By Billy Watkins
Ole Miss women’s basketball appears to be a lock for the NCAA Tournament at 21-10 and 8-8 in the SEC.
The problem is that six of those losses have occurred since Feb. 5, including four straight to close the regular season.
Still, head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin warns not to write off the Lady Rebels just yet. They open play in the SEC Tournament on Thursday at 5 p.m. (central time) in Greenville, S.C. Seeded seventh, they will face the winner of Wednesday’s Auburn-Texas A&M matchup.
“If you’re with us, stick with us,” she said Sunday following the latest loss. “We’re gonna go to Greenville and play as hard as we can, and then we’re gonna come home, rest up and get prepared for what’s most important — March Madness.
“Let’s keep the main thing the main thing. We already did our work early enough, thank God, that we’re in the (NCAA) Tournament. Now, it’s about letting people get experience, which I feel like they’ve been getting. And then putting ourselves in a position to make a run in the NCAA Tournament, and I am confident that when we bring (Sira Thienou) back, that’s gonna happen.
“I’m looking forward to wherever they send us, and we’ll be ready to compete.”
McCuin believes the root of the late-season problems has been the loss of Thienou to a deep bone bruise. She hasn’t played since Feb. 17. McCuin wouldn’t say when Thienou would return but did say “I know she’ll be back.”
Thienou is averaging 9.3 points per game, 5.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists and a team-high 44 steals. But she is one of those players whose contributions are larger than the sum of her statistics.
“We have no margin of error without her, and it’s showing ,” said McCuin, in her eighth season at Ole Miss.
McCuin added: “I might sound naive, but I believe in this team, and I believe when we’re at full strength we’re a tough out. We’ve shown that. But right now that’s not our situation. As a coach I have to figure how to be better for them and more creative.”
Sophomore Tianna Thompson has filled in for Thienou. In the final two regular-season games, Thompson scored 25 points against Florida and was one of two Lady Rebels to score in double figures (12 points) against Texas A&M.
“She’s doing her best to make her mark,” McCuin said. “And she’ll be someone we can count on in the (NCAA) Tournament.”
The Lady Rebs still have weapons. Senior forward Cotie McMahon leads in scoring with 19.8 per game. Two other seniors average in double figures: Christeen Iwuala (12.9) and Latasha Lattimore (10.4) . Iwuala leads in rebounding (8.5).
At mid-season, it appeared Ole Miss would likely be a host seed in the NCAA Tournament. The only way that happens now is if it wins the SEC Tournament.
But one can hardly ignore McCuin’s vision for what might come. She has led the Lady Rebels to the NCAA Tournament for four straight seasons and reached the Sweet Sixteen two of the past three years.
“I know what a Tournament team looks like,” she said.
In her eighth season at Ole Miss, McCuin’s teams have won at least 20 games overall and 10 in the SEC for the fifth straight year. No other coach in program history has achieved that.
“Kara Lawson at Duke said something that meant something to me,” McCuin said. “She said ‘You don’t get to decide when the storm is over. You rely on the film and what is true.’ When we lost to Florida, I deleted all social media because I couldn’t care less what anybody thinks. I know what’s going on.
“And you may say ‘Ah, she’s being completely optimistic … I know how a season works . . . Maybe this group will get sick of losing. If they do, we won’t give up 23 points in the first quarter (as her team did vs. A&M in the regular-season finale). When do we ever do that?”
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