MILWAUKEE — Ole Miss and Iowa State started watching each other late Friday after they each advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Ole Miss advanced to the second round by beating North Carolina, 71-64. Iowa State, meanwhile, whipped Lipscomb, 82-55.

Neither team needed much film to turn the page to Sunday’s 6:45 p.m. CDT showdown, one that will determine who advances to Atlanta for next week’s Sweet 16.

“I would say they’re big and physical, but they also play unique defense,” Iowa State’s Nate Heise said. “They switch all five. They rebound well. I would say they’re a big, physical team, and it’s a big contrast from Lipscomb in terms of like height and weight and stuff.”

“They switch up their defenses a lot, like Heise said,” Iowa State forward Brandton Chatfield said. “Going from 1-3-1 to 2-3 to a lot of different zones and stuff. So you just have to always be ready to attack the basket at any point, really.”

Center Dishon Jackson said Iowa State should “have a couple of advantages inside.”

Ole Miss forward Malik Dia had praise for Iowa State forward Joshua Jefferson, noting the 6-foot-9, 240-pound Jefferson is a similar player in terms of size and style to Dia.

“I think he’s going to present a good challenge for us,” Dia said. “And we also are just going to treat him as another player at the end of the day.”

Davis’ role critical as Rebels march on: Ole Miss forward Dre Davis had 15 points and eight rebounds versus North Carolina on Friday, and Ole Miss coach Chris Beard said the Rebels will need more of that if his team is going to advance to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament.

“Dre Davis is one of the best players in college basketball,” Beard said. He’s a position-less guy. He’s one of if not our best defensive player. He’s one of or maybe our best offensive player. He can score at all three levels. He’s a competitor. He leads really through his actions and his game and he’ll speak up from time to time when needed. Off the court, he leaves his life with unbelievable balance. He’s a proud father. He’s a girl dad. Dre means everything for us, and you advance in this tournament, your best players have to play their A-game.”

Dia praises Beard’s role in his development: Dia had high praise for his first season with Beard on Saturday, calling him “the most intense coach I’ve ever played for, and I don’t mean that in a bad way.”

Dia said Beard has brought out the best in his game and his work ethic.

“I can never say there’s a day that I can come in and be chill or cool,” Dia said. “He’s going to get the most out of me every day”

Told of Dia’s comments, Beard said those words meant a lot to him “because Dia is a truth-teller.”

“Dia isn’t going to just say something because it’s a press conference,” Beard said. “It’s one of the many things I like about him. He’s such an intelligent guy.

“I think the deal with my relationship with Dia is I have high expectations for him. I think he can be an NBA Draft pick. I’m not afraid to say that.”

Roster-building similarities: In the new era of college athletics, where rosters are rebuilt every year via the transfer portal, listening is critical. It’s something both Beard and Iowa State coach TJ Otzelberger said Saturday as they reflected on how they build the teams that will face off Sunday.

“I think being a great listener is probably the most important thing,” Otzelberger said. “So many people talk in the transfer portal about it being transactional, and hey, this is how many minutes and this is how much it costs, and we’re on the opposite end of that.

“We understand that NIL is part of the equation, and obviously that the wind of time in recruiting isn’t as much time as you might like.”

Otzelberger said he talks about how players handle adversity, about how they handle losing and tough days.

“I think using questions that are more challenging is appropriate,” Otzelberger said.

Beard agreed, adding he looks for players who are “addicted” to basketball.

“That’s what we try to find,” Beard said. “And the portal, speed dating, it happens fast. But you can find out if you’re listening. …Because players will tell you. They’ll tell you who they are and they’ll tell you what they’re looking for if you just listen.”

Random but funny fact: Beard tore his ACL during a game at Iowa State in the 2017-18 season. He injured the knee the night before setting a flare screen on Texas Tech player Zhaire Smith. The next day, while disagreeing with one of his players, Nyeem Stephenson, about a defensive coverage, Beard got agitated and “forgot that the knee was popped and fell down on the floor.”

“The other thing that’s classic in the story is we have a culture,” Beard said. “One this is we say you don’t ever help yourself off the floor unless it’s a live ball. If it’s not a live ball, stay on the floor, a teammate’s coming to pick you up. It’s a big part of our culture.

“So I’m laying on the floor and nobody on our staff, including some of the coaches that are with us today, didn’t come pick me up.”

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