The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

YOLETT McPhee-McCuin’s complete overhaul of the Ole Miss women’s basketball programme now includes a trip to the NCAA Division I Tournament.

Ole Miss (23-8, 10-8 SEC) earned an at-large bid and the no.7 seed in the Witchita Region. They will face the no.10 seed and Summit League Champion, South Dakota Coyotes (27-5, 17-1 Summit) on Friday in Waco, Texas.

Ole Miss earned its first NCAA title bid in 15 years and will make its first appearance since the 2007-08 season when they advanced to the Elite Eight.

This year will also mark the 18th tournament appearance in Ole Miss history.

McPhee-McCuin previously led the Jacksonville Dolphins programme to the Tournament in 2016. She led the programme to its first ASUN Tournament title and NCAA Tournament berth.

Ole Miss enjoyed its best finish in conference play since the 1993-94 season. They concluded the regular season with wins in four of their last five games. This season, the programme earned its first top 25 ranking since 2007. The 2021-22 campaign thus far has been highlighted by a 13-game win streak, the third longest win streak in programme history. It also included wins over three ranked opponents.

In conference postseason play, Ole Miss earned its first SEC Tournament Semifinal game appearance in 29 years, when they suffered a 61-51 loss to the no.1 South Carolina Gamecocks.

McPhee-McCuin joined the Rebels in 2018 with expectations to rebuild a programme that struggled in recent years and was in the cellar of the SEC.

In her first year at the helm the team finished 9-22, 3-13 in conference play and the season concluded with a first round loss in the SEC Tournament. In year two, The Rebels finished the season at 7-23 and suffered another opening round loss in the tournament.

Last year, the Rebels finished the season 15-12, for their first winning season since 2016-17. After an 11-11 regular season, 4-10 in the SEC, they advanced to the first SEC Quarterfinal since 2004. Their résumé included three wins against ranked teams and four Top-50 NET wins. They eventually fell to Rice in the WNIT title game.