Mississippi @ Middle Tennessee St. preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 30, 2016 ) Middle Tennessee St. 77, Mississippi 62

Ole Miss has endured a pair of painful non-conference overtime losses at home in its past two games, and heads into Saturday’s road contest against Middle Tennessee looking for more consistency. The Rebels rallied from a 20-point halftime deficit only to fall to South Dakota State, then blew a 16-point second-half lead in a loss to Virginia Tech last Saturday that has left coach Andy Kennedy seeking better play late in games.

“At the end of the day, you’ve got to make plays at the finish and we just didn’t do that,” Kennedy told reporters after the 83-80 defeat against the Hokies, the Rebels’ third loss in their past four games after a 3-0 start. Junior guard Terence Davis leads Ole Miss in scoring at 17.9 points per game, hitting four 3-pointers against Virginia Tech and scoring 22 against South Dakota State. Middle Tennessee is off to a great start, winning six of its first seven games. The Blue Raiders beat Vanderbilt on Wednesday 66-63 and feature senior forward Nick King, one of the top scorers in the nation.

TV: 6 p.m. ET, Stadium TV

ABOUT OLE MISS (4-3): Davis made just 6-of-17 shots from the field in the Virginia Tech loss, but is shooting 48.4 percent from the field and 37.7 percent from 3-point range. Senior guard Deandre Burnett is 9-for-26 from the field in the Rebels’ past two losses, but averages 15.7 points while shooting 81.6 percent from the free-throw line. Ole Miss is allowing 78.6 points per game and has held an opponent to fewer than 72 points just once.

ABOUT MIDDLE TENNESSEE (6-1): King ranks fifth in the nation in scoring (24.1) and recorded 23 points against Vanderbilt four days after posting career highs in points (32) and rebounds (11) in a victory over Florida Gulf Coast. Senior forward Brandon Walters scored 16 points Wednesday and is shooting 60.4 percent from the field. The Blue Raiders committed just nine turnovers against Vanderbilt.

TIP-INS

1. Davis has reached double figures scoring in 21 of his past 22 games and in 12 consecutive games, dating to last season.

2. Ole Miss is playing its third consecutive game against a team that reached the NCAA tournament last season.

3. Middle Tennessee is in the midst of a three-game stretch against SEC competition, which concludes with a matchup against Auburn on Dec. 16.

PREDICTION: Middle Tennessee 83, Ole Miss 80