Hogs to play in new digs

Mississippi forward Marcanvis Hymon (5) dunks against Auburn during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at the Pavilion at Ole Miss on Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016 in Oxford, Miss.. (Bruce Newman/The Oxford Eagle via AP)

OXFORD, Miss. -- Andy Kennedy is in his 10th season as Ole Miss' basketball coach, but the Rebels' new arena has given him a fresh perspective.

"It's surreal for me in that it feels like I've taken another job," Kennedy said. "Everything has just totally changed from the dynamics of the game-day experience, and the excitement of our fan base, and how our students have really taken ownership and provided the energy that you need to truly have a home-court advantage.

Arkansas men at Mississippi

WHEN 1 p.m. Central

WHERE The Pavilion at Ole Miss, Oxford, Miss.

RECORDS Arkansas 12-12, 5-6 SEC; Ole Miss 15-9, 5-6.

SERIES Arkansas leads 43-31

RADIO Razorback Sports Network

TELEVISION ESPNU

PROBABLE STARING LINEUPS

MISSISSIPPI

POS., NAME, HT., YR. PPG RPG

G Stefan Moody, 5-10, Sr. 23.3 3.1

G Rasheed Brooks, 6-5, Jr. 9.7 3.4

G Martavious Newby, 6-3, Sr. 4.8 5.2

F Sebastian Saiz, 6-9, Jr. 12.3 9.6

F Anthony Perez, 6-9, Sr. 6.8 4.0

COACH Andy Kennedy (207-123 in 10 seasons at Ole Miss, 227-136 overall in 11 seasons)

ARKANSAS

POS., NAME, HT., YR. PPG RPG

G Anthlon Bell, 6-3, Sr. 16.2 3.0

G Jabril Durham, 6-1, Sr. 6.2 3.3

G Dusty Hannahs, 6-2, Jr. 16.5 2.3

G Manny Watkins, 6-3, Jr. 5.7 3.3

C Moses Kingsley, 6-10, Jr. 15.9 9.0

COACH Mike Anderson (98-60 in five seasons at Arkansas, 298-158 overall in 14 seasons)

TEAM COMPARISON

OLE MISS ARKANSAS

75.5 Points for 80.3

72.5 Points against 75.7

+2.0 Rebound margin +0.8

+2.2 Turnover margin +3.2

42.2 FG pct. 45.1

33.2 3-PT pct. 41.8

73.7 FT pct. 70.7

CHALK TALK Arkansas is looking to bounce back from a 78-46 loss at Mississippi State on Tuesday. … Jimmy Whitt led the Razorbacks with 11 points at Mississippi State. … Ole Miss has won 10 of its past 13 games against Arkansas. … The Razorbacks and Rebels split two games last season, with each winning on the road. Ole Miss is 9-2 at home. … Arkansas is 6-18 at Ole Miss.

"It's a real game-changer for our program."

The Rebels moved into The Pavilion at Ole Miss for the start of SEC play and christened the $96.5 million facility with a 74-66 victory over Alabama on Jan. 7.

Arkansas will experience a game in The Pavilion for the first time when the Razorbacks (12-12, 5-6) play the Rebels (15-9, 5-6) at 1 p.m. today.

"We know when the Hogs and the Rebels get together, it's going to be an all-out war," Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson said. "We're expecting nothing less. It's a team that's going to be physical, going to be aggressive.

"They're in their new place, and I'm sure there will be extra excitement, energy and emotion as we enter that game with them."

All 25 of Arkansas' previous games at Ole Miss were in Tad Smith Coliseum, which opened Feb. 21, 1966, and served as the Rebels' home for 50 years.

Tad Smith Coliseum had a capacity of 8,867 and was the SEC's second-oldest arena behind Vanderbilt's Memorial Gymnasium, which opened in 1952.

The Tad Pad, as it was commonly known, at times suffered from power outages and a leaky roof. Georgia Coach Mark Fox said the Bulldogs once came across a squirrel in the visiting locker room.

The Pavilion figures to keep the power on, the water and squirrels out, and the fans comfortable and well-fed.

It has a capacity of 9,500, which includes 1,700 premium seats with complimentary food and beverage service and two chain hamburger and chicken restaurants.

A video board hangs over the court, a fans' lounge caters to Internet users and a five-story parking garage is adjacent to the arena.

"It's a state-of-the-art, brand-new facility that has amenities we can offer our fan base that we've never had before in the history of our program," Kennedy said. "It's the acoustics, the scoreboard, just the feel, that everybody talks about."

Kennedy said Ole Miss has taken care of its students in addition to the high-dollar donors.

"The students have the closest seats to the floor," he said. "So they really provide great energy for the building."

Fox, whose Bulldogs lost to the Rebels 72-71 in the second game at The Pavilion, said the building is impressive.

"The Pavilion was extremely well done," Fox said. "I'm not sure there's a nicer arena in the conference. It is fantastic.

"You have to give the people at Ole Miss credit for doing a wonderful job. The sight lines for the fans are terrific, and they're close to the action. The video boards are great.

"The arena has an NBA-like feel to it. I think they checked a lot of boxes when they put it together."

Alabama Coach Avery Johnson, who played and coached in the NBA, said The Pavilion provided a big-time game atmosphere when the Crimson Tide were the opening night opponent.

"It's a beautiful building," Johnson said. "One that's probably the envy of a lot of other coaches not only in the SEC, but around the country."

A sellout crowd attended Ole Miss' previous home game when the Rebels beat Vanderbilt 85-78 on Feb. 6 to improve to 4-2 in The Pavilion.

"I'm sure from Andy's standpoint, it's a heck of a lot easier to recruit to it," Vanderbilt Coach Kevin Stallings said. "I think it's probably energized their fan base a little bit, too, because that's the best crowd we've seen there in a number of years."

The last of Ole Miss' 700 games in Tad Smith Coliseum was an 83-80 overtime victory against Troy on Dec. 22.

Ole Miss had a 490-210 record in its old arena, including 126-31 under Kennedy.

"I haven't missed it just yet," Kennedy said about the Tad Pad. "I will say this -- there are a lot of great memories in the old Tad Smith Coliseum.

"We were pretty successful in there winning about 80 percent of our games. So hopefully some of that will carry over."

The Razorbacks are hoping nothing carries over from their last game -- a 78-46 loss at Mississippi State on Tuesday night -- when they take on Ole Miss.

"I know it's going to be a tough ballgame, but I think our guys will be up to the challenge," Anderson said. "Especially on the heels of what took place at Mississippi State where we came out real, real flat.

"That page has been turned. We flushed that out of our system. We burned the tape and you move forward."

Sports on 02/13/2016