Ole Miss Women’s Basketball Drops Tight Contest to Texas A&M

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – (Release) Despite a strong first half showing, No. 25/25 Ole Miss women’s basketball fell short against Texas A&M, 60-58, at Neville Arena on Sunday afternoon.

Ole Miss (10-4, 1-1 SEC) had a fierce first half, shooting over 50% from the field, but a second half resurgence by Texas A&M (8-6, 1-1 SEC) gave it the victory when the ticker hit zero.

The Rebels played stingy defense once again throughout, forcing 17 turnovers with nine steals. Seven of the steals came in the first half, in which the Rebels held the Aggies to no 3-point conversions, signifying the seventh consecutive quarter that the Rebels have not given up a basket from beyond the arc. That streak spanned to the fourth quarter of Alcorn State.

Madison Scott led the Rebels with 14 points, her eighth game in double figures and third time pacing the team this season. For her career, Scott has been the top point-scorer for the Rebels 25 times. She also added five rebounds and two assists to her stat sheet.

Sira Thienou and Starr Jacobs needed only one half to acquire double-figure points. For Thienou, her 10-point first half marked the 10th outing of the season in double figures and sixth in a row, tied for the second-longest streak by an SEC freshman this season. She contributed three rebounds as well for the Rebels. Jacobs has scored 10 or more points in four of the last five games and eight times so far this season, finishing this competition with 11.

Tameiya Sadler recorded a season-high six rebounds to reach 300 rebounds of her overall career. She now has 302 overall in her five-year collegiate career. Sadler led the team in the rebounding category while recording three steals and six points.

KK Deans etched her name into the Ole Miss record book, making a pair of 3-pointers against the Aggies. By reaching 3-pointer No. 194, she tied Regan Seybert for the third-most career 3-pointers made in program history. Should Deans reach 200 career 3-pointers, she’d become only the third Rebel ever to reach the two-century mark.

Ole Miss played with high intensity through the first quarter, converting on 5-of-6 field goals in a three-minute span midway through the period. Thienou’s five points led Ole Miss in the quarter, all coming in that strong shooting stretch. Thienou added a pair of steals to the Rebel cause, marking her 10th game this season with multiple steals.

The Rebels shot 66.7% from the field in the second quarter, headed by seven points from Jacobs. She made two field goals and was a perfect 3-for-3 from the charity stripe. The Dallas, Texas, native and Thienou reached double-figure points in the second period. Deans opened the quarter with her second 3-pointer of the game, effectively tying with Seybert for third-most in program history.

The Aggies committed 11 turnovers in the first half while the Rebels outshot, outrebounded and out passed their opponents.

The Rebels then faced a second half revival by the Aggies. Texas A&M would tie the game at 52 with more than half of the fourth quarter remaining and would make two more field goals to make it a two-possession game, which Deans erased after getting fouled on a 3-point attempt and converting all three free throws.

After an intentional foul that led to a final free throw by Texas A&M, Ole Miss would have one more opportunity to force overtime or win. The Rebels were unable to convert a tough last-second layup, and the game concluded with a 60-58 final score.

The Rebels will look to regroup and reenter the win column as it returns to Oxford for their conference home opener against Vanderbilt on Jan. 9. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on SEC Network+.