OXFORD — Ole Miss knows two things.

One, the Rebels are a couple of plays from being 7-1 and everyone feeling good about the 2020-21 season.

Two, even if that were the case, there are things this team simply must get better if it’s going to have any chance of achieving its goals.

“We’re still looking at the same tape and understanding the areas that we’ve got to get better,” Ole Miss coach Kermit Davis said.

Ole Miss (5-3 overall, 0-1 in the Southeastern Conference) entertains Auburn (6-4, 0-2) Wednesday (8 p.m., SEC Network). The Rebels are coming off a stretch that has seen them lose three of their last four games, including a loss at Alabama and a setback at The Pavilion Saturday against Wichita State.

“It was a hurt feeling (after losing to Wichita State),” Davis said. “Very, very disappointed. You hate the days off because the game has to linger an extra 36 hours. …After we get through that, we have to learn from that and move on and our practices have been good.”

“The energy has been great,” Ole Miss forward KJ Buffen said. “I don’t think we should be down at all. I still feel like we have a great team. We’re a couple of plays from being 7-1. We just have to stay positive, stay together and be ready to play (Wednesday).”

Auburn is coming off losses to Arkansas and at Texas A&M to open league play. The Tigers lead the SEC in 3-pointers, making 10.3 per game. Allen Flanigan leads Auburn with 14.5 points per game.

“We’re going to try to play fast in transition,” Davis said. “We’re trying to do that. Obviously, Auburn’s 3-point percentage is not great. We shot the other day 16 more times than Wichita State did. We shot six more 3s than Wichita State did. It’s not about the pace. When you play those teams, there are going to be a lot of long rebounds. You hope there are a lot of 50-50 balls, so a lot of those balls are deciding factors in winning games.

“The big thing about Auburn is they make so many transition 3s, about as many as anybody in college basketball. That’s one thing we’ve been very good at, for the most part — we lost two tough games last year to them — is getting back and getting our half-court defense set.”

Ole Miss opened last season 0-5 in the SEC, but the Rebels are not pressing yet.

“Our team is just excited about playing,” Davis said. “There are 17 games left. …You can’t panic. You just have to go improve your team, and that’s what we have to do. Our team is looking forward to (Wednesday’s) game.”

Ole Miss stays home Saturday to face South Carolina, making this week critical.

“We do have to get used to each other in these high-level games,” Buffen said. “Practice and talking up communication is key.”