Friday, January 25, 2013

MORNING DELIVERY: Henderson Erupts on Vols - Delivered by Kirk Auto Co.

"I love you sooo much right now Marshall."
(Joshua McCoy/ Ole Miss Athletics)
The Rebel Nation Morning Delivery is brought to you each morning by Kirk Auto Co. "It's more than a dealership... It's a friendship..."

by Jake Adams

Tennessee knew it had to stop Marshall Henderson if it wanted a chance to beat Ole Miss. Turns out that's easier said than done.

Henderson erupted for a six 3-pointers and 24 points in the 2nd half to lead the Rebels to a come from behind 62-56 win over Tennessee and help Ole Miss improve to 16-2 and 5-0 in the SEC. It's the first 5-0 SEC start for the Rebels since 1936-37.

For the second straight game Ole Miss struggled shooting the basketball in front of a sold out Tad Smith Coliseum. The Rebels had a ghastly 18 total points on 4 of 23 shooting and trailed 25-18 at halftime. Henderson had just four points - all from free throws. Shots weren't falling, and things didn't look good. The Vols' very public plan to shut down Henderson in order to beat Ole Miss appeared to be working.

And for the second consecutive game midway through the 2nd half when the game seemed in doubt Henderson made crucial 3's and snatched control away from the opposition. This time though Henderson made a bunch of 3's, and in typical Henderson fashion not a one of them looked a like a particularly easy or advisable shot, but there just was no stopping him. He even made a crazy leaner that dropped straight through the net.

It was Tennessee coach Cuonzo Martin's nightmare relived as Henderson has now scored 60 points against his team this season (Henderson scored 32 against the Vols on January 9).

Suddenly the Rebels are 16-2 and sitting atop the SEC with giant games looming against Kentucky and Florida next week.

But first comes Auburn (8-10, 2-3 SEC) on Saturday (7 p.m. Fox Sports Net). The Tigers have lost three straight, but it's at Auburn and Ole Miss has come too far to slip up by overlooking an opponent now. If Ole Miss can get past the Tigers, next Tuesday's Kentucky game will be the biggest game played in Oxford in a long, long time.

And the games only get bigger with each win. Tad Smith Coliseum is headed toward four straight sell outs. The Rebels could move higher into the Top 25 rankings and the legend of one Marshall Henderson is growing. He already leads the SEC in scoring. He already had his SportsCenter moment from last week's Vanderbilt game. After dropping 24 points on Tennessee in the 2nd half for the ESPN2 cameras Henderson's fame will grow even more.
Thanks to Henderson Ole Miss is starting to look like a downhill freight train speeding toward March Madness with no brakes. A lot of folks are about to start jumping on for the ride. If Kennedy can keep it on the tracks this one could get really, really fun.

NOTE: Five star safety Tony Conner, from South Panola, was in attendance at last night's game and received a rousing chant of his name from the student section.

REBEL NATION HEADLINES

1. Henderson Sparks Rebels.

2. Rebs Could Dash Deep into March.

3. BIGGEST recruiting weekend in Ole Miss history.