Gameday Cheatsheet: How does NC State match up against undefeated Ole Miss?

The Game:
NC State (4-1) is in Mississippi to take on the Rebels of Ole Miss, who are currently undefeated at 5-0.

How to Watch:
Tip-off is at 9 pm EST and the game is televised on EPSN2.

The Odds:
Ole Miss may be slight Vegas favorites (-1.5) against the Pack, but KenPom’s data says NC State wins this one by 3.

The Records Coming In:
The Rebels might be 5-0 but that record might be a little deceiving, seeing as their largest margin of victory is only 10 points, and that was at home against Alabama St. They then beat Eastern Washington by 9, Detroit Mercy by 1, and Same Houston State by 3 (All 3 at home). They then traveled to Temple (who had just lost to Columbia), and beat them by only 1.

So, yeah, Ole Miss is winning games, but none of those wins are all that convincing, and their Strength of Schedule currently sits at 215 out of 362. Meanwhile, the Pack is 4-1 with their strength of schedule sitting at 68th.

Getting to know Ole Miss:
If you want to get a good idea of the type of game the Rebels like to play, check out these highlights from their 1 point win over Temple just a week ago.

They are an experienced, guard-oriented team led by 6’6″ Senior Allen Flanigan, 6’4″ Senior Matthew Murrell and 5’11” Junior Jaylen Murray. They also rely on 6’4″ Sophomore TJ Caldwell coming off the bench for outside shooting.

The guys you need to worry about from beyond the arc are Murray and Cladwell, and while Flanigan is leading the team at 50% from long range, he’s only 4-8 on the season, meaning he doesn’t like to rely on the 3 for his points. Flanigan is going to put pressure on the defense by driving to the rim and finishing in traffic.

Inside, the Rebels rely on 6’8″ Senior Jaemyn Brakefield and 7’5″ (yes, you read that right) Senior Jamarion Sharp. Neither guy is really a banger, and despite being super tall, Sharp is pretty frail and easily moved around under the hoop.

How NC State matches up:
This is a pretty good matchup for NC State. There really isn’t a true mismatch anywhere on the court. While a lot of teams may have trouble with the 3 guard lineup that Ole Miss will put out there, Keatts is also going to be running 3 guards out there. Brakefield is going to play a majority of the minutes at the 4, but the combo of Diarra and Parker should be able to handle him just fine. Meanwhile, at the 5, Sharpe will likely play most of the minutes, but he’s going to struggle against Burns, who has 40 pounds on him.