Basketball

Everything Ole Miss Coach Chris Beard Said After Loss to Alabama

Published

9 months ago

February 12, 2026

Ole Miss Men's Basketball during the game against Mississippi St. at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, Mississippi on January 17, 2026. | Ole Miss Athletics

Following Ole Miss’s loss to Alabama, Chris Beard spoke at length about a night that extended beyond the final score, addressing a pregame social justice initiative, Alabama’s second-half surge, and where his team stands moving forward.

Here’s everything Beard said.

Opening Statement…

Tonight we participated in a program, an awareness group that I’m proud to be a part of. It’s the Racism with Angela and the College Insiders, bringing out awareness and educating people on Coach McClendon, one of the best coaches that ever coached college basketball at North Carolina Central.

This game was no secret and if you guys haven’t heard about that, but I recommend that you look into it. It’s one of the great stories in the history of college basketball where basketball made a difference in the world. And so we still live in this world today with a lot of social injustice and racism. I think one part of it is just continuing to talk about it and put it out there front and center. And so we were proud to be a part of tonight and I appreciate Angela and their group, they created this shoe. I know Coach (Kelvin) Sampson at Houston the other night, his team represented this group and we did tonight, so we did it proudly. This game’s no secret, Coach McClendon again bringing awareness to a great cause.

In terms of the basketball game, I should congratulate Alabama on a road win in the SEC. Obviously on a night where they make 17 threes, they’re going to be a tough out for anybody. First half I thought our guys did a lot of really good things. One possession game at halftime, it was a ten-point game about seven minutes left. It kind of ballooned on us late. I don’t think the final score is really indicative of what happened in the game tonight. Really tough to guard, their ability to shoot the three and kind of spread us out. Our defense not only didn’t do a good job defending the three tonight, we just couldn’t force turnovers as well. You got to do one or the other. You got to sit back and really try to guard their actions and their personnel or you got to try to create some turnovers. Alabama took care of the ball tonight at kind of a season best rate. And again, when you hit 17 threes it’s going to be hard to win on the other end. I thought we had a couple of good performances. Obviously AJ played aggressive tonight, scored the ball at a high rate. His foul trouble in the first half kind of impacted us. I’ve never been a guy to sit guys with foul trouble in the first half. Just each game is kind of a decision. I thought as long as we could hold the lead, then we’d try to get AJ back in there in the first half. It really set it up for what I was hoping would be a really good game in the second half. Looking back probably should have stuck with AJ in the first half and maybe try to have a lead at halftime. I thought (Eduardo) Klaffke played another just kind of physical game, rebounded the ball, played a lot of courage. Got some different moments from other players, but nobody else more consistent to beat a team like Alabama.

On writing a letter to Charles Bediako, who played five games with Alabama before a judge ruled him ineligible…

It’s a personal deal. I think I was just thinking about Charles, the human being. I don’t know him. I’ve seen him play a lot of basketball, he’s a good player. I have no dog in a fight in terms of the whole situation, but I do know there’s a human being involved in watching some of the stuff that was going on at the games and things. I think as human beings, we can encourage other people. It doesn’t always have to be somebody that you know. And so, yeah, it was just a personal thing. But I was just writing Charles the human being a letter to let him know that a lot of people out there pulling for him in his next basketball step.

On leading in points in the paint and bench points…

Well, the points in the paint, you know, when the opponent makes 17 threes, that’s going to be a hard one to find a positive in that. We had some good contributions tonight (off the bench). Obviously, A.J. being unselfish and trying to do whatever he can, whatever we ask of him. So, when A.J. Storr comes off your bench, you’re going to have some bench production. But I do think we did have some possessions with each player making a positive impact on our team. We just didn’t have enough consistent performance.

On what’s not translating between practices and games…

One thing I would say is just recognize the opponent. Again, it’s a one possession game at halftime. We’re without Kezza (Giffa) tonight, one of our best players, especially in a game like tonight where we need the ball handling out there. I thought Kezza played maybe his best game at Ole Miss last time out on the road at Texas. That didn’t help us any.

I think this team continues to fight. I don’t think the final score is indicative of what went on out there for the first 35, 36 minutes of the game. I still have a lot of belief in our players. I appreciate how they’ve approached the tough times we’ve gone through so far this season. And just looking forward to getting back on the practice floor with these guys tomorrow and trying to create a great game plan to have some success in our next game.

Status of Kezza Giffa…

Kezza got popped in the (Texas) game. I think it was a play where he might have ran into the goal. He played the rest of the game just through adrenaline and stuff and then just has a problem with his leg. Nothing serious where it’s going to impact his career. I’m hopeful he’ll be back with us this season. But I would say kind of week-by-week at this point. I don’t anticipate him playing Saturday. But I do think he’ll rejoin the team at some point.

On Alabama’s improvement on three-pointers in the second half…

I think from my neck and eye, you’d have to give us some credit for their three-point percentage in the first half because I thought we were rotating. We were flying around. In the second half, I did not see the closeouts and the rotations. Give them credit. From my vantage point, their halftime adjustment was they were driving to pass and we got caught in between when to help and when to stay on the shooters. We tried to counter that with a couple adjustments and things just didn’t go our way. But give Alabama a lot of credit. It’s a good game plan tonight. And again, when they hit 17 threes and have a low-turnover game, they’re going to be a tough out.

On Malik Dia’s limited playing time…

Just need more consistency from Malik. Tonight, Alabama went small. They only had one big on the floor. As a matter of fact, for some of the game, they had no bigs on the floor. Augusto (Cassia) continues to be deserving of an opportunity. Corey (Chest) did a couple good things when he was in there. James (Scott) played hard tonight. So, it’s basically, you know, trying to play four players in one position. So, it’s a coaching decision.

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Basketball

Ole Miss Basketball Appears in First Look at Expanded NCAA Tournament Field

Published

6 months ago

May 8, 2026

Taylor Hodges

Most college sports fans saw Thursday’s news that the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments are expanding to 76 teams. Eight additional teams will be added to what is currently the First Four, turning it into a 24‑team play‑in stage with 12 games across two days. The winners will join the 52 teams already slotted into the traditional first‑round bracket.

We already talked about what expansion means for both Ole Miss programs, and it’s still way too early to know which teams will actually benefit next season. But you know that won’t stop anyone from trying.

NCAA.com analyst Andy Katz posted his first 76‑team projection Friday morning, based on his initial Power 44 rankings for 2026‑27. Katz or his model must really like what Ole Miss has done this offseason. The Rebels show up at No. 39 in the Power 44 and land as a No. 10 seed in the South quadrant.

🚨 FIRST 76-TEAM BRACKET PREDICTION 🚨@TheAndyKatz makes his first bracket prediction for the 2027 tournament, complete with matchup projections for the new Opening Round 🔮 pic.twitter.com/hNeK8q7QDe

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) May 8, 2026

Again, it’s early. The last season ended a month ago. Ole Miss shouldn’t start booking hotel rooms in Pittsburgh just yet.

Still, this tells us two things about Ole Miss and the new tournament format.

First, it’s going to be hard for a middle‑of‑the‑pack SEC team to miss the field now. Second, if the bracket had been at 76 teams this past season, the committee would’ve had a real decision to make about the Rebels.

Maybe they get in. Maybe they don’t. Did they deserve a spot? Probably not, and adding eight more at‑large bids doesn’t change that much.

But the future looks better now for Ole Miss.

Full seed list from @TheAndyKatz ✍️ pic.twitter.com/fN4jvq9w83

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) May 8, 2026

Andy Katz’s Initial Power 44

1. Duke

2. Florida

3. Michigan

4. Illinois

5. Tennessee

6. UConn

7. Arizona

8. Arkansas

9. Texas

10. Michigan State

11. Vanderbilt

12. Virginia

13. Kansas

14. Houston

15. Louisville

16. Alabama

17. Nebraska

18. Iowa State

19. Purdue

20. USC

21. Gonzaga

22. St. John’s

23. Miami (FL)

24. Indiana

25. Missouri

26. VCU

27. Saint Louis

28. UCLA

29. Ohio State

30. BYU

31. Iowa

32. Texas A&M

33. North Carolina

34. Providence

35. Baylor

36. Wisconsin

37. Auburn

38. Xavier

39. Ole Miss

40. Marquette

41. Texas Tech

42. Kentucky

43. Maryland

44. New Mexico

Basketball

What NCAA Tournament Expansion Means for Ole Miss Basketball

Published

6 months ago

May 7, 2026

Taylor Hodges

Ole Miss basketball players celebrate a SEC Tournament win against Alabama on Friday night. | Ole Miss Athletics

Missing the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments is about to get a lot harder.

Multiple outlets reported and the NCAA itself announced Thursday that the committees overseeing both tournaments have officially voted to expand the fields to 76 teams.

None of this should catch anyone off guard. The NCAA started exploring expansion about a year ago, and reports two weeks ago made it clear the process was in its final stages. Now it’s done. The new format will debut in 2027.

The NCAA Tournament will officially expand to 76 teams starting in 2027.

👉 https://t.co/g81aEaAjqU pic.twitter.com/Sd6uLF7Mcc

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) May 7, 2026

According to ESPN, top NCAA officials met with the tournament’s media partners to finalize the updated contracts before the vote. The committees required signed agreements before making anything official, and once those were in place, expansion moved forward.

The biggest change comes at the front end of the tournament. Eight additional teams will be added to what is currently the First Four. That round will grow into a 24‑team play‑in stage with 12 games spread across two days. The winners will join the 52 teams already slotted into the traditional first‑round bracket.

A look at the new bracket 👀 pic.twitter.com/esm18WdUSJ

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) May 7, 2026

The NCAA is expected to rebrand the First Four language, but the structure stays familiar. The opening round will still include both automatic qualifiers and at‑large teams. All 16 seeds and half of the 15 seeds will make up half of the 24‑team group. The other half will come from the lowest‑seeded at‑large teams, including a mix of 11 and 12 seeds.

It’s a significant shift, but the goal is simple: more teams, more access, and fewer seasons ending on Selection Sunday with nothing to show for it.

What This Means for Ole Miss

On the women’s side, this doesn’t move the needle much. Yolett McPhee‑McCuin has raised the bar to the point where simply making the tournament isn’t the goal anymore.

Ole Miss wants to host a NCAA Regional for the first time in program history, and that standard doesn’t change with a bigger field.

The men’s side is a little different. It depends on the year. Two seasons ago, expansion wouldn’t have mattered. This past season, it would’ve changed everything.

Ole Miss finished 15-20 and sat at No. 80 in the NET. In a 76‑team bracket, that puts you on the bubble, and one more win in the SEC Tournament probably gets the Rebels into the field.

For programs in a league as deep as the SEC, the extra spots matter. The women’s side won’t feel much of a shift, but the men’s side absolutely will. Bubble teams in this conference won’t be living on the same razor’s edge anymore.

Basketball

Ole Miss Basketball Transfer Portal Picture Comes Into Focus

Published

6 months ago

May 5, 2026

Taylor Hodges

It’s been two weeks since the transfer portal window closed, and after a slow start, Ole Miss is finally nearing the end of its roster‑building phase.

The Rebels have added seven transfers, plus TJ Clark who committed back in December. Four‑star recruits Jaron Saulsberry, Yohance Connor and Daniel Patton are also on the way this summer.

Those 10 newcomers will join Ilias Kamardine and Patton Pinkins, the only returning Rebels, to form the foundation of next year’s roster.

The question is whether that’s enough, and whether Chris Beard is actually done adding.

The honest answer is maybe and probably not.

Nobody knows yet if this group will be better or worse than what Ole Miss just put on the floor.

There’s no headline addition, but that doesn’t mean the roster can’t mesh, grow together and avoid needing a miracle run in March.

There’s also the chance it looks like last season, when the pieces never fully clicked.

Given the current guard‑heavy build, it feels likely Beard will look for more frontcourt help. Stefan Cicic gives Ole Miss a true 7‑footer and Santiago Trouet adds more size, but the Rebels could still use another proven interior presence.

One name to watch is former Florida Atlantic forward Devin Williams, who has reportedly met with Ole Miss over Zoom and is visiting Arizona this week. Williams finished fifth nationally in blocks last season at 2.58 per game, which would give Beard a real defensive anchor inside.

In the end, Ole Miss won’t know what this roster really is until the group gets on the floor together, but the picture is at least starting to take shape.

Beard has rebuilt almost the entire program for the second straight offseason, and there’s still room for one or two more pieces to round it out.

Whether this version ends up being better, worse, or simply different from last year’s team is impossible to know in May, but the next additions will tell us plenty about how the Rebels plan to finish the job.