Ole Miss basketball coach Kermit Davis tests positive for COVID-19

Published 2:50 pm Tuesday, November 17, 2020

Kermit Davis may be absent from the sidelines when the Ole Miss men’s basketball team opens the season next week.

The school announced on Tuesday the Rebels’ head coach tested positive for COVID-19. The positive test was determined on Tuesday after the team went through their regular Monday protocols. Davis retested on Tuesday, and the confirmation results are still pending.

The rest of the team is currently going through contact tracing, and those found to be within close contact will go into quarantine, per medical guidelines. As of Tuesday afternoon, a school spokesman said they had enough players to play next week’s Justin Reed Classic, but contact tracing could change their status.

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If Davis’s confirmation test comes back positive, he will remain in isolation at his home and miss the first two games of the season. Assistant coach Ronnie Hamilton will take over as the program’s interim head coach during Davis’s absence. Davis will still be able to observe practices and communicate with the team virtually, according to the school’s statement.

Ole Miss announced the tipoff times for their three games in the Justin Reed Classic earlier on Tuesday. The Rebels will open the season against Central Arkansas at 1 p.m. CT on Nov. 25. Their Thanksgiving Day game against Jackson State will tip off at 1 p.m. CT and be broadcast on the SEC Network. The Rebels’ Nov. 27 game against Arkansas State will tipoff at 7 p.m. CT and also air on the SEC Network.

This is a developing story and the EAGLE will have more information when available.