It’s Ole Miss vs. Memphis today in basketball from The Pavilion.

This will be an important game for both teams in their quest for the NCAA Tournament, since quality non-conference wins are crucial in that endeavor.

Ole Miss was off to a strong start this season before it hosted and lost to Middle Tennessee State earlier in the week. MTSU advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament last season and is arguably as strong or stronger this season but still it was an Ole Miss home game and the Rebels trailed by 29 at the half.

Today, a solid Memphis team comes to Oxford hoping to take home a win just at the Blue Raiders did.

Ole Miss (5-2, 0-0 SEC) vs. Memphis (6-1, 0-0 AAC)
Date: Today, Saturday, Dec. 3, 2016
Time: 12:00 p.m. central time
Location: Oxford, Miss.
Arena: The Pavilion at Ole Miss (9,051)
Television: SEC Network Plus
Richard Cross, play-by-play
Gerald Glass, analyst
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
David Kellum, play-by-play
Keith Carter, analyst
Live Audio: OleMissSports.com
Live Video: WatchESPN.com
Series: Memphis leads 27-13
In Oxford: OM leads 8-6
Streak: OM, W2
Last Meeting: OM, W 85-79 (12/18/15)

TIP OFF

• Ole Miss hosts Memphis Saturday as the Rebels conclude a three-game homestand this weekend. Ole Miss has won two in-a-row over the Tigers including a 85-79 victory in Memphis last season.
• Head coach Andy Kennedy is 2-1 in his career versus Memphis at Ole Miss.
• Head coach Andy Kennedy ranks 20th on the SEC career coaching victories list with 217 wins. He is two wins shy of tying Rick Pitino for 19th on the list.
• Last season, head coach Andy Kennedy moved past MSU’s Rick Stansbury for the fourth-most wins by a head coach in their first 10 years after taking over an SEC program. Kennedy trails only Joe B. Hall, of Kentucky, (227), Billy Donovan, of Florida, (226) and Wimp Sanderson, of Alabama, (216) in SEC history.
• Junior G Deandre Burnett leads the SEC and ranks 29th nationally in scoring averaging 22.0 ppg this season. He scored a career-high 41 points in the Rebels’ win over Oral Roberts in the Virgin Islands, which is the second most in the nation this year and was a Paradise Jam tournament record. His nine 3-pointers in the game is the second most in school history, one shy of Marshall Henderson’s school record.
• Senior F Sebastian Saiz recorded his 11th career double-double a career-high 26 points and a 12 boards in Ole Miss’ win over Saint Joseph’s. Saiz also posted a double-double in the Rebels’ win over UMass with 22 points and a career-best 19 rebounds. His 19 rebounds was the most by a Rebel since Murphy Holloway pulled down 20 in 2010 and is the most in the SEC this season. Saiz is averaging 12.2 rebounds a game over the last six games and is the only player in the SEC this season averaging a double-double.
• Senior F Sebastian Saiz is the second-leading returning rebounder in the SEC from last season and is the league’s active career leader with 675 rebounds. He also ranks third in the league among active players with 12 career double-doubles and leads the league this season pulling down 10.9 boards a game.
• The Rebels rank third in the SEC this season pulling down 14.4 offensive rebounds a game.