The Ole Miss Rebels traveled to Waco, Texas to face the Ball State Cardinals, winning 83-65.
The leading scorer was Starr Jacobs with 18 points, 11 rebounds and two assists. There were two other players in double digits: Madison Scott and Kennedy Todd-Williams with 15 and 14, respectively.
First half
Ball State struck first, making a mid-range shot to take an early lead. Ole Miss struggled to make shots from the field, with no points for the first two-and-a-half minutes of the game. Jacobs got the first points for the Rebels and the offense came alive. Tameiya Sadler made a three to cut into the Cardinal’s lead.
Ole Miss was down by one at the first media timeout halfway through the first quarter. The Rebels took their first lead with three minutes left in the quarter off a Christeen Iwuala jumper. The Ole Miss offense started to get rolling at the end of the first, with the Rebels holding a nine point lead at the end of the quarter.
Ole Miss continued to show their offense while being stifling on defense to start the second quarter. Jacobs got the Rebels going in the second with an easy layup for the quarter’s first points. Ole Miss extended their lead to double digits in the quarter.
The Cardinals started to show some life on the offensive side of the ball, but just could not stop the Ole Miss offense. This back and forth continued, with the Rebels continuing to hold their lead.
Ole Miss went into the half with a 37-23 lead.
Second half
The second half started much the same way the first ended, with the Rebels showing their dominance on the offensive side of the ball. A three from Todd-Williams extended the lead to 25, doubling Ball State’s score for a time.
A 20-point lead ended up being the closest the game would be for the third quarter as the Rebels just dominated both sides of the court. They held Ball State to 16 points for the entire third quarter and scored 27 while they were at it. Scott and Todd-Williams lead the quarter for the Rebels with five points each.
The final quarter came and went with the Rebels holding their lead and winning 83-65.
Who’s next?
Ole Miss moves on to the Round of 32 to face the Baylor Bears. The game will be on Sunday, Mar. 23. The time and channel has yet to be announced.
