Jaida Civil
Yolett McPhee-McCuin has just two returners on a team she spent the off-season building from the transfer portal, but that doesn’t mean expectations departed with last season’s roster that posted a 24-12 record and ended its season on the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
McPhee-McCuin reloaded her roster this spring, adding veteran SEC transfer Talaysia Cooper and Jaida Civil from Tennessee, Jada Richard from LSU and a host of others. Ole Miss finished with the top-ranked portal class in the SEC this year and No. 3 nationally.
If anything, expectations have grown. Cooper led the Lady Vols in scoring, assists, steals and 3-pointers this past season. She very well could be to Ole Miss what departed Ohio State transfer Cotie McMahon was last season when she earned All-America honors.
The Rebels are in their second week of summer workouts. How is McPhe-McCuin juggling the fact that she has 10 new players on this year’s roster.
“Strategically, we kind of balance the team where hopefully we don’t have to have as many new players,” said McPhee-McCuin. “But I look forward to the challenge. I’m excited about it. We have a lot of new pieces, but we’re not necessarily a team quite yet.”
The gelling process is something that is going on right now. How important is building chemistry amongst the newcomers?
“I’m not going to rush it,” McPhee-McCuin said. “Here’s the thing. We have a long season. Everyone that came here came here for their own reasons. In the grand scheme of things, they know that we win and they want to be a part of a program that can help them accomplish their goals, which we have seen time after time.
“If I try to put a time line on when they should gel or what that should look like. I think I’d be force-feeding it. We do have a good pace. Luckily, we did have a lot of players from the Southeastern Conference, so they are familiar with how we play and what we’re about.”
McPhee-McCuin then broke out with a broad smile.
“It’s been kind fun because we trash talk a little bit,” she grinned. “What should have happened last year and that kind of stuff when we played each other. But now, we’re all on the same team and we’re just going to try to take it one workout at a time.”
The summertime is also a time for leaders to emerge. Have their been any player or players to step to the forefront at this early stage?
“Coop (Cooper) has been very vocal. She wants to win. This is her last lap. Jada Richard…Honestly, I’ve heard from the majority of the players that have been in our league, because they understand what the expectation is and what the grind look like every single day.”
Ole Miss continues summertime workouts as the build toward the opener for the 2026-2027 season in November.