Kermit Davis shares injury which kept TJ Caldwell out vs. Mississippi State

Stephen Samraby:Steve Samra02/19/23

SamraSource

Kermit Davis and Ole Miss certainly would’ve liked to have had TJ Caldwell on the court during their loss to Mississippi State on Saturday.

Without his services, the Rebels fell to the Bulldogs by a score of 69-61. Afterwards, Davis shed some light on the injury, sharing what kept Caldwell out of the rivalry showdown.

“I thought he was yesterday when we had our press conference,” started Davis, asked why Caldwell didn’t play. “He tweaked a hamstring at Florida. Tweaked it again yesterday. So he tried today, and he just couldn’t go. So we missed him.”

Alas, it was a close game throughout between Ole Miss and Mississippi State, with the Bulldogs eventually pulling away in overtime to get the victory. Jaemyn Brakefield tried his damndest to keep the Rebels in it with his 20 points, but it wasn’t enough in the end.

Now, Ole Miss will look towards a showdown with Auburn in their next game, hoping to have TJ Caldwell back in the fold so they can get back on track.

Kermit Davis talks about Ole Miss struggles: ‘We want better for Ole Miss’

Moreover, things are looking pretty bleak for Kermit Davis and Ole Miss at the moment.

Last week, Kermit Davis expressed his daily message toward his team in the face of adversity. Things might seem rough for the Rebels right now, but Davis believes hard work will eventually pay off. 

“It’s just about getting through difficult things. It has been for two years. We haven’t had a lot of great luck happen with Ole Miss basketball, but the league is unforgiving and has great coaches just like [John Calipari] and Jerry Stackhouse, they just keep coming,” Davis said. “There are some really good teams.

“I’m just so proud of our players, proud of our staff. We’re working at it day and night. As I said, we’re fighting for two people — I feel for our players and I feel for our fans. Those are the two people I feel for and we want better than what’s going on at Ole Miss.”

On3’s Barkley Truax contributed to this article.