Five Rebels Score in Double Figures as No. 22 Ole Miss Defeats LSU at Home
OXFORD, Miss. – (Release) The No. 22 Ole Miss men’s basketball team (14-2, 3-0 SEC) defeated LSU (11-5, 0-3 SEC) 77-65, Saturday afternoon at the SJB Pavilion, as Malik Dia kept his hot week going, leading the Rebels with 19 points and seven rebounds.
The Rebs are 3-0 in SEC play#HottyToddy x #Culture pic.twitter.com/XsmEqERGTp
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) January 12, 2025
Despite a 15-0 LSU run over five minutes in the first half, Ole Miss hung tough after jumping out to a quick 7-0 lead. The Rebels responded with an 8-0 run over 2:35 to knot things at 15 with 7:43 remaining in the first half.
The Tigers would find another short offensive run before Matthew Murrell connected on back-to-back triples from freshman Eduardo Klafke, making all things square once again with 3:40 left. The two sides would trade buckets over the final three minutes as Ole Miss took a 28-26 advantage into the break.
MURR3LL 👌@mattmurrell_ x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/76Syhc2BU8
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) January 11, 2025
Ole Miss came out strong in the second half once again, stretching their lead early in the second period. The Rebels dominated the trenches the first 10 minutes of play, pushing the lead to 52-39 with 11:01 to play in regulation.
Defense turned to offense as Ole Miss forced 17 LSU turnovers generating 23 points off the takeaways. The Rebels were extremely efficient from the floor over the final 20 minutes shooting 60.7 percent (17-for-28) and 11-of-13 from the charity stripe.
Malik Dia led the way with 14 in the second half on 6-of-7 shooting. Jaemyn Brakefield added 12 points in the final frame, going 6-of-7 from the free throw line.
Brake attacks the basket 💪@Jaemyn1 x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/DKxmhsbZu4
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) January 12, 2025
Ole Miss attacked the painted area scoring 34 points in the trenches and held an 11-point advantage on fast break points with a season-high 20.
Ole Miss returns to action next Tuesday at No. 5/5 Alabama (13-2, 2-0 SEC). Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT on ESPNU.
NOTABLES
- Malik Dia had the hot hand for the Rebels this week leading the way with 19 points and seven rebounds. It marks back-to-back games the big man has led in points and on the glass.
- Five Rebels scored in double-figures: Dia (21), Jaemyn Brakefield (16), Sean Pedulla (11), Dre Davis (10), and Jaylen Murray (10). It marks the fourth game this year five Rebels have reached double-digit points.
- Matthew Murrell had a season-high six helpers to lead the Rebels in passing.
- The 12 steals by the Rebels marked the 10th game this season Ole Miss has generated 10 or more steals. Ole Miss entered 19th in the NCAA averaging 9.9 steals per contest.
- Ole Miss is 3-0 to begin conference play for the first time since the 2018-19 season.
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.
