Looking to improve their March Madness seeding, the Rebels challenged Vanderbilt on Saturday, Feb. 22, in Nashville, but they failed, losing to the the Commodores 77-72.
First half
The first half started off poorly for the Rebels. They quickly went down 6-0 from two three-pointers made by the Commodores. However, Ole Miss quickly responded to make it 6-4. Vanderbilt then went on a run to go up 13-6.
This was indicative of how most of the game went, as each team went on long runs to increase or lessen leads. At about nine minutes into the half, Ole Miss only scored nine points, while Vanderbilt’s Tyler Nickel scored eight points alone.
The Rebels came into the game as the NCAA leader in least turnovers as a team. Within the first half alone, they had six turnovers. They also committed seven fouls in the first half, compared to only one for the Commodores.
As a result, Ole Miss never led in the first half, and Vanderbilt’s largest lead was 19. The Rebels were able to rally toward the end of the half, going on a 16-5 run to end the half down by nine.
Malik Dia and Sean Pedulla helped keep the Rebels in the game, each scoring 10 points and three rebounds in the first half.
Second half
The second half saw the Rebels respond to the adversity and start a comeback to go up 47-46 four minutes in for their first lead of the game.
Ole Miss kept it close until around the three-minute mark, when they slowly started collapsing. Vanderbilt went up by five points and kept that lead until the end.
This loss marks Ole Miss’ second loss in a row and will almost certainly drop them out of the top 25 from their No. 24 position.
Ole Miss’ foul tendencies came back to bite them, as they had 14 fewer free throw attempts than the Commodores. Vanderbilt committed 14 fouls, while the Rebels committed 21 fouls — one of their highest marks this season.
Although dynamic duo Dia and Pedulla combined for 22 and 21 points, respectively, in the second half, the Rebels were not able to ensure the victory, as four of Vanderbilt’s starting five went for double digit points.
What’s next?
Ole Miss has a difficult stretch to end the season, as they will challenge No. 1 Auburn, No. 6 Tennessee and No. 2 Florida before the SEC Tournament. They also will play unranked Oklahoma.
The Rebels will look to regain some of their momentum against the Tigers in Neville Arena at 6 p.m. Feb. 26.
Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly listed the arena as Auburn Arena. However, the arena is Neville Arena in Auburn, Ala.
