GAME NOTES: Oxford is the site of today's SEC contest between the hometown Ole Miss Rebels and the Alabama Crimson Tide. Alabama had lost two straight and four of five heading into Wednesday's clash with Arkansas, but that tilt resulted in a hard-fought 59-56 victory. The Tide is a respectable 15-13 overall, but the 4-9 conference mark is tremendously disappointing. Alabama has played eight true road games this season, and seven of those have resulted in defeat. As for Ole Miss, it is also 4-9 in the league and 1-7 in true road games, but the Rebels do own a 12-2 record at home. They have currently lost two straight games and four of five overall, and their most recent defeat came at Kentucky on Wednesday by a 58-54 final. On February 13th, Alabama recorded a 76-67 victory over Ole Miss, and the Tide owns a commanding 113-48 lead in the series.

For Alabama, the good news is that there are three outstanding performers in the lineup. Unfortunately, the trio gets very little help from a lackluster supporting cast. Richard Hendrix leads the way with 18.3 ppg, and he is shooting 61.2 percent shooting from the floor. A dominant post performer, Hendrix is also pulling down 10.1 rpg to go along with 56 blocked shots. Alonzo Gee checks in with 15.1 ppg, and he is grabbing 7.1 rpg. Rounding out the trio is Mykal Riley, who is posting 14.1 ppg. Alabama is scoring 74.9 ppg while allowing 72.2 ppg, but the scoring differential is negative in conference play. Strong defense was the key to the win over Arkansas on Wednesday, as the Tide limited the Razorbacks to 36.1 percent shooting from the field. Demetrius Jemison posted a surprising line of 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Hendrix added 12 points and 10 boards.

Ole Miss is generating 78.5 ppg while allowing only 71.7 ppg overall this season, but those numbers certainly do not reflect the shaky play of the Rebels since the start of conference action. They were unbeaten against non-conference opponents, so the positive scoring differential is a product of the strong start to the campaign. Chris Warren is the leading scorer for Ole Miss this season with his 15.6 ppg, and he has dished out 122 assists. Clearly, however, Warren's 39.1 percent shooting from the floor could stand some improvement. Dwayne Curtis checks in with 14.0 ppg for the Rebels, and he is ripping down 9.4 rpg while shooting 64.0 percent from the field. The third and final double- digit scorer on the roster is Eniel Polynice who provides 11.3 ppg. In the loss to Kentucky, Warren scored 25 points and Curtis had 15 rebounds, but the overall offensive effort simply wasn't good enough for the squad.

While both these teams have to be considered disappointments, Ole Miss should be able to avenge the earlier loss to Alabama in front of the Oxford crowd.