'Execute the Plan': Chris Beard Recaps Ole Miss Basketball's Win Over Southern

The Ole Miss Rebels picked up a win over the Southern Jaguars on Tuesday night, but how did coach Chris Beard view the performance?

Dec 3, 2024; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Chris Beard watches from the sideline during the second half against the Louisville Cardinals at KFC Yum! Center. Mississippi defeated Louisville 86-63. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images / Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

Ole Miss Rebels men's basketball picked up its 10th win of the season on Tuesday night in a 74-61 final score against the Southern Jaguars at the SJB Pavilion. As has been the case multiple times so far this year, head coach Chris Beard drew some positives and negatives from the contest.

On the positive side, Ole Miss won the game, and Beard believes that Southern is a quality opponent despite not residing in a power conference. The result also marks the fourth straight win for Beard's team since dropping a game the day after Thanksgiving.

"A lot of times, everybody gets caught up in what's on the jersey," Beard said. "You put those same players and same coach in SEC jerseys, and everybody's walking out of here probably excited that we won the game tonight. We're pleased we won the game. It's a really good team."

On the negative side, the Rebels weren't exactly pristine in the way they won the game. They struggled with turnovers throughout the action on Tuesday night, and Beard also wants to see better rebounding from his team in the games ahead.

"I think what we learned is that we've got to continue to execute the plan," Beard said. "We're trying to become a better rebounding team, and tonight, the bottom line is that we didn't get it done. Trying to take care of the ball. It's been an early part of our identity, and tonight was our worst performance in terms of turnovers.

"Where we got caught tonight was a lot of casual plays, trying to thread the needle like on a home run play instead of just moving the ball."

Still, Ole Miss is now 10-1 on the year with its lone loss coming against nationally-ranked Purdue, so it is still in pretty good shape as December rolls on. The tests will eventually become more difficult, however, with a non-conference game against Memphis on the horizon as well as SEC play in January.

The Rebels will next take the floor on Saturday when they host Queens in Oxford. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. CT, and the game will be televised on SEC Network+.