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No. 6-seed Ole Miss Holds Off No. 11-seed North Carolina, Moves On to Round of 32 against Iowa State

Posted by | Mar 21, 2025 |

No. 6-seed Ole Miss Holds Off No. 11-seed North Carolina, Moves On to Round of 32 against Iowa State

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OXFORD, Miss. – No. 6-seed Ole Miss survived a late comeback attempt from No. 11-seed North Carolina, securing a 71-64 victory behind a dominant second-half performance from senior guard Sean Pedulla in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Ole Miss head coach Chris Beard now moves to 6-0 on his career in first round tournament games, securing the first tournament win for the Rebels since 2015.

First half

North Carolina won the opening tip, but it was Dre Davis scoring the first five points for Ole Miss. Jaylen ‘Juju’ Murray and Jaemyn Brakefield followed with two more threes to make it an 11-2 lead, forcing an early timeout for North Carolina.

A quick layup from Ven-Alle Lubin out of the timeout ended the run for the Tar Heels, but Davis drained another three that put Ole Miss up by 10 four minutes into play. However, an 8-3 run going into media timeout for North Carolina capped off by a triple for RJ Davis made it a 14-10 lead for the Rebels.

Matthew Murrell and Malik Dia put the Rebels back up eight right out of the timeout. Following that a was a 15-4 run for Ole Miss. Davis hit his third three of the game and Brakefield hit his second; Davis hit his fifth shot during the run as well that capped off his perfect shooting half.

Drake Powell cut the Ole Miss lead to 30-19 with just over seven minutes left in the half, but the Rebels went on another run, this time 11-4 over the next two and a half minutes that was capped off by a three for Pedulla.

Leading 41-23, Ole Miss nailed three more free throws to end the half. The Rebels’ 18-point lead at the break was the largest tournament halftime lead in program history. Anchored by Davis’ 13 points, the forward shot 5-5 from the field and nailed all three of his triples.

Brakefield also added 10 points at the break, while RJ Davis was the only Tar Heel in double digits. North Carolina shot 27 percent (3-11) from deep in the first half.

Second half

Ole Miss immediately took a 20-point lead thanks to another bucket by Davis and Pedulla followed with one of his own. Brakefield hit another bucket to increase the lead to 50-28 but Lubin got a fast break layup to go that cut the deficit back to 20.

The Tar Heels then went on a 5-0 run that cut the Ole Miss lead to 18, but is was Dia with a strong layup that put the Rebels up 53-32 at the first media timeout of the second half.

North Carolina answered with an 11-3 run of their own, cutting the Ole Miss lead to 13. However, Pedulla gave the Rebels a spark to answer right back, driving in to draw a foul and getting the shot to fall before completing the three point play.

Seth Trimble cut the deficit to 14 for the Tar Heels and Powell followed with a triple to continue inching away at the Ole Miss lead. Murrell then scored a quick bucket for the Rebels that made it 61-48 heading into another media timeout at the 10-minute mark.

After Murrell made it a 15-point Ole Miss lead with just under nine minutes to go, the Tar Heels went on an 11-0 run with many members of the lineup getting shots to fall. Leading just 63-59 at that point, Pedulla finally ended a six-minute scoring drought for the Rebels.

However, it was Lubin and RJ Davis helping North Carolina cut the Ole Miss lead to two with a minute left to play. After a hot start to the game, the Rebels shot 0-6 from three until Pedulla answered the bell with a big triple to put Ole Miss back up 69-64.

Multiple misses from the Tar Heels followed in the final minute and Pedulla hit another pair of free throws to ice the game and secure the 71-64 victory for the Rebels.

Despite the fast start for Ole Miss, Pedulla had just 6 first half points. The second half did not go as expected for the Rebels, but it was Pedulla scoring 14 points to end with a team-high 20. The guard also had six rebounds, five assists and a pair of steals.

Davis added another 15 points for Ole Miss, leading the team in rebounds with eight. RJ Davis also scored 15 points, leading the way for North Carolina.

Up next

The Rebels advance to the Round of 32 with the win. On Sunday, March 23, the 6-seed Ole Miss will take on 3-seed Iowa State. The tipoff time is still to be determined.
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.

About The Author

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.

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