'We're Banged Up Mentally, Physically': Chris Beard Reveals State of Rebels Following Loss to Gamecocks

Ole Miss Rebels coach Chris Beard revealed the status of his team following a tough loss to the No. 20 South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday night.

OXFORD, Miss. -- The Ole Miss Rebels men's basketball team lost its second home game of the season on Saturday night, falling 72-59 to the No. 20 South Carolina Gamecocks. There were not a whole lot of positives from the loss, and Ole Miss coach Chris Beard expressed that his team is going through adversity during his postgame press conference.

"It's a hurt locker room right now," Beard told reporters. "Our guys thought they had a couple of good days at practice. Our [players] were emotionally attached to this game. [Saturday] was a huge day for us to protect our home court, we just didn't get it done. We're a little banged up mentally and physically."

Beard also cleared the air on Saturday night regarding the health of senior forward Jaemyn Brakefield.

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"We're a no-excuse program, but I also take my responsibility to take up for our players very seriously," Beard said. "Brakefield's playing banged up right now. He's had some issues with a wrist, and I just appreciate his effort this week in practice and trying to play in this game. Brakefield gave it his all tonight, but physically, he's got some adversity right now."

Brakefield finished the game on Saturday with 12 points, seven rebounds, and one assist in 33 minutes despite playing through a wrist injury.

A glaring weakness for the Rebels through the month of February has been a lack of production from Ole Miss' bench unit, and Beard was asked if he is getting the scoring contributions he thought he would when he assembled this roster.

"No, not on the stat sheet," Beard said. "That's something we've got to do a better job of - trying to manufacture some offense from different lineups and different individual players. I still have a lot of confidence in those players that we're putting in the game. We've just got to do a better job as coaches helping them, and these players have to play their best when it matters most.

Ole Miss Falls at SJB Pavilion to No. 20 South Carolina

"But to answer your question, no. This team was set up for the bench to be a weapon, and we've got to keep working towards that. It's not on the players, it's on everybody, myself included."

Ole Miss is in a rut, as the team has only won game in the month of February, but Beard is ready for the opportunity that awaits his team on Wednesday.

"Lot of basketball left," Beard said. "We've got one of the best teams in the country coming here on Wednesday. To me that's an opportunity. I think pressure is a privilege, and there's nobody I'd rather play on Wednesday than one of the best teams in college basketball. It's an opportunity for us to respond quickly."

The Rebels must prepare to host the No. 13 Alabama Crimson Tide. Alabama (19-8, 11-3 SEC) has lost one game in the month of February, and currently ranks second in the Southeastern Conference. Tip-off is set for 8:00 p.m. CT in the SJB Pavilion and the game will be televised on ESPN2.