Ole Miss Men’s Basketball Falls on the Road at No. 22 Kentucky
LEXINGTON, Ky. – (Release) Despite a great start, the Ole Miss men’s basketball team was topped by No. 20 Kentucky in Rupp Arena, 75-63, on Tuesday night.
The Rebels (18-6, 5-6 SEC) took advantage of the Wildcats (17-7, 7-4 SEC) mistakes, scoring 21 points off Kentucky’s 15 turnovers. Brandon Murray paced Ole Miss with three takeaways in addition to his three rebounds and three assists.
From the start, Allen Flanigan hits a jumper and Murrell cashes in a three-pointer to get the Rebels out to a 5-0 start. However, Kentucky took a 9-0 run to hold the lead at the first media timeout. Murray flipped the momentum with a steal and bucket, followed by another swipe on the following Wildcat possession that turned into a Murrell three. The Rebels would go on to score 10 straight unanswered points.
Ole Miss fended off the Wildcats and maintained the lead with a little more than five minutes remaining in the first half. The defense capitalized on eight turnovers for 13 points. The Rebels went into the break, down 43-29.
Jaemyn Brakefield stripped the ball away from the Kentucky guard in the second period, cutting Ole Miss’s deficit to 10 with around 18 minutes left. The following possession, Murrell slammed a transition dunk through, closing in on the Wildcats down 45-37. Moussa Cisse’s turnaround jumper highlighted five straight made field goals to put the Rebels within six at the 16-minute mark.
Brakefield slowed the Wildcat surge with a massive three-pointer from the left at 9:22 in the second half. At the under-eight media timeout, Ole Miss trailed Kentucky 68-52. Austin Nunez also dropped in a three in his first minutes to keep Ole Miss within reach with under six to play.
Not letting up, Cisse put the ball down over the Wildcats center with under two minutes left. Flanigan made a final second-chance layup as the clock ticked off.
Murrell tied the team lead in scoring 16 points, notching 12 in the first half. The senior guard added a team-leading six rebounds and an assist. Murrell moved closer to 200 career made three-pointers, tallying three more on Tuesday. Brakefield would also secure 16 points, along with five rebounds and two steals.
Flanigan conducted the offense, dishing out six assists to lead the Rebels for the eighth time this year. The forward also amassed 10 points, five rebounds, a block, and a steal.
Antonio Reeves directed Kentucky’s offensive with 15 points, while three other Wildcats scored in double figures.
The Rebels return home to host Missouri at the SJB Pavillion on Saturday, February 17, at 7:30 p.m. on SEC Network.
Evelyn Van Pelt
Evelyn has covered sports for over two decades, beginning her journalism career as a sports writer for a newspaper in Austin, Texas. She attended Texas A&M and majored in English. Evelyn’s love for Ole Miss began when her daughter Katie attended the university on a volleyball scholarship. Evelyn created the Rebel Walk in 2013 and has served as publisher and managing editor since its inception.
