Chris Beard Reveals How Ole Miss Basketball Should Respond to Loss vs. State

The Ole Miss Rebels are hoping to bounce back from a difficult road loss when they play host to Texas A&M on Wednesday night.

Jan 18, 2025; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Chris Beard reacts during the second half against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Humphrey Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images / Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

The No. 16 Ole Miss Rebels went through a tale of two road games last week.

First, they picked up the first-ever road win over an AP Top 5 team in program history when they took down the Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa on Tuesday. Then, in an attempt to keep the momentum going, a comeback effort fell just short against nationally-ranked Mississippi State in overtime on Saturday.

That's a lot of emotion in a span of just a few days, but how have the Rebels responded? They have another test coming on Wednesday night when they play host to the No. 13 Texas A&M Aggies in Oxford.

"Yet to be determined," head coach Chris Beard said on Tuesday. "I've always thought the next game is the biggest game on the schedule. It's the same thing after a victory too. As a coach, sometimes that's even more challenging, when a team wins a game that's perceived by others to be a 'big game.'

"It goes both ways. You have some disappointment, some heartbreak, and you've got to respond quickly. You have some success, you've got to get over it pretty quick and respond as well."

Beard doesn't appear to be overly concerned with the general makeup of his team, so perhaps a positive response is on the way. He believes that the Rebels have a lot of veteran players who have shown a willingness to cooperate on the floor, and that experience means they know what it takes to win.

Now, it's simply about putting it all together during the grind of an SEC slate, a schedule that becomes more daunting with each passing night of action across the league.

"I respect where our guys are coming from in terms of their hearts, their willingness to want to win, to work together," Beard said. "It's been an unselfish group to this point. We've got a lot of guys who are pretty secure in who they are, in terms of what they've done in their careers before Ole Miss, so the objective is to try and win the game.

"Practice was good yesterday. We'll see."

Ole Miss is currently 15-3 overall and 4-1 in SEC play. It will look to improve those marks on Wednesday night when it takes on the Aggies at 8 p.m. CT on ESPN2.

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