Year nine is not a given in the SEC.
In a conference where pressure arrives quickly and patience can be in short supply, longevity is an accomplishment on its own. That’s especially true for Ole Miss women’s basketball coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin, whose first SEC season in Oxford ended with only three conference wins.
Looking back now, she knows exactly what advice she would give herself during those difficult early years.
“Hold on,” McPhee-McCuin said at SEC Tipoff ’27. “Hold on, because it was a rough ride.”
It’s easy to forget those days now.
Ole Miss enters the season with five consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, the second-longest streak in program history. The Rebels have also won at least 20 games in five straight seasons, something no previous Ole Miss coach accomplished.
Last season was another milestone. Ole Miss became the first team in program history to defeat three AP Top 5 opponents in the same season and was the only SEC team to do so without any of those victories coming at home.
None of that happened overnight.
“There wasn’t a transfer portal and players couldn’t play right away,” McPhee-McCuin said. “I did it the old-school way. we kind of just had to believe in what we were doing and just stick to coaching the game as we know it.”
That meant building a roster, developing players and trusting the process through some difficult seasons.
Now, entering her ninth year, McPhee-McCuin can appreciate just how rare her tenure has become.
“When I heard Tiffany say year nine, I just started to think how lucky I am because, you know, it’s rough out there for coaches,” she said.
She even joked that she hasn’t stayed anywhere for nine years except her marriage.
The comment drew laughs, but it also highlighted why Oxford has become home.
McPhee-McCuin said one of her biggest lessons has been learning to appreciate where she is instead of constantly looking ahead.
Early on, she thought the most important lesson was staying level through wins and losses.
“You’re never as good as you think you are, and you’re never as bad as you think you are,” she said. “Just stay even-keeled. Sometimes when we have a big win, everybody loves you. And then if you don’t, the energy shifts.”
She still believes that. But over time, another lesson became even more important.
“My biggest lesson is be where your feet are and love the place that you’re at,” she said. “I just love being in Oxford. Honestly, if I’m being fair, they treated me the same even when we were losing. The community really wrapped their arms around me.”
For her, that place has become Ole Miss.
McPhee-McCuin said the community supported her even when the Rebels were struggling. The belief was there before the wins started piling up, and that support helped lay the foundation for what the program has become.
“I’m just really happy that I’m at Ole Miss, and I think that would be the biggest lesson,” McPhee-McCuin said. “Don’t get too high or too low, but also be somewhere where they believe in you.”
Oxford believes in Coach Yo. She believes in Oxford. Together, that’s a powerful combination.
