No. 23 Ole Miss snaps three-game losing streak with gritty win over Texas, 72-69
Oxford, Miss. – Returning to the Pavilion after a road trip, No. 23 Ole Miss snapped a three-game losing skid in conference play with a gritty win over head coach Chris Beard’s former team the Texas Longhorns, 72-69.
HYDR‼️#HottyToddy x #Culture pic.twitter.com/IHAuWQO0jv
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) January 30, 2025
Following the win over his former team, head coach Chris Beard spoke about what a win like this means heading into a matchup with the number one team in the country.
“This is an 18-round fight, I don’t know much about momentum. We’re just trying to put ourselves in a position to have some good practices, give the guys the best possible game plan.”
~ Beard on momentum after the win
First half
The Rebels won the opening tip of the game and right away Matthew Murrell attacked the rim, drawing a foul and getting to the line on the first possession. The senior guard made one of the two free ones, but it was all Texas for the next five minutes.
Ole Miss struggled offensively to begin the game, going 0-for-6 from the field and just 2-for-4 from the free throw line. Facing a nine-point deficit, Sean Pedulla finally got the first bucket to fall for Ole Miss, a triple that seemingly sparked the offense.
The big shot from Pedulla immediately led to Dre Davis knocking down another three on the next possession. Seven minutes in, Davis eventually made it a 10-11 game after making both shots at the charity stripe. A trip to the line put the Longhorns back up by two, however, that was before Jaemyn Brakefield drove to the basket with intentions and tied the game at 12 apiece with a layup.
😮💨 @Jaemyn1 #HottyToddy x #Culture pic.twitter.com/j9EM5wV9VE
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) January 30, 2025
The Longhorns would take the lead back shortly after the Rebels tied it, however, it was Murrell picking off a bad pass and cruising in for the easy fastbreak layup, giving Ole Miss a 15-14 lead.
Over the next four minutes of play, Texas would go on an 18-4 run as the rebounding struggles again began to make a difference for Ole Miss. After around two minutes without a basket, Pedulla knocked down his second and third triples of the night, making it a single-digit deficit for the Rebels with a little over four and a half minutes left in the half.
A putback slam for Texas ended the 9-2 run in favor of the Rebels, but it was another triple falling for Ole Miss shortly after, this time by Davis to make it 36-28 in the waning minutes of the half. The game then began to slow down a bit as Brakefield hit four straight free ones for the Rebels to cut into the Longhorn lead even more.
Pedulla would stay hot during the Ole Miss run, making a nifty move in the paint to get a bucket to fall and make it just a two-point deficit with under a minute on the clock. Texas big-man Arthur Kaluma then ended the 14-2 run with a basket inside as the Longhorns took a four-point lead into the locker room.
The efforts on the glass proved to be there for Ole Miss as the first half rolled on, heading into the locker room with a closer rebound differential than usual. Pedulla led the way at the break with 11 points, knocking down three of his four three-point attempts. Davis added eight more points for Ole Miss, leading the way in rebounds with five.
1st Half Frames 📸#HottyToddy x #Culture pic.twitter.com/yBNEfbjsP8
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) January 30, 2025
Second half
With momentum in their favor as the first half ended, the Rebels came out fast to begin the final half of play. Following a turnover on the opening possession by Texas, Jaylen ‘Juju’ Murray knocked down his second shot of the night, a triple that made it just a one-point deficit for Ole Miss.
Juju from 3️⃣👌#HottyToddy x #Culture pic.twitter.com/ee6Bpn0lET
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) January 30, 2025
After a quick answer from the Longhorns, it was Malik Dia and Davis with back-to-back buckets to give the Rebels their first lead of the second half and the Pavilion crowd began to play a factor.
Following the win, Beard commented on what it meant to have Davis back in the lineup versus Texas.
“Just a lot of respect for Dre. I mean, he’s banged up, not even having a chance to practice and go through his normal routine. To have the courage to not only play but make up his mind to play well…on a night when most guys would not play, he goes out there and is the best player on the floor.”
~ Beard on Davis’s performance coming off a DNP
Davis and Pedulla continued to pour it on for the Rebels early in the second half, but the back-and-forth in the SEC battle rolled on. Ole Miss made three of their first four shots to begin the final half of play.
Again though, the Longhorns found a way, answering Ole Miss buckets almost immediately as they led 47-44 seven minutes into the second half. However, it was Pedulla from deep again, knocking down his fourth triple of the night to tie it for the Rebels at 47. Shortly after, the Ole Miss guard gave the Rebels another lead with more moves that stunned the Pavilion crowd.
Keep Cookin’ 👨🍳@PedullaSean x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/QtDdBanc8t
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) January 30, 2025
Ole Miss would then go the next four minutes without a bucket, proving to be a late-game issue once again for the Rebels in this one as they could not find an answer offensively in the middle of the second half. During that span, Davon Barnes knocked down four free throws to keep the Rebels within arm’s reach.
As the second half rolled on, Brakefield and Davis proved to be the big shot makers for the Rebels as they scored nine of the next 11 points in the four-minute span in which the Longhorns went without a field goal. It was the foul drawn by Tre Johnson on a three-point attempt that kept Texas within reach of Ole Miss, but another basket from Barnes extended the Rebel lead to 65-61 with under four minutes to play.
😤😤😤@DAndreDavis x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/zdm6eHcHkY
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) January 30, 2025
Just when it seemed as if the Rebels were ready to put this one away, Johnson knocked down his second three of the night, tying the game at 66 with two and a half minutes to play. However, Brakefield again decided to be the answer for Ole Miss, finding a way and getting a bucket to fall inside for another lead change.
JAEMYN BRAKEFIELD 💪@Jaemyn1 x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/6MXXERx5L6
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) January 30, 2025
After a putback dunk from Texas that tied things up at 68, Pedulla gave Ole Miss another lead with a minute to go, knocking down a mid-range jumper. Kaluma would then find a way to draw a foul and get to the line for the Longhorns, making one of his two free throws on the one-and-one opportunity to give Texas some life.
Pedulla then failed to put the nail in the coffin, missing a layup that allowed the Longhorns to burn their final timeout with 30 seconds to go. Of course, it was Johnson who Texas turned to, but a running layup rimmed out for the freshman and Barnes grabbed the board for Ole Miss.
Just a few games removed from whiffing on a one-and-one opportunity against Texas A&M, Barnes went to the stripe and drained both, ultimately putting the dagger in the Longhorns as the last shot was tough to get off.
“(I have) a lot of confidence in Barnes. He puts in the time…I think it was two games ago; I leave here and go to the Touhy basketball facility like we do every night and the ball is bouncing. It’s Barnes at the free throw line.”
~ Beard on Barnes hitting clutch free throws down the stretch
The Rebels flipped the script from the first half, attacking the glass and taking advantage of opportunities on offense. Ole Miss also had no problem getting to the free throw line tonight, knocking down 19 of their 25 attempts, making more than the Longhorns attempted. Just as they had all year, the Rebels also took care of the basketball with only one second-half turnover.
“We definitely wanted to be more aggressive. Some of that was trying to get into the bonus. We had some good, off-the-ball plays in both halves and we just wanted to stay aggressive.”
~ Beard on the free throw differential tonight
Pedulla led the way in scoring for Ole Miss with 19 points, knocking down four of his seven three-point attempts. Davis finished with 17 points, seven rebounds and a pair of blocks, proving to be the difference after sitting out in the loss to Missouri. Brakefield also had a big night for the Rebels, making big shot after big shot and finishing with 16 points of his own.
Up next
Chris Beard and No. 23 Ole Miss will stay in Oxford heading into the weekend as they prepare to host No. 1 Auburn. On Saturday, Feb. 1 at 1 pm CT, the Rebels will take on the Tigers in the Sandy and John Black Pavilion.
Kameron Wicker
Kam is a senior at Ole Miss, currently pursuing a degree in Journalism. Even though he's from Delhi, Louisiana, that didn't stop Kam from growing up a diehard Ole Miss fan. He's a sports guru who watches and follows all sports at all times. He lettered four years in football and baseball in high school and is an avid Saints, Pelicans, and Astros fan. In his free time, you can find him watching sports or at the rec participating in them.
