Alabama takes something into today’s game at Ole Miss it hopes will be a factor when the Crimson Tide tries to snap a Southeastern Conference road losing streak that has reached 18 games.

Confidence.

Alabama (15-12, 5-8 SEC) takes a two-game winning streak into the 3 p.m. game, which will be televised by Raycom Sports. It is the first time the Tide has won back-to-back conference games this season.

“I think our guys are confident with some of the things that they’re doing, some things they’re able to accomplish” interim coach Philip Pearson said. “Hopefully, that’s going to continue to benefit us.”

Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy took notice after watching tape of the Tide’s victories over Mississippi State and Arkansas this week.

“I think they’re playing with great confidence,” Kennedy said when asked the difference between the Tide team he watched this week and the one that beat the Rebels, 76-73, on Jan. 21.

“They’ve got talented players. Alonzo Gee is maybe playing the best basketball of his collegiate career,” Kennedy said on the SEC coaches teleconference Thursday. “He’s always been a hard matchup because of his size and his strength and his athleticism. (Against Arkansas) he goes 5-of-6 from 3 and when he does that, it creates an incredible matchup problem.

“They’re athletic. They’ve got a lot of different pieces that can hurt you in a lot of different ways.”

The Rebels (15-12, 6-7 SEC) are coming off a 77-64 loss at Auburn. David Huertas leads Ole Miss, averaging 18.7 points per game. Freshman Terrico White, who scored a career-high 24 against Auburn, is second averaging 12.4 points per game.

Gee and his teammates are feeling better about themselves.

“It felt great to win back-to-back,” Gee said. “Our confidence is pretty high right now. We still have to stay focused and keep learning and keep getting better.”

Freshman forward JaMychal Green called beating Mississippi State last week to end a four-game slide “a momentum boost.”

“God answered our prayers for a win and it’s gonna be a turnaround for the rest of the season,” Green said.

Pearson said the Tide has taken positive steps this week.

“I think we’ve defended better, for sure,” the coach said. “Our defensive field goal percentage has been in a lot better shape. I think we’ve been able to get some baskets out of our defense.”

There is more to accomplish, obviously, than a modest two-game home winning streak. Stopping that road skid that dates to Jan. 31, 2007, is the next step, Pearson said.

“We’ve been in some (road) games, we need to see if we can find a way to finish one,” he said.