The Ole Miss Rebels men's basketball team took care of business on Saturday night, narrowly beating the Missouri Tigers 84-78 on the road in Columbia for their second meeting of the regular season.
After finishing February with an abysmal 1-6 record, Ole Miss started March on the right foot, ironically defeating the last team the Rebels beat. With NIT hopes on the line, a strong finish to the 2023-24 season is paramount for Ole Miss, and Saturday night was certainly a step in the right direction for Chris Beard's Rebels.
Ole Miss dominated the first half and entered the locker room with a 45-26 lead over Mizzou, thanks to an 11-point period from senior Matthew Murrell. Mizzou committed 11 turnovers in the first 20 minutes, allowing the Rebels to take a 19-point advantage.
The Tigers nearly made a comeback in the final minute of the game, but the Rebels held on to pick up their fourth road victory of the season.
Ole Miss was led in scoring by Murrell with 21 points, and he was joined in double digits by Jaemyn Brakefield (19) and Jaylen Murray (14). As a team, the Rebels shot 50 percent from the field and 38 from three compared to percentages of 54 and 32 from the Tigers, respectively. The Ole Miss bench outscored its opponent for the second-straight game, beating Missouri's reserves 24-9 on Saturday night.
The Rebels' will continue their road trip on Tuesday night, as they are set to battle the Georgia Bulldogs in the Stegman Coliseum. UGA holds a 15-14 record (5-11 SEC) entering its game versus Ole Miss. Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m. CT and the game will be televised on SEC Network.
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