Ole Miss hangs on to upset No. 4 Tennessee, shake up NCAA tournament picture

Entering Wednesday night, Tennessee was looking at a potential No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. It wouldn’t be easy for the Vols, though, as they headed to Oxford to take on Ole Miss at SBJ Pavilion.

Tennessee saw its halftime lead evaporate, though, as Ole Miss flipped the script. The Rebels surged in the second half to take down the Volunteers and shake up the March Madness picture.

With the victory, the Rebels improved to 21-9 overall and 10-7 in SEC play as they bolstered their resume. And for the Volunteers, it was a loss that could prove costly for their hopes at a No. 1 seed. They were on the 1-seed line entering Wednesday, according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, but could be in danger of dropping to a 2-seed after Florida took down Alabama earlier in the day.

Ole Miss jumped out in front with less than five minutes to go in Wednesday’s matchup and continued fighting back when Tennessee made a charge. Things got dicey with 40 seconds left, though, when Igor Milicic got fouled shooting a three-pointer and headed to the free throw line. He hit the shot, making it 76-76.

Ole Miss then went down the court and called a timeout, and Sean Pedulla’s three-pointer missed as the Rebels tried to drain clock. However, Jaemyn Brakefield was there to grab the rebound and put back the layup. That put Ole Miss back on top, 78-76, with 7.5 seconds to go.

Tennessee headed toward its own basket, but called timeout with three seconds to go, setting up a side-out of bounds with the game on the line. Out of the huddle, Milicic got a shot off, but it didn’t fall. Ole Miss held on for the 78-76 victory.

Brakefield led the way for Ole Miss with 19 points, including that pivotal putback in the final seconds that turned out to be the game-winner. Dre Davis also added 13 points before fouling out, as did Malik Dia. Matthew Murrell had 12 points, as well, as the Rebels used a balanced attack en route to the upset victory.

On the Tennessee side, Jordan Gainey had a team-high 17 points while Chaz Lanier came in right behind him with 15. Felix Okpara was the only other Vol in double-digit scoring with 13 points, and Zakai Zeigler had 15 assists on the night while adding eight points.

Ole Miss will now look to continue the momentum built on Wednesday’s victory when the Rebels take on Florida Saturday afternoon. Tennessee will close things out against South Carolina on Saturday, and the SEC tournament gets underway from Nashville next week.