'Built For The Tournament!' Coach Yo Talks Game Prep For Rebels vs. Notre Dame

Ole Miss Rebels head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin talked about the challenges (and advantages) brought on by prepping to face the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Monday.

Mar 23, 2024; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Ole Miss Rebels head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin / Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

The NCAA Tournament brings short turnarounds, but this isn't a foreign concept to Yolett McPhee-McCuin's Ole Miss Rebels. In fact, she thinks her team is built for this format.

The seven-seeded Rebels took down the Marquette Golden Eagles on Saturday afternoon in the opening round of the tournament, and they are now prepping to take the court against the two-seeded (and host) Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Monday. That's not a lot of time to prepare, but it actually gives the staff and players a little more time than they are used to, in that regard.

McPhee-McCuin said as much on Sunday afternoon.

"Well, this is definitely more refreshing than in the SEC tournament or when we were in the Bahamas because you have no time," McPhee-McCuin said. "You play and then you rest and you play the next day. When we were in the Bahamas and we won the tournament, we didn't even walk through anything.

"That's why we're built for the tournament, because our system is our system. We don't have to change it. We make a few tweaks, and that's about it."

Instead of complaining or fretting about only having a little over a day's worth of preparation, Coach Yo is counting her blessings. Sure, Notre Dame is a formidable opponent, but she isn't shying away from the challenge.

"We honestly feel like this is a gift because we get a day where we can watch film and truly prepare for a great staff and a great team in Notre Dame," McPhee-McCuin said. "Last night I think we were up, coaches, until about midnight, and then we watched film this morning at 11:00 for about an hour, and now we're here.

"As far as we're concerned, we treat it almost like a conference prep, even though we get two days. This is more than enough time for us to prepare."

Ole Miss and Notre Dame are scheduled to tip-off at 1 p.m. CT on Monday afternoon, and the game will be televised on ESPN.