KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It turns out there is someone who can tone down the taunting and irreverent antics Marshall Henderson is becoming known for.
His name is Marshall Henderson.
Mississippi’s flamboyant guard missed 12 of his first 13 shots and was 0 for 6 from 3-point range Friday when he finally connected for a long 3-pointer in a second-round NCAA tournament game against Wisconsin. Then he remained unusually businesslike while scoring the rest of his 19 points and leading the 12th-seeded Rebels to a 57-46 victory.
"You can’t go a little crazy when you go 1 for your first 17," said Marshall, the leading scorer in the Southeastern Conference. "I know what I can do and what I can’t do, and that’s not the time, no."
Henderson’s futility reached its zenith with about 12 minutes to go when he fumbled the ball in the Wisconsin backcourt right into the hands of Sam Dekker, who raced down the court with Henderson on his shoulder and laid the ball in for a 36-30 Badgers lead.
But on Ole Miss’ next possession, Henderson hit that 3-pointer, and the game quickly changed.
"There’s no question Marshall Mania affects the psyche of the other team," Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy said. "How can you avoid it? Marshall this, Marshall that. We live with Marshall Mania. So for us, it’s normal, another day at the office."
It was the first NCAA tournament win for the Rebels (27-8) in 12 years and snapped a string of six straight first-game wins for the cold-shooting Badgers (23-12), who held a three-point halftime lead after Henderson had scored only two points on 1-for-11 shooting.
It’s not the first time Henderson has been known to go ice-cold in the first half and break loose in the second.
"He made that first shot and I celebrated," Kennedy said. "We’ve seen his show before. A lot of guys, you go 0 for 5 and it’s going to be a long night. If you go 5 for 5 it’s going to be a great night. He’s been on both ends of the spectrum. As long as he’s taking shots within our offence, our guys understand that. We were getting him looks. Then once he makes one or two, we keep feeding him."
Wisconsin, known for its stout defence, did hold the Rebels to their lowest point total of the year. But the fifth-seeded Badgers were a miserable 15 for 59 against the Ole Miss zone defence, including 7 for 30 from beyond the arc. Dekker had 14 points for Wisconsin.
"We won a lot of close games, beat a lot of good teams," coach Bo Ryan said. "But again, it’s not a team that really shot the ball well all year. It happened again."
Murphy Holloway had 10 points and nine rebounds and Reginald Buckner had nine points and 12 rebounds for the Rebels, who will play No. 13 seed La Salle in the third round of the West Regional on Sunday. The Explorers upset fourth-seeded Kansas State 63-61.
After Buckner missed two free throws and the Rebels rebounded an errant Wisconsin shot, Henderson hit his second 3-pointer before Jared Berggren answered for the Badgers with a 3 of his own.
Holloway put the Rebels ahead to stay with a tip-in and another bucket. Then, after one of Wisconsin’s 11 turnovers, Jarvis Summers connected for Ole Miss.
Holloway said the Rebels never lose faith in Henderson.
"I just know whenever I get an offensive rebound or a steal, Marshall is coming to the ball," said Holloway. "So I just look for him every time. He’s the player I want to go to."
In Mississippi’s previous game, Henderson starred in a come-from-behind 66-63 upset of Florida in the finals of the SEC tournament.
"For me, I’m so proud of the fact this group continues to grind and fight and persevere, which to me is the name of the game," said Kennedy, who won the first NCAA game he coached.
Henderson, whose 88 per cent foul shooting led the SEC, hit two free throws at the 5:13 mark for a 45-41 lead, then the two teams swapped turnovers before Buckner pulled down a defensive rebound and Henderson connected on a jumper for a 47-41 lead.
An unsightly first half ended with a Wisconsin turnover and a 25-22 lead for the Badgers.
Wisconsin hit only 4 of its first 17 shots and ended the half 7 for 23 but nevertheless held a 3-point lead because the Rebels were even worse. Ole Miss was only 10 for 32 the first 20 minutes.
Dekker agreed the Badgers were often their own worst enemy on offence.
"I mean, we had looks," he said. "We had the chances to pull away from this team. We were up four and six there a couple of times. We had chances."
Berggren, Wisconsin’s career blocks leader, rejected three shots in the first half.