McCready: 10 Weekend Thoughts, presented by Harry Alexander
1. Ole Miss’ NCAA Tournament hopes evaporated Saturday in Nashville.
A loss at lowly Vanderbilt, playing without its two best players, dropped Ole Miss to 8-8 in the Southeastern Conference and to No. 60 in the NET rankings.
Ole Miss plays at home this week against Kentucky and Vanderbilt, but those games now only matter in terms of SEC Tournament seedings.
It’s almost certainly this simple: If Ole Miss is going to make the NCAA Tournament, it can’t lose in Nashville again this year.
So, what happened?
Well, it’s hardly shocking when a basketball team repeats a pattern it has established all season. Yes, Ole Miss is very close to being a very good team. Ole Miss has narrow losses to Dayton, Wichita State, Georgia, Florida and now Vanderbilt. Turn two or three of those into wins and we’re having a different conversation.
Of course, that’s now how it works. On Saturday, as has been the case so often this year, defensive lapses in the second half killed. Vanderbilt shot nearly 60 percent in the final 20 minutes. Just play adequate defense Saturday and Ole Miss wins. The same held against Florida and Georgia back in January and against Dayton and Wichita State earlier in the season.
Dissect it any way you’d like but it comes back to defense for me. No, this isn’t an elite offensive team, but on Saturday, 70 points should’ve been enough. Ole Miss committed just nine turnovers. It won the rebounding battle.
It lost on the defensive end. It lost on the end that is most impacted by effort, focus and toughness.
And in the end, barring a miracle in Nashville in a couple of weeks, that will be this Ole Miss team’s epitaph. It simply wasn’t tough enough.
2. And that has to drive Kermit Davis borderline insane.
Davis’ DNA is rooted in toughness. It’s been his calling card throughout his coaching career. This is a veteran team. This team has a talented point guard, a post player who can be dominant. It has some skilled wings. It has a physical rebounder. It has a veteran shooting guard who has a proficient mid-range game. It has the tools to be a second-weekend team.
It just isn’t very tough. In the last eight days, with its destiny in its own hands, it lost to Mississippi State and Vanderbilt. If those losses were to Alabama and Arkansas, that’d be one thing. But those losses were to teams going nowhere, with nothing really left to play for.
Those are losses that demand inspection moving forward. I anticipate quite a roster shuffle this offseason. After two disappointing seasons in a row, there will be heat — fairly or not — on Davis and his staff.
Ole Miss is likely never going to consistently out-talent teams. The Rebels can, however, consistently out-tough opponents. Had this team done that, it would likely have a double-bye in the SEC Tournament and a locked-in bid in the Field of 68. It didn’t, however, and now, it has neither of those things.
That, I suspect, keeps Davis up at night.
3. As it always does, the season reveals strengths and weaknesses. The cream always rises. The sediment always falls to the bottom.
With one week of games left, that’s happened. Here are the NET rankings for the SEC through Feb. 28.
Alabama 9
Arkansas 19
Tennessee 22
Florida 26
LSU 30
Missouri 47
Ole Miss 60
Kentucky 65
Auburn 71
Mississippi State 79
Georgia 92
South Carolina 112
Vanderbilt 117
Texas A&M 141
The top six teams are headed to the NCAA Tournament. The rest will need a miracle. Alabama is a legitimate contender to reach the Final Four. I’m starting to think Arkansas is as well. Tennessee is stunningly mediocre. Mike White has done a terrific job at Florida. LSU is talented but not well-coached and Missouri is a veteran team that simply isn’t talented enough to make much noise.
This was a season of opportunity for Ole Miss. As of Saturday afternoon, that opportunity is lost.
4. Ole Miss will almost certainly relinquish its top spot in the national baseball polls Monday. Arkansas, which was No. 2 last week when the rankings came out, will likely ascend to that spot. The Hogs’ ranking will be as meaningless Monday as Ole Miss’ was a week ago. Fans will talk trash on message boards and Twitter, I suspect, as those who give it out often catch themselves on the receiving end sooner rather than later, but the ranking itself is meaningless in late February/early March.
Ole Miss lost two of three games to UCF over the weekend in Oxford, and the Rebels were a ninth-inning rally away from being swept. Is that cause for concern? In my opinion, no, not really. The Rebels have now played seven games, which is a remarkably small sample size. There appear to be some offensive issues that require fixing before SEC play rolls around, but sweeping judgments this early in a season frequently go wrong.
Here’s reality, though: The SEC is loaded. Ole Miss is going to have huge weekends when it plays over its head and makes talented teams look weak. Conversely, the Rebels are going to run into a buzzsaw a time or two in league play and appear inept. The truth will likely be in the middle of those two extremes and the difference between this being a historic season or a close brush with greatness will likely be minute.
I’ll leave the detailed analysis to Chase Parham here at RebelGrove.com, but I’ve watched enough baseball in my time to know 20-game winning streaks are really rare. Ole Miss was due some adversity. It was a matter of time. How the Rebels respond to it — both now and when it inevitably surfaces again later this season — will define this team.
5. Ole Miss announced last week that it will begin spring football practices on March 23.
Each week, I’ll look at an area on the Ole Miss roster that interests me going into the spring.
No position group is more fascinating than the defensive line. A year ago, the Rebels were thin and ineffective up front. They struggled to get to the quarterback and were often weak against the run.
There are some reasons for measured optimism, however. One, defensive end Cedric Johnson looked the part at the end of the season. Two, Sam Williams is returning for his extra year and he should be far more prepared than he was after an August of distraction and off-the-field issues last season.
Additionally, Ole Miss signed junior college defensive tackles Isaiah Iton and Jamond Gordon. They’ll both go through spring drills and they’re going to be counted on to make major impacts this fall. If they can, and throw in the possibility of four-star Tywone Malone helping this fall as well, Ole Miss becomes significantly better up front.
There is depth up front. Quentin Bivens, KD Hill, LeDerrius Cox, Sincere David, Hal Northern, Tariqious Tisdale, Patrick Lucas Jr., and Desanto Rollins all return, but there’s a need for impact players to emerge. Iton and Gordon both potentially fit that bill.
And there’s a wildcard on the edge. At times last season, Tavius Robinson looked like he had some star potential. The game was new and the adjustment from Canada football was daunting, but he showed flashes. He’s a player, now that he has a year under his belt, I’ll be interested in hearing about this spring (I have no confidence we’ll see anything). If his game can take the next step, an area of real weakness a year ago could become at least adequate in 2021.
6. We — the media covering Ole Miss basketball — got a text message this week. The SEC wanted to know which media would be making the trip to Nashville for the SEC Tournament. Media would only be credentialed for the games the team he/she is covering, the press area will be in the upstairs press box and all interviews will be done virtually.
I rolled my eyes. I’ve covered one game in person this season — Ole Miss’ loss at Arkansas — and it was easily the most difficult post-game I’ve handled, as I couldn’t hear the Zoom call with Davis afterwards.
I wondered when we will finally move on from all of this. We might start to get an idea on that here fairly soon. At some point this week, Gov. Tate Reeves is expected to release a new executive order that will impact restaurant capacity, stadium capacity and more. My educated guess is the order will allow for more attendance but still enforce the six-foot provision, which will, for all intents and purposes, leave things close to where they are today. However, I expect there will be signaling that a further executive order will be looming which will drastically reduce COVID-related restrictions as soon as early April.
The pushback is going to be extreme. Those who worship at the alter of the Church of COVID are devout. Still, I sense there’s a growing impatience with restrictions. It’s one thing to ask people to stay home in the winter, when the days are short, the weather cold, etc. It’s another thing to ask people to stay home for another spring, when the days get longer, the weather nicer and activities more abundant.
My guess is baseball stadiums will be at least half-full — and maybe more — by mid-spring. I won’t be surprised if masks are recommended but not required (Note: I pray for this, as it will force everyone to get off the fence and pick a side) as more and more people are vaccinated and we get closer and closer to herd immunity.
You know my views by now. I advocate opening things up and letting people make their own decisions. I doubt I get my wish just yet; the SEC Tournament media policy is proof of that. I do think it’s coming, however. And I suspect this week is a small step in that direction.
7. The NBA season, believe it or not, has hit its midway point. Here are my midseason awards:
Most Improved: Jaylen Brown, Boston
Sixth Man of the Year: Jordan Clarkson, Utah
Coach of the Year: Monty Williams, Phoenix
Defensive Player of the Year: Rudy Gobert, Utah
Rookie of the Year: LaMelo Ball, Charlotte
MVP: Joel Embiid, Philadelphia
You could make some legitimate arguments in all but two of those categories, by the way. Nikola Jokic, LeBron James and Kevin Durant all have legitimate MVP candidacies. Doc Rivers, Nate Bjorkgren and Billy Donovan, in my opinion, are having strong seasons as coaches. Toronto’s Chris Boucher could easily be Sixth Man of the Year and Detroit’s Jerami Grant could easily get votes for Most Improved.
The second half of the season should be entertaining. I’m just hoping fans are allowed.
8. Last week, I made my picks for the National League East and American League East. This week, I’m moving west to the Central.
American League Central:
1. Minnesota — One of the more underrated teams in baseball, in large part due to their complete inability to win a postseason game, the Twins are the class of the division.
2. Chicago — Luis Robert is going to be a superstar. It’s a strong lineup, but why hire Tony LaRussa?
3. Cleveland — Francisco Lindor is gone, likely marking the end of a title contention era in Cleveland.
4. Kansas City — The Royals are my candidate to overachieve this season. Their closer to being decent than most give them credit.
5. Detroit — It’s still very much a rebuild in the Motor City
National League Central
1. Milwaukee — The Brewers’ lineup in pedestrian, but their pitching should be superior in the Central.
2. St. Louis —Nolen Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt make for a powerful middle of the lineup, but the rotation is very suspect.
3. Chicago — Unless the Cubs’ defense can be elite, it’s going to be a long season on the North Side.
4. Cincinnati — The Reds will really miss Trevor Bauer.
5. Pittsburgh — The Pirates have torn it down even further.
9. It’s time to eat. Here’s our resident Parisian chef, Burton Webb, with Taste of the Place, Lesson 76 — Banana Bread, the easiest of the breads.
Let’s be honest, you’ve eaten this bread before and enjoyed it. Everyone has. If you look into cookbooks, there is usually a recipe for this particular item, and about this time of year, it is all over social media.
The overall final product doesn’t appear that appealing though. To be honest… it looks like a dark brown loaf and that's it. So take the advice from me: put half of a sliced banana on top before you bake it. It changes everything.
Tidbit #1: You can pretty much add any flavor to this bread. If you want to be a purist, just keep the vanilla and banana. If you want to go outside the box, bake the bananas first with a little sugar so that they caramelize before. Also, if you want coconut in it, put coconut in it.
Tidbit #2: It is not that important to thoroughly grease your baking pan because it is a very wet dough. I recommend putting a piece of parchment paper in the bottom, that extends out of the baking dish. It is easier to remove this way.
Tidbit #3: Simple syrup. This is one thing that will always take a dessert to a new level. This is equal parts of sugar to water and you bring it to a boil. When you remove the cake from the oven, brush this over the top. It will give a great final look for your bread and you can add flavors to this as well. Cinnamon for instance.
Things you’ll need:
1 3/4 Cup all-purpose flour
1 Tsp baking soda
1 Tsp salt
1/4 Cup peanut butter
1/2 Cup chopped nuts, your preference (I like walnuts)
1 Stick butter, melted
Pinch of cinnamon
1/2 Cup water
1/2 Cup white sugar
*Preparing the batter
Step 1: Turn your oven to 350°F and slice your longest banana in half, longways. Set aside. With the rest of your bananas, place them in the large mixing bowl and mash with your whisk.
Step 2: Add your sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, and milk to the bowl. Whisk until all are incorporated. Add your flour, baking soda, and salt to the bowl. Whisk again.
Step 3: Finally, add your peanut butter and melted butter. Whisk until all is incorporated.
Step 4: Place your parchment paper in the loaf pan and then pour half of your batter in. Sprinkle the chopped nuts over and then pour the remaining batter over them. With your halved banana, place it in the center and sprinkle cinnamon over the entire thing if you'd like. Put in the oven and set the timer for 1 hour.
*Preparing the syrup
Step 4.1: While the bread is baking, make the simple syrup. Add your water and the 1/2 cup of white sugar to the saucepot. Bring to a boil and then turn off the heat.
Step 5: When you remove the bread from the oven, immediately brush with the simple syrup or pour it over the cake, your preference. Let the cake sit for 20 minutes in the cake loaf pan and then take it out. Peel the paper from the bread. Then slice it up and enjoy with some butter, maple syrup, or p-nut butter. It’s great for breakfast. And that's what I will be having tomorrow morning.
From the Mississippian in Paris, Bon Appétit!
10. We’ll have coverage of Ole Miss baseball, basketball and whatever else may come up this week on RebelGrove.com. Until then, here are some links of interest to me — and hopefully, to you — for your reading pleasure.
A man, not a myth: Trying to put the Tiger Woods crash into perspective
Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson would be fantasy QBs for Bears fans sick of reality
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Knows Only One Gear: Drive
Vecenie’s 2021 NBA Draft Big Board, 1.0: Lack of info, scouting changes impactful
Hey, Stan. Want to teach a class in prison?: When an NBA coach went inside
NBA Top Shot: People are buying the virtual highlight cards, but risks remain
Official misses Eastern Washington field goal while adjusting mask in epic blunder
Can Fernando Tatis become the 'face of baseball' in San Diego? – The Athletic
Reinventing Joey Votto: How benching led him to trade command of zone for power – The Athletic
Media star Andrew Cuomo has gone missing
Cuomo’s Enemies Are Ready to Unleash a Decade of Resentment
As an industry faces destruction, it grows a voting coalition
Gov. Greg Abbott weighing end to mask order, other Texas coronavirus rules | The Texas Tribune
CDC director accused of 'moving the goalposts' on school reopenings
The Pandemic That Changed Nothing - The Bellows
NYC fitness studios sue over ban on group fitness classes
Lockdown: Young woman, 27, dies of cancer after delays and misdiagnosis | Evening Standard
Are Dr. Seuss books racist, anti-women?
Pizza Is A Healthier Breakfast Than Sugary Cereals, Nutritionists Say - Delish
