TJ’s Takeaways: No. 21 Ole Miss Men’s Basketball Remains Undefeated in SEC Play, Takes Down No. 4 Alabama 74-64

Editor’s Note: In our ongoing series, “TJ’s Takeaways,” we give readers an in-depth look at the latest Ole Miss men’s basketball game, as our TJ Oxley offers his thoughts, analysis, and insight. This series is here to help identify things that really stand out from the games, things you may not be able to find from a box score. And if you’re also looking for a recap of the game, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Check it out HERE.

On Tuesday night in Tuscaloosa, the No. 21 Ole Miss Rebels defeated the No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide, 74-64, in front the of 13,474 of the Alabama faithful. The Ole Miss defense stifled an Alabama offense that entering the game was averaging an NCAA-high 91 points per game on the season before tonight’s contest. It was the first home loss of the season for the Crimson Tide.

The win marks only the fourth win over a top-four program in Ole Miss history.  The Rebels forced 21 turnovers in the contest and are now one of two remaining undefeated teams in SEC play, joining Auburn with that distinction. Alabama shot a higher percentage from the field than Ole Miss but the Tide’s 47 shot attempts were vastly less than Ole Miss’ 70.

In consistent fashion, Ole Miss improved its performance in the second half, which led to the Rebels overcoming the four-point halftime deficit to finish with the win. The Ole Miss offense improved its overall shooting percentage by 10% and doubled the number of threes made in the game’s final twenty. Chris Beard’s group quickly took control of the lead after starting the second half on a 13-2 run.

Physicality was on display as Ole Miss played an intense game on both ends, and that can be summarized by the play of Malik Dia who finished the contest with a new career-high 19 rebounds. He would also finish the game with 23 points on 11-21 shooting. Jaemyn Brakefield added six free throws in the final minutes to put the game on ice as he ended with 13 points off the bench. Jaylen “JuJu” Murray also added 13 points off the bench, while also dishing out a team-high five assists. Sean Pedulla (12) and Matthew Murrell (11) also scored in double figures.

With the win, Ole Miss improves to 15-2 (4-0) in SEC play. Alabama was led by Aden Holloway who finished the contest with 15 points.

Winning Convincingly on the Road

Not only was this the first road win over a top-five ranked team in program history; not only was it the fourth win over an AP top-five team in program history; and not only was it the first road win over a top-25 team in nearly three years (at #25 LSU 2022), it was the first road statement road win that showed where Ole Miss basketball has arrived in a short time under Chris Beard. As we know in college basketball, good teams will win at home, great teams win on the road.

Earlier games against Georgia, LSU, and Arkansas could all absolutely have been considered statement games in this year’s SEC. However, a win over Alabama is a statement that the whole college basketball community will hear. Steve Makinen posted an article around this time last year at VSIN that noted Alabama in the previous two-and-a-half seasons averaged 86.4 points a game at home. That was then, so how about now? In seven games this year, Alabama has averaged 92.2 points a game at home. Ole Miss held the Tide to 64.

Alabama had scored 70 points or more in 53 straight games. NCAA leader in points per game.#OleMiss held the Tide to 64 😮‍💨😤

— Ben Garrett (@SpiritBen) January 15, 2025

That number shows that Ole Miss dictated the game. Alabama plays fast; they space and they crash the glass. They can be down ten in one minute and up five in the next. The Tide is one of the top offensive rebounding teams in the country. Tonight, Alabama grabbed four offensive rebounds. A team that makes over ten threes a game made only five.

How did this happen? Ole Miss’ defense dared Alabama to drive down the baseline. When they did, the help defense sunk in and rotated and some of those early swings that Mark Sears found early on for Chris Youngblood threes started to get tipped and then intercepted. Ole Miss started to really hone in on that. Active hands jumping in the passing lanes led to turnovers which created more chances for Ole Miss to score the basketball. The no-middle defense was also forcing Alabama to eat further into the clock, putting itself into situations the Tide doesn’t always find itself in. Four Ole Miss players ended the contest with three steals.

The Rebels also switched most everything and while that creates opportunities for mismatches, the Ole Miss defense stayed strong. Whether it was Jaylen Murray in the post or Malik Dia guarding out on the perimeter, Ole Miss was able to hold uts own and had help arrive when needed.

Turnovers… Turnovers… and More Turnovers…

When diving deeper into this contest, turnovers tell the story. It shows the swing in the contest and in the second half. At the end of the first half, one team in this game was shooting 50% from the field, 36% from three and was 10-13 from the free throw line. That team also was winning the rebounding battle. The other team was shooting 35% from the field, 18.2% from three, and only attempted three free throws. Given that Ole Miss is on the road, and how tough it is to win on the road, one would think that first team was Ole Miss — but it was Alabama. The only stat left out was the amount of turnovers.

In a first half where Ole Miss’ offense was struggling to get going, those 11 Alabama turnovers provided a spark for the Rebels. It led to eight fast break points and nine points off of turnovers directly. One thing that I will say is that Ole Miss is also selective about deciding to press on the break or pull back and get into offense.

Like we’ve seen so often this year for Ole Miss, the offense finds its mojo in the second half. This game was no different, but Ole Miss kept forcing turnovers. Eventually, the defense started wearing down Alabama and their offense started to slow down. Ole Miss would force an additional 10 turnovers that led to another 10 points for the Rebels. The 21 turnovers were a large reason why Ole Miss had 23 more shot attempts than Alabama.

Malik Dia’s stardom is here to stay

Watching Ole Miss basketball in conference play has shined a new light on Malik Dia. With tonight’s performance against Alabama, Dia is now averaging 21.0 points a game in his last three outings. When players start to have big performances, their consistency is something you look for. These games all happened back-to-back-to-back — and that is consistency on paper.

Tonight on the biggest stage, Malik Dia shined. He finished the contest with 23 points on 11-21 shooting. While the shooting numbers weren’t the most efficient, it was the confidence he played the game with. Taking his perimeter shots, attacking closeouts, mid-range face-ups, back to the basket moves, and more, Dia displayed a full arsenal for a post player today and he did it with physicality. At one point in the contest, Alabama’s Grant Nelson, got by Dia late in the shot clock and turned the corner for a dunk in the first half. A few minutes later it was Dia who returned the favor by working by Nelson for a layup on the weak side of the basket. Dia, who is not the most vertically explosive player on the court, has found ways to finish lobs and rolls in recent games as well, further adding to his offensive versatility.

Perhaps even more impressive than his shooting outbreak of late, was the rebounding effort by Dia tonight. As mentioned earlier, Alabama tallied four offensive rebounds in the forty minutes tonight. That’s a team who normally grabs offensive rebounds at a ~38% rate. Without Mikeal Brown-Jones, who is out in concussion protocol, Ole Miss needed someone to step up on the glass and Dia lived up that bill.

Fans should rejoice because the former highest-usage player in the country has started to blossom into a star at Ole Miss.