered his first loss of the season as he worked 5.1 innings and allowed two runs on five hits with two walks and three strikeouts. Drew Pomeranz closed out the game, entering with a runner on third in the sixth who went on to score on an infield single.

Greg Holle (1-0) picked up the win as he worked 6.2 innings, allowing one run on six hits with four walks and five strikeouts.

“This is a tough park to get runs in, and when you get opportunities you have to make something happen,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “I thought our pitchers pitched well today, but we didn’t make things happen on the few offensive opportunities we had, and we have to learn to do that.”

Ole Miss left 11 runners on base for the game.

Rebs Get Huge Win On Road

The Ole Miss basketball Rebels are not ready to pack it in for the season just yet. As they picked up a win on the road today over the Georgia Bulldogs. While the Bulldogs are not a great team, it was a huge win for the Rebs. It gave them a road win, in an area they have struggled this year, and also gave them their 21st win of the season. This win will give the Rebels big momentum going into the SEC Tournament on Thursday as they will take on the Georgia Bulldogs once again.

The Rebels must win two in the SEC Tournament in order to get into the Big Dance. It will be a tough challenge for the Rebs, if and only if they are able to get by UGA, it appears they will take on Kentucky. Ole Miss never does well against Kentucky in the tournament and the Cats always dominate Atlanta no matter how good their team is. It is an uphill battle for the Rebs, but I like the way they have played lately.

(UMAA)
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) - Ole Miss took control with a 10-0 second-half run and moved closer to its first NCAA tournament bid since 2002 by beating Georgia 76-62 on Saturday for its first road conference victory of the season.
Ole Miss (21-9 overall, 7-9 Southeastern Conference) was 0-7 in road conference games before beating the Bulldogs.
Georgia (13-16, 4-12) finished sixth in the SEC East. Each team will play in Thursday night's opening round of the SEC tournament in Atlanta.
Chris Warren and Dwayne Curtis each scored 15 points to lead five Ole Miss scorers in double figures. Kenny Williams added 14 despite sitting out most of the second half with four fouls. Jeremy Parnell, who played behind Williams, added 13 points, including 11 in the second half and David Huertas had 10.
Terrance Woodbury led Georgia with 18 points. Billy Humphrey had 14 and senior Sundiatta Gaines added 13 despite making only 5 of 21 shots in his final home game.
Georgia made 5 of 15 3-pointers to remain close in the first half, but Warren had two 3s late in the half for Ole Miss, which led 35-32 at the break.
Georgia took a 48-41 lead with a 16-6 run to open the second half.
Williams scored back-to-back baskets for Ole Miss before picking up two fouls in a span of 20 seconds, forcing the senior out of the game with four fouls with 13:39 left to play.
The loss of Williams only seemed to inspire the Rebels, who made six straight free throws to start a 10-0 run for a 51-48 lead. The Rebels kept the lead the rest of the game.
Even with Williams watching from the bench, Ole Miss continued to control the inside game.
Georgia sophomore center Albert Jackson, coming off his career-best 16 points in a win at Auburn on Wednesday, had only two points as the Bulldogs leaned on their outside shooters. Woodbury and Humphrey each made four 3-pointers.
An inside basket by Curtis gave Ole Miss a 65-54 lead with 3:50 left.

Rebels Take First of Two

(UMAA)
FORT WORTH, Texas - Lance Lynn and Scott Bittle combined to strike out nine and held TCU to a single run on five hits as No. 2 Ole MIss (10-1) took the first game of a doubleheader from TCU (5-5) by a score of 3-1 on Saturday. The second game is currently underway at Lupton Field on the campus of Texas Christian Univeristy.
Logan Power was 3-for-4 at the plate with an RBI and a run scored to help lead the Rebel offense which again net double-digit hits in the win.

Indians....Always Causing Trouble

Well the Rebels suffered their first loss of the baseball season this year, as the Indians from Arkansas State defeated the Rebels 7-5. The Indians scored early and never looked back for most of the game. Ole Miss played pretty lethargic all night and committed four errors on the night, pretty uncharacteristic of this team.

Arkansas State seems to always beat or give the Rebels trouble in baseball. I think we lose to these guys at least once a year. I hate it happened this early in the year, I was hoping to go into TCU undefeated, but oh well. Its baseball and you do not win them all. No excuse to lose this game, but games like this are going to happen. Shortening the season the way the NCAA did, makes mid week games more difficult. It gives the team very little time off and causes lots of concentration to show up to play every night. Those teams that can separate themselves and show up every night focused and ready are going to be able to handle this short season.

It's early, they played bad, let's don't get hung up on this, time to move on.

Rebs Win Last One at Home

Well Dwayne Curtis showed up tonight for the Rebels and played very well down low as he led the Rebels to one last win at Tad Smith Coliseum. The Rebs beat the Hogs of Arkansas in a game in which they led most of the game.

Of course as is Ole Miss luck the first half of the game was not on ESPN as there was a delay in the Ohio State game and the game ran into overtime. But as I said that is how Ole Miss's luck goes.

Well they will finish the season on the road at Georgia. UGA is not a very good team, but it is senior day and you never know what will happen on that day. As Kennedy said in the post game, he is asking the Rebs to take their show on the road and play well in just one other state besides Mississippi, which is the state of Georgia. It is still a very long shot but wins in Athens and a couple in Atlanta will catch the committee's eyes.

A classic line of Kennedy in the post game, when Kellum asks if they would let him take the rims or padding of the Tad Pad with him to Georgia, he laughed and responded : "I don't know if they will let us take the rims, but maybe they will let us take some of the asbestos with us"

(UMAA Quick Note)
OXFORD, Miss. - Dwayne Curtis scored 23 points with 11 rebounds and Ole Miss secured its 20th win of the season with an 81-72 victory over Arkansas on Rebel senior day and the final home game of the 2008 regular season Tuesday night at Tad Smith Coliseum.
The Rebels improved to 20-9 on the year and helped their chances of advancing to their first NCAA Tournament since 2002.

Rebs Beat Golden Buzzards

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. – Once again, the Rebels used a big inning to get a lead as they scored four runs in the fourth inning to build a lead and then the pitching staff held on down the stretch as No. 2 Ole Miss (9-0) defeated Southern Miss (6-3) by a score of 8-5 on Tuesday.

Evan Button paced the Rebels with a 3-for-3 performance, including a solo home run in the sixth inning. Michael Hubbard and Brett Basham also had solid days at the plate as Hubbard went 2-for-4 with four RBI and Basham was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI.

Rory McKean (1-0) picked up the win in his first collegiate start as he allowed two runs on five hits with four strikeouts and one walk. Scott Bittle picked up the first save of the season for the Rebels as he entered the game with the tying run at the plate and no outs in the eighth inning. The junior pitched 2.0 scoreless and hitless innings with four strikeouts to preserve the win for the Rebels.

Todd McInnis (2-1) suffered the loss for the Golden Eagles as he allowed six runs on eight hits with two walks and four strikeouts in 3.2 innings of work.

Rebs Set to Take on Hogs

In what will be the last regular season home game of the 2007-2008 season, the Rebels are set to take on the Arkansas Razorbacks on prime time tv at the Tad Smith. This will be the last game for seniors Dwayne Curtis, Kenny Williams, Jermey Parnell and Brian Smith. None of the above are superstars but two will be missed next year. I feel like Curtis and Williams would probably not start for other SEC schools, but they fit in well with the system Andy Kennedy brought to Ole Miss. Some of the plays Curtis and Williams make down low amaze me in how they play out. Some of their plays have without a doubt been some of the ugliest attempts at layups you will ever see, but I can say we will miss these guys next year, as our post players will be lacking.

As far as the game on Tuesday. I truly expect the Rebels to win. I think they will come together for this last home game and rally to win. I expect the Rebels to win this game, to raise just enough talk about an NCAA Tourney bid to in return lose on the road at UGA on Saturday.

The crowd more than likely will be small and embarrassing on national tv, but that is what the current state of Ole Miss basketball is. Several bad games in which little effort was given and poor shooting performances have led to lack of interest in the current program.

(UMAA Notes)
REBELS FACE HOGS IN HOME FINALE Ole Miss makes its final appearance of the regular season in Tad Smith Coliseum and will honor its four seniors Tuesday night in a nationally televised contest against Arkansas on ESPN. Dwayne Curtis, Jermey Parnell, Brian Smith and Kenny Williams will be recognized for their careers in the Red and Blue in a pregame ceremony. Meanwhile, Ole Miss is in a dogfight for SEC Tournament positioning and is trying to maintain its chance for an NCAA Tournament bid. After Saturday’s 91-88 win over Alabama, the Rebels are 19-9 overall and sit in third place in the SEC West with a 5-9 league record. Ole Miss finishes the regular season Saturday at Georgia. If the season ended today, Ole Miss would be the No. 3 seed in the SEC Tourney and actually face UGA in the first round.

NCAA TOURNEY-WORTHY A school-record 13-0 start and 13 consecutive victories, a 4-3 record against teams currently ranked in the RPI top 50 and a 2-1 record against top-25 teams are all accomplishments that could help Ole Miss earn its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2002. The Rebels’ record of 19-9 is the best mark through 28 games since that ‘02 team was also 19-9. Second-year Rebel mentor Andy Kennedy has pumped life into the Rebel team and fan base. Ole Miss places among the top 20 teams in the nation in scoring and top 10 in rebounding, putting up 79.0 points per game and pulling down 40.8 boards per contest. The Rebels were ranked among the nation’s top 25 for six straight weeks during December and January. They boast a 13-2 record at Tad Smith Coliseum, where they are averaging record crowds, and have gone 5-0 in neutral-site contests. In non-league action, Ole Miss went a perfect 14-0, including quality wins over No. 15 Clemson, South Alabama and New Mexico. Those three teams have a combined 65-19 record entering the week. The Rebels racked up an umblemished non-league record for the first time since 1948-49 and just the second time ever.

SCOUTING THE RAZORBACKS After getting through the first half of conference play with six wins and two losses, Arkansas is 2-4 in its last six league games and sits in second place in the SEC West with an 8-6 league mark. The Razorbacks own a 19-9 overall record. They are 6-1 at home in league play and 2-5 on the road in the SEC. They have dropped their last four road games, including their most recent two at Kentucky and Alabama by a combined eight points. Arkansas is led offensively by senior wing man Sonny Weems with 15.6 ppg. He has stepped up in SEC play for 18.9 ppg, which ranks third among league players. Sophomore Patrick Beverley adds 11.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, with 10.4 ppg and 8.7 rpg in SEC contests. As a team, the Hogs give up the third-fewest ppg in the league at 65.5 and allow just 68.4 ppg in conference play.

Smith Named SEC Freshman of the Week

OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss first baseman Matt Smith has been named Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week, the league office announced on Monday.

Smith, who returned to the lineup Friday night against Indiana State after spending a week rehabbing from an injury suffered on opening day, had an outstanding weekend at the plate. The first baseman hit .692 with three home runs, four runs scored and a 1.462 slugging percentage. He also tallied six RBI on the weekend.

Smith exploded on Sunday as he was critical to the success of the Rebels in a 6-5, 11-inning win over the Sycamores. He went 5-for-6 at the plate with two home runs, including the game-winning walk-off home run in the 11th to seal the win for Ole Miss. Smith also hit a two-RBI single in the ninth inning with two outs to tie the game at five and send the contest into extra-innings.

In Saturday’s game, Smith entered the game as a defensive sub and went 2-for-2 with a home run in the Rebels’ 11-4 win over the Sycamores

Rebs Move to 8-0

I didnt get home until late, but here is the snapshot from the game this afternoon as the Rebels pulled out a win over Indiana State to move to 8-0 on the season. Matt Smith, who became injured last weekend trying to pitch, recovered nicely and delivered the walk off homer for the Rebs today.

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. – Late game heroics were the name of the game on Sunday as freshman Matt Smith’s two-RBI single in the ninth sent things into extra-innings before his walk-off home run in the 11th gave No. 2 Ole Miss (8-0) a 6-5 win over Indiana State and a series sweep. With the game tied at five and one out on the board in the 11th inning, Matt Smith took the first pitch he saw and sent it over the left field fence and into the fans on the terrace to give the Rebels the win.

Smith paced the Rebels on the afternoon, going 5-for-6 at the plate with two home runs, two runs scored and four RBI.

Justin Cryer (1-0) picked up the win in relief for the Rebels as he worked the final 1.2 innings, holding the Sycamores scoreless as he allowed two hits, walked one and struck out one.

Brendon Smith (0-1) suffered the loss for the Sycamores as worked the final 1.1 innings for Indiana State, allowing three hits and one run with one walk and a strikeout.

“It’s nice to have Matt Smith still available,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “The bullpen was a key for us tonight. Drew Pomeranz and Scott Bittle were unhittable and Justin Cryer did a really good job of closing things out for us.”