Early Madness: Ole Miss basketball had contender look in San Diego split
Close losses against good teams matters in college basketball — unlike the College Football Playoff.
Good thing for Ole Miss.
Second-year head coach Chris Beard’s basketball Rebels suffered their first loss of the season Friday night and in the championship game of the Rady Children’s Invitational in San Diego.
No. 12 Purdue made five of its last seven shots, while No. 23 Ole Miss missed seven of eight, for an 80-78 Boilermaker win. The Rebels (6-1) raced out to a 19-8 lead. However, Purdue stormed back to lead by eight at halftime.
Ole Miss finished 1-1 in the tournament. The Rebels on Thanksgiving beat NET No. 12 BYU. Purdue was Net No. 3. The Boilermakers snapped Ole Miss’ nation-leading 19-game non-conference winning streak.
Purdue won on a last-second put-back. Ole Miss held the Boilermakers scoreless for nearly four and a half minutes in the second half. The Rebels took a 62-59 lead with 9:50 to play. They twice stretched the lead to seven.
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Purdue pulled ahead, 76-75, with a little over three minutes remaining. Braden Smith missed a jumper. Myles Corvin grabbed the offensive rebound and scored with just 0.6 seconds to go.
TIE GAME IN SAN DIEGO!!! @OleMissMBB on the fast break! 💪 pic.twitter.com/j0DLbZRBRu
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) November 30, 2024
Veteran Jaemyn Brakefield — one of six returning players for Ole Miss — had a team-high 18 points.
He made 7 of 11 shots. Dre Davis was signed in an off-season transfer class ranked No. 16 nationally by On3.
Davis, for the second straight game, was the team leader in rebounds (6). Jaylen Murray continued his hot assist streak. He had nine Friday. Murray has five or more in five straight games.
Murray, a one-time transfer from Saint Peter’s, scored a career-high 28 points against BYU.
Ole Miss returns to action on Tuesday (December 3) against Louisville (5-2). The matchup is part of the annual SEC/ACC Challenge. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. CT on ACC Network.
OLE MISS BASKETBALL BOX SCORE
NOTABLES: Ole Miss knocked down a season-high 15 3s in 36 attempts. … Seven different Rebels made at least one. …The Ole Miss bench outscored Purdue’s by a whopping +30 (32-2) margin. …Brakefield set a new season-high in points. Sixteen came in the second half. … Brakefield made 7 of 11 shots and all three of his free throws. … Murray was named to the All-Tournament team.
