Skip to main content
Ole Miss

Ole Miss women's basketball to be without KK Deans after season-ending injury

11by: Jake Thompson11/24/23JakeThompsonOn3
NCAA Womens Basketball: Battle 4 Atlantis Championship-Michigan vs Mississippi
Ole Miss Rebels guard KK Deans (1) shoots as Michigan Wolverines guard Laila Phelia (5) defends during the first half at Imperial Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Ole Miss women’s basketball head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin will be without one of her three key transfers for the rest of the season only six games in.

Guard KK Deans will miss the remainder of the 2023-24 season after suffering a knee injury that will require surgery. Deans was injured in the game against Michigan which Ole Miss won to claim the Battle 4 Atlantis championship in the Bahamas on Monday. She finished with two points in five minutes of action before getting hurt.

Deans transferred from Florida this offseason and was a major get for McPhee-McCuin out the transfer portal. She joined Kennedy Todd-Williams (North Carolina) and Kharyssa Richardson (Arkansas) as the Rebels major additions for this year.

“This is obviously an unfortunate situation for KK and our team,” McPhee-McCuin said in a statement. “She has been a bright spot for us this season and we will stick beside KK during her recovery.”

Starting in each of the first six games, Deans averaged 9.3 points per outing and led the Rebels with 3.8 assists per game. She recorded a double-double in three of the games and had a season-high 16 points against Temple earlier this month.

Deans was expected to be the one to help fill the void left by Angel Baker who departed after spending one season with Ole Miss last year, leading the Rebels to a Sweet 16 berth back in March.

Freshman guard Marija Avlijas looks like she might be Deans replacement. The Serbia native finished with 11 points, three assists, two steals and a rebound against the Wolverines in 27 minutes off the bench on Monday.

No. 24 Ole Miss (5-1) took most of the week off for Thanksgiving break after returning from the Bahamas but resume play on Saturday, hosting Little Rock (0-4) at 3 p.m. CT on SEC Network+.

You may also like