The inside power of Mississippi matches up with the perimeter prowess of Oklahoma when the soon-to-be Southeastern Conference rivals meet within the finals of the ESPN Events Invitational on Sunday in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
Save for a late flurry by Stanford in opposition to Mississippi within the match opener, each the Rebels (6-0) and Sooners (5-1) have had their manner within the sturdy discipline of eight.
Mississippi has used superior taking pictures and rebounding to outlast Stanford 72-68 and Siena 74-62 to attain the finals.
The Rebels have hit precisely half their pictures within the two wins regardless of going simply 10-for-29 (34.5 %) on 3-pointers. But their dominant play across the hoop has not solely resulted in 48-for-87 accuracy (55.2 %) on two-point tries but additionally a 65-53 benefit on the boards.
Amaree Abram has been the massive scorer for Mississippi within the match with 26 and 19 factors, whereas Jaemyn Brakefield has put up 17 factors in every recreation, making 14 of his 20 pictures.
“I’m so excited for Jaemyn,” Rebels coach Kermit Davis mentioned after the Siena win. “You can’t imagine how many hours he’s put in (the) gym since last year. His conditioning is elite. I don’t think I took him out in the second half. He can play all day.”
Conditioning won’t be a giant issue within the finals as each groups loved an off day on Saturday. Playing a 3rd recreation in three days might have helped Oklahoma, which has proven off its depth by getting double-figure scoring from 4 guys in every of its wins.
Like Mississippi, the Sooners have linked at upward of a 50-percent charge from the sphere in beating Nebraska 69-56 and Seton Hall 77-64. But they’ve accomplished a lot of the injury from lengthy vary, going 19-for-40 from past the arc.
Grant Sherfield has been Oklahoma’s high scorer within the match with a complete of 35 factors, going 5-for-10 on 3-pointers. Jacob Groves has made 5 of 9 makes an attempt from past the arc.
Sooners coach Porter Moser mentioned the matchup with Seton Hall ready his guys nicely for what Mississippi is anticipated to convey.
“We played really tough,” Moser mentioned after Friday’s win. “Seton Hall is so physical. They are athletic and they keep coming at you. It was a Big 12-level intensity game with how tough you had to be.”
–Field Level Media
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