No. 24 Ole Miss Men’s Basketball Falls at Vanderbilt Saturday, 77-72
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – (Release) The No. 24 Ole Miss men’s basketball team (19-8, 8-6 SEC) dropped its road game at Vanderbilt 77-72, Saturday at Memorial Gymnasium. The Commodores (18-9, 6-8 SEC) had four players in double-figures led by Chris Manon with 16 points. Ole Miss’s Malik Dia led all scorers with 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting.
Vanderbilt stormed out of the gates making four of their first seven three-point attempts. The Commodores would lead by as many as 19 in the first half, taking a 36-17 lead with 5:01 remaining.
Ole Miss would close the half on a 16-5 run, cutting the deficit to eight at the break. Sean Pedulla and Dia each scored 10 points over the first 20 minutes of action to lead the Rebels.
The Rebels would win the first four minutes of the second half, storming back to take a 47-46, lead with 16:08 to play. Ole Miss hit five of their first seven shots, including two triples from the guard tandem of Pedulla and Jaylen Murray.
Vanderbilt would extend the lead back to four before five straight points from Malik Dia to give Ole Miss a 64-62, lead with 7:12 to play.
The Commodores would push the lead back to five after a Chris Manon dunk made it 69-64, Vandy with 3:47 left in regulation, later pushing it to seven with 2:47 to play.
Ole Miss cut the deficit to five before Pedulla and Dia forced a Vanderbilt turnover in the backcourt with 1:39 to play. The Commodores would force a critical Rebel turnover, getting the ball back with 1:18 left.
Ole Miss forced another turnover followed by a Pedulla layup in transition, making it 73-70 Vanderbilt with 1:02 on the clock. Vanderbilt’s Tyler Nickel would convert a pair of free throws pushing the lead back to five to help close it out.
Ole Miss returns to the hardwood Wednesday February 26 for a matchup at No. 1 Auburn (24-2, 12-1 SEC). Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m. CT on ESPN2.
NOTABLES
- Malik Dia led all scorers with 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting. It marked his third 20-point game of the season and his 10th scoring in double-figures.
- Dia also led Ole Miss on the glass with seven rebounds.
- Sean Pedulla tallied his fourth 20-point game this season with 21 points on 50.0 percent shooting. It marked his 20th game this season scoring in double-figures.
- Jaylen Murray led Ole Miss in passing with five helpers. It marked his 12th game this season with five or more assists.
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.
