Vanderbilt are 4.5 point favorites at home versus Ole Miss

Feb 4, 2023 - 4:51 PM

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Truly this has to be the peak of some SEC basketball fever - two sub .500 SEC squads will face off when Ole Miss takes the court at Vanderbilt on Saturday at Memorial Gymnasium.

The Rebels (9-13, 1-8 SEC) and Commodores (10-12, 3-6 SEC) both feature coaches on the hot seat with Ole Miss’ Kermit Davis posting a 73-74 overall record in his fifth season and former NBA great and Vandy coach Jerry Stackhouse in his fourth season with a 49-66 overall record. Vanderbilt topped the Rebels in Oxford last season 63-61.

It is likely Ole Miss will continue to play its young roster with leading scorer Matthew Murrell battling a leg injury. TJ Caldwell, Amaree Abram and James White have been logging more minutes with Murrell out and the decision by guard Daeshun Ruffin to step away from the team at this time.

Ole Miss forward Myles Burns needs only six points in Saturday’s game to reach 2,000 points for his collegiate career. Burns has already reached 1,000 rebounds and 400 steals for his career making him one of the most prolific active statistical players in college basketball.

If the Rebels were at full strength, I would say the -4.5 favorite Commodores would be a great little bet. But Ole Miss is a shell of itself without Ruffin and Murrell. I wouldn’t bet on the ‘Dores either, because it has been such an inconsistent team.

The game will be broadcast on the SEC Network at 12 p.m. CT.