Big night from Murrell and Murray propels No. 25 Ole Miss to dominating win, 98-84, over No. 14 Kentucky

OXFORD, Miss. – Bouncing back after a loss this past weekend, No. 25 Ole Miss dominated No. 14 Kentucky, 98-84, in the SJB Pavilion Tuesday by taking care of the ball and relying on a special offensive night from the veterans in the lineup.

The win marks the first over a ranked Kentucky team since 2011, and 98 points was the most scored against the Wildcats in Ole Miss history.

BOUNCED BACK‼️#HottyToddy x #Culture pic.twitter.com/VouIKolDDO

— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) February 5, 2025

First half

Kentucky won the opening tip, but it was Sean Pedulla striking first for Ole Miss after a quick foul and a couple of free throws. Dre Davis got going early for the Rebels as well, knocking down a turnaround jumper and triple after Amari Williams scored the first basket for the Wildcats.

Dr3 Davis 👌@DAndreDavis x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/jpw87EWTZT

— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) February 5, 2025

Again, Kentucky turned to Williams inside for another quick bucket, but it was Malik Dia draining his first three-point attempt of the night to give Ole Miss a quick 10-4 lead.

0️⃣🔥@malikkdia x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/9rM8Q0CkMZ

— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) February 5, 2025

Matthew Murrell put his name in the scoring the column four minutes into the half after the first Kentucky triple of the night, but it was Jaemyn Brakefield burying another three for Ole Miss to force timeout out of the Wildcats.

Leading 15-7, Davon Barnes quickly gave the Rebels a double-digit lead with a layup out of the timeout. However, Otega Oweh and Brandon Garrison closed the gap in a hurry with two quick buckets for the Wildcats, making it 20-14 just over seven minutes in.

The Wildcats would then go two minutes without a basket before Andrew Carr ended the drought with a bucket inside.

It was Dia again for Ole Miss though, this time putting the ball on the deck and driving the baseline for a hard slam that ignited the Pavilion crowd. Shortly after, Murrell hit another shot from behind the arc for the Rebels to, once again, make it a double-digit game.

EXPLOSIVE 😤@malikkdia x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/MCuhxAQFwi

— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) February 5, 2025

Carr was the only Wildcat player to get to the line in the first half, going two of four. After the first Kentucky free throws of the night, Brakefield put the ball on the floor and slammed it home for the basket and a foul, once again getting the crowd to erupt.

Mikeal Brown-Jones then put his name in the box score with a floater off a dish from Brakefield. However, Jaxson Robinson would end a 9-1 Ole Miss run with just under eight minutes to go in the half with a triple.

Leading 38-25 after another Murrell triple, Ole Miss would go on a 16-3 run in the final six minutes of the half as Murrell seemed to make everything he put up. Playing for the final shot of the half, Jaylen ‘Juju’ Murray danced around the perimeter before driving inside for a tough layup in the final seconds.

JUJU 💪#HottyToddy x #Culture pic.twitter.com/8MyRB1BCgK

— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) February 5, 2025

Murrell led the way for Ole Miss at the half with 14 points, draining four of his five three-point attempts as well as picking up three assists. Brakefield and Dia added 10 more points each for Ole Miss as well while Dia led the team with four rebounds at the break.

The difference going into the locker room was no doubt at the three-point line where the Rebels made nine at the break to Kentucky’s five. However, the Rebels also had zero first-half turnovers and tied the Wildcats with 18 boards going into the break.

Second half

After a solid first half on both ends of the floor, Dia opened the second half with a quick triple. Shortly after, Murrell followed with another triple for the Rebels after one of the better halves of basketball in his career.

Despite the Wildcats answering with back-to-back dunks by Oweh and Williams, Dia kept pouring it on as he found his way inside with a nifty move for the layup. A fast start to the second half saw neither Ole Miss nor Kentucky missing a bucket in the first three minutes of play.

Oweh began to find his shots for the Wildcats as the Ole Miss lead was down to 13 just over four minutes in. It was Davis finding more offense though, quickly entering double digits in points as he hit another mid-range jumper, a shot he was in love with all night.

Murrell then knocked down his sixth triple of the night, but the Rebels would go without a field goal after that for over four minutes. Pedulla ended a 9-1 Kentucky run with a jumper to make it 74-57, but the Wildcats were still shooting the lights out with a 75 percent clip from the field midway through the half.

The Ole Miss backcourt of Pedulla and Murray then found some quick offense for the Rebels to get the crowd back in the game and on its feet, but it was Robinson nailing his fifth three of the night as Kentucky went on another 8-0 run.

Murray came right back after the Wildcat run though, taking control of the Ole Miss offense in the second half and nailing another deep shot. The Murray triple was the thirteenth and final three-pointer of the night for Ole Miss to end the Kentucky run.

Again, Davis would go right back to his spot in the middle of the floor, finding the elbow and knocking down another fadeaway jumper just as he had all night. Shortly after on the other end of the floor, Davis forced a Wildcat turnover by poking the ball away from Carr, a play that really got the Pavilion crowd going.

Looking to drain some clock with just over four minutes left to play and up 87-75, Pedulla danced around in the backcourt before driving inside to add more to the Ole Miss lead. Carr and Oweh would then score the next eight points for Kentucky to make it an 11-point game with time against the Wildcats.

After an intentional foul by Kentucky that put the Rebels in the bonus, Barnes, Murrell and Davis iced the game at the line for Ole Miss. The trio went six-for-six on their free throws in the waning minutes after reaching the bonus. The Wildcats would continue to scratch and claw for shots to fall but time was just not in their favor as the buzzer sounded.

Murray finished with 15 points and 10 assists, adding to Pedulla’s eight assist night in the backcourt alongside him. Murrell added 24 more points, his first 20-point game of the season for Ole Miss, along with five boards and six threes made. Davis added 17 points as well while Dia and Brakefield finished with double-digit scoring nights also.

The key to the Rebel win was the one turnover that did not come until the second half, a feat that Chris Beard claimed to have only accomplished one other time in his coaching career. The Rebels also shot 54 percent from the field and only allowed six offensive boards against the Wildcats. The six rebounds allowed on the offensive end tonight was the first time Ole Miss allowed less than 11 offensive rebounds since the win over Alabama earlier in SEC play.

Up next

Chris Beard and the Rebels will hit the road for their next SEC matchup as they take on the LSU Tigers in Baton Rouge on Saturday, Feb. 8. Tipoff is set for 7:30 pm CT on the SEC Network.