OXFORD — Despite scoring 19 points and handing out six assists Monday night in the Ole Miss men’s basketball team’s 66-49 victory against Bradley, Terence Davis figures he still has room for improvement.
“I’m not sure how much, but I think there is more to come. More important, I know AK (Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy) thinks that, too,” Davis said. “My role has changed this year. I want to help this team win as much as I can.”
Cullen Neal added 12 points, while Sebastian Saiz recorded his sixth double-double, scoring 10 points and grabbing 13 rebounds, for the Rebels (8-3), who were never seriously threatened.
Darrell Brown led Bradley (5-7) with 14 points. The Braves shot 18 of 58 (31 percent) from the field.
Bradley trailed 38-19 at halftime and never got closer than 17 points again.
“Sebes (Saiz) had six blocks and really defended the rim,” Kennedy said. “What we want with Terence is to keep him playing downhill. He can make the hard plays and he knows we need him to do those things for us to keep improving.”
Ole Miss went on an 11-0 run during a two-minute frame late in the first half to build a 38-19 halftime cushion. Neal and DeAndre Burnett combined for three 3-pointers before Davis capped the decisive surge with a twisting layup.
“Our turnovers and bad shot selection on a couple of possessions put us in that spot,” Bradley coach Brian Wardle said. “We kept battling to get back but give Mississippi credit. Their physicality bothered us as the game wore on.”
The victory helped Ole Miss improve to 3-1 in December. The athletic Davis has emerged as a third offensive option to go with Burnett and Saiz. Coming off consecutive double-double performances, Davis had 14 first-half points as the Rebels raced to their big halftime cushion.
Kennedy said Burnett, the team’s leading scorer (19 points per game), needs to continue to be aggressive on offense to break out of a shooting slump that has him shooting 27.4 percent from the field in the last five games. He was 1 of 7 from the field against Bradley. He is one of four players (Saiz, 14.5 ppg.; Davis, 13; and Neal, 12.4) averaging in double figures.
“Confidence is like cash. You’ve got to have some before you can make some,” said Kennedy, describing guard Burnett’s recent shooting slump. “All he can do is keep playing, taking a good shot and his confidence will come back up.”
Ole Miss will play host to South Alabama at 8 p.m. Thursday. It will complete a four-game homestand at 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 29, with its Southeastern Conference opener against Kentucky. ESPN2 will broadcast the game live.
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