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LOCATION: Oxford, MS
CONFERENCE: Southeastern (Western Division)
LAST SEASON: 20-13 (.606)
CONFERENCE RECORD: 8-8 (3rd)
STARTERS LOST/RETURNING: 3/2
NICKNAME: Rebels
COLORS: Cardinal Red & Navy Blue
HOMECOURT: Tad Smith Coliseum (8,135)
COACH: Rod Barnes (Mississippi '88)
record at school 20-13 (1 year)
career record 20-13 (1 year)
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ASSISTANTS: Mark Dukes (Mississippi College '77)
Eric Bozeman (Arkansas Tech '81)
Wayne Brent (Northeast Louisiana '89)
TEAM WINS: (last 5 years) 8-12-20-22-20
RPI (last 5 years) 184-141-48-16-46
1998-99 FINISH: Lost in NCAA second round.
ESPN.com Clubhouse
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Rod Barnes' debut season at Mississippi went about as well as anyone could have expected. Barnes was in a tough spot, to be sure, having to take over for former boss Rob Evans, who had resurrected the program before leaving for Arizona State. When Evans left, the job fell to Barnes, the former Ole Miss guard who had never been a head coach, at any level. Could he handle the job in a highly competitive league filled with veteran coaches? Yes, he could. And Barnes was more than just a caretaker looking after Barnes' handiwork. He became the first coach in school history to win 20 games in his rookie season, keeping the program's 20-win season streak alive at three years. At Ole Miss, that's no small accomplishment. Just as impressive, Barnes led the Rebels to a victory over Villanova in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. That was the first NCAA win in school history. And Ole Miss was a tough out before falling to eventual Final Four participant Michigan State in the second round. Now comes the hard part. The guts of the rebuilding program begun by Evans and continued by Barnes is gone. More specifically, that means, for the first time in four years, Ole Miss will be without its starting backcourt of Keith Carter (16.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 66 assists, 49 steals) and Michael White (5.2 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 97 assists, 31 steals). Also gone is valuable small forward Jason Smith (12.9 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 93 assists, 73 steals).
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Blue Ribbon Analysis |
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BACKCOURT C+ BENCH/DEPTH C
FRONTCOURT B INTANGIBLES C+
How will Mississippi fare without starting guards Keith Carter and Michael White and valuable forward Jason Smith? Just fine, second-year coach Rod Barnes thinks. "We're gonna miss those guys," Barnes said. "Especially their experience and leadership. But that's part of basketball. You've got to reload. That's what we'll try to do this season." Barnes has several players to interchange at the guard spots, including point guards Jason Flanigan and Jason Harrison and newcomer Jason Holmes, a junior-college transfer. Up front, Ole Miss is solid with Marcus Hicks, a potential All-SEC player, and Rahim Lockhart. Finding depth behind those two is one of Barnes' most pressing tasks. The SEC's Western Division is a tough call. Everybody's pick to win the division will be Auburn. After that, the final five places could almost be considered a tossup. But with Alabama improved and Arkansas still solid, the final three spots in the standings will be a fight between Mississippi, Mississippi State and LSU. |
What will Barnes do without all that firepower and leadership? Carry on, of course. "We are going to build on the success that we already have in the program," Barnes said. "We consider this season a building process. We don't see it as rebuilding, because nothing has been torn down. We feel like we're continuing to build on a solid foundation." Barnes may not have two guards as talented as Carter and White on his roster, but he has depth at both positions. The combination of 6-1 junior Jason Flanigan (4.8 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 78 assists, 33 steals) and 5-4 sophomore Jason Harrison (6.3 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 86 assists, 39 steals) should offset the loss of the steady White at point guard. The two have more in common than their first names. Both are from Little Rock, Ark. Flanigan played some at shooting guard last season, but he's a natural point. His shooting (.351 percent from the field, a woeful .184 from three-point range) could definitely use some work, but his defense is solid. Flanigan usually guards the opposing team's highest-scoring guard. "Last season, we had to find time for Jason because he's such a solid defensive player," said Barnes in explaining Flanigan's brief move to shooting guard. "By moving him back to the point, we hope to extend our defensive pressure." Ole Miss opponents will get no relief when Harrison is in the game. He managed more steals than Flanigan in four minutes per game less playing time. Harrison was also surprisingly efficient as a scorer. He shot .389 percent (35 of 90) from three-point range and a team-high .793 percent from the free-throw line. Those are excellent numbers for a point guard, especially from one who isn't typically going to score by posting up anyone or driving into the lane against gigantic post players. Harrison had some impressive games, scoring 12 points, passing for five assists and getting two steals in the NCAA victory over Villanova and scoring a career-high 22 points against homestate school Arkansas. "Jason had a great freshman year, and we're looking for more out of him," Barnes said. "He played a lot of quality minutes last season as a freshman. He has been through the SEC wars once, and now he knows what to expect. Jason has a chance to be a very good player in this league." At shooting guard, Ole Miss will look for junior college transfer Jason Holmes to have the same sort of impact in his first season as 6-6 senior forward Marcus Hicks did a year ago. Hicks claimed the starting power forward job after transferring from Northwest (Miss.) Community College, and Barnes is hopeful Holmes, a 6-5 junior from Southwest (Miss.) CC, can lay claim in similar fashion to the shooting guard job. Orginally from Tylertown, Miss., Hicks played his final season of high school basketball at Dunbar in Chicago. He averaged 24.2 points there before transferring to Southwest. Last season, Holmes averaged 17.9 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists at Southwest. Imagine the confusion if Holmes, Harrison and Flanigan are in the game together in an All Jason All the Time backcourt. Barnes is going to have to issue numbers. "Jason's really got to come through for us," Barnes said. "He's got experience and good size for a guard. He really shoots it well. Hopefully, he can give us some scoring punch." Sophomore Darrian Brown (4.1 ppg, 2.0 rpg), 6-6, has a chance to push Holmes for minutes. He played in 29 games last year. Barnes insists Brown is a better shooter than his percentages (.328 from the field, .219 from three-point range) would suggest. Barnes has three newcomers to toss into the mix at guard. Syniker Taylor is a 6-0 sophomore who plays football for Ole Miss. He was supposed to join the basketball team last January, but he suffered a season-ending ankle injury in the Rebels' eighth football game of the season. Taylor, a defensive back, had 39 tackles and three pass breakups before he was injured, but his best sport might be basketball. He was ranked the No. 97 prospect and the No. 14 point guard in the country by ESPN in 1997. Taylor might have been ranked even higher had he not missed the last 19 games of his senior year at Gulfport (Miss.) High School after breaking his right leg while trying to dunk. He averaged 27.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 3.1 steals before he was injured. Two freshman don't figure to earn much playing time: Emmanuel Wade, 6-3, who averaged 28.2 points, 10.1 rebounds and 5.4 assists last year at Lee High School in Marianna, Ark.; and 6-5 Aaron Harper, a first-team All-State pick who averaged 20.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.5 steals at Provine High School in Jackson, Miss. The anchor of this team will be Hicks (11.7 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 35 assists), who at 200 pounds would appear to be undersized for a power forward. Hicks makes up for his lack of bulk with quickness, long arms and leaping ability. Witness his team-leading .638 percent shooting and 46 blocked shots (fifth in the SEC). Hicks was also the Rebels' second-leading rebounder and third-leading scorer. Hicks had several big individual games, but his finest hour was in the NCAA Tournament, when he gave a glimpse of what life would be like without Carter, White and Smith. Hicks shot 75 percent (15 of 20) in the two games, scoring 21 points against Villanova and 16 (along with seven boards and three blocked shots) against Michigan State. "He's our marquee player," Barnes said. "We're going to depend on him to do a lot of things for us. He has to have a good season for us to do well." Hicks will probably be joined in the frontcourt by 6-8 junior Rahim Lockhart (7.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 25 assists, 34 steals, 25 blocked shots), who progressed markedly in his sophomore season after starting eight times and playing 18 minutes per game. The 240-pound Lockhart is a bull in the paint. He put together some encouraging efforts last season with career highs of 21 points against Alabama and 12 rebounds against Mississippi State and Tennessee. Lockhart shot .581 percent from the field and was third on the team in blocks. "Rahim will be one of the keys to our team," Barnes said. "If he plays well and is consistent, he has the chance to be an impact player in this league." Two other veterans return in the frontcourt: 6-7 senior Lataryl Williams (3.1 ppg, 1.5 rpg) and 7-0 sophomore John Engstrom (1.0 ppg, 1.8 rpg). Williams wasn't a huge factor last season because he missed nearly three weeks of practice after getting hurt in preseason conditioning, but Barnes is counting on him now. He's an athletic player who gained size and strength with some diligent offseason weight room work. Engstrom, too, is nursing an injury after undergoing knee surgery for a second time last spring. He played in just 10 games a year ago. Engstrom's uncertain health makes it imperative that 6-11 freshman John Gunn is ready to play. Gunn won't have to trek far from home to begin his college career he's from Oxford (Miss.) High School, which he led to a runnerup finish in the Mississippi Class 4A tournament last season. He averaged 13.4 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.2 blocks as a senior. "He's got to give us some depth in the post," Barnes said. Two other freshman frontcourt players won't have to play as much as Gunn, though 6-6 Josh Hayes could help in spots. He's a good shooter who averaged 16.5 points and 5.6 rebounds at Parkview High School in Little Rock. Barnes raided Arkansas for yet another player in 6-8 Richard Kirklin, who averaged 15.3 points, 10.2 rebounds and 3.3 blocked shots last season for Watson Chapel High School in Pine Bluff.
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