OXFORD — Jarvis Summers likes to think he knows a finished product.
“We’re still working. We’re still trying to get better,” Summers said of his Ole Miss men’s basketball team. “We’ve got a lot of new players and the main thing is staying focused and buying in to what we’re trying to get done and what the coaches tell us. We’re getting there.”
Ole Miss took a step in the right direction Sunday night, as Summers, a four-year starter and preseason All-Southeastern Conference selection, scored 22 points in an 80-74 victory against Northern Arizona.
Ole Miss (3-1) used a 13-0 run midway through the second half to build a 65-51 lead. Stefan Moody and LaDarius White added 13 and 12 points, respectively, as the Rebels continued to use an 11-player rotation.
Ole Miss made 30 of 35 free throws, including 8 of 8 by Moody, to keep Northern Arizona (1-3) from closing any closer than five points in the final minutes. Ole Miss was 24 of 52 (46 percent) from the field and limited Northern Arizona to 24 of 64 (37 percent).
“Our first-shot defense continues to be good. What we haven’t done is rebound, scramble and get loose balls, but we did a better job of that tonight,” Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy said. “We’ve still got to get tougher physically.”
Northern Arizona kept it interesting, leading by as many as five points in the first half and pulling within 52-51 on a 3-pointer by Quinton Upshur with 11 minutes, 1 second left. Upshur finished with 19 points for the Lumberjacks. That set up the decisive rally by the Rebels.
“We competed hard, but that 13-0 run did it,” Northern Arizona coach Jack Murphy said. “We got some good looks, but the lid was on the basket and their length defensively and ability to get to the free-throw line was hard to overcome.”
Jaleni Neely had 17 points and a game-high eight assists for Northern Arizona while Kris Yanku and Aaseem Dixon added 11 and 10 points, respectively.
The Lumberjacks stayed close by hitting 13 of 31 3-pointers and forcing 16 turnovers.
“Now we get Creighton (Friday) in the Emerald Isle Classic and I saw where they beat 18th-ranked Oklahoma without (Doug) McDermott,” Kennedy said. “They’re still a great team without him and it’s going to take our best game.”
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