OXFORD — Ole Miss men’s basketball coach Andy Kennedy leaned into the microphone at his post-game press conference, flashed a smile, and whispered softly.
“Coaches aren’t supposed to say this out loud, especially on a game this early in the season, but this was a must win for us,” Kennedy said following a 85-77 victory against Memphis on Saturday.
Sebastian Saiz led the Rebels (6-2) with 20 points and 16 rebounds. Ole Miss was 28 of 33 from the free-throw line (85 percent). It hits its final 17 in the final eight minutes.
Deandre Burnett scored 19 points and Cullen Neal added 12 for the Rebels, who used a 20-3 run in the second half to wipe out a 66-61 deficit.
“We played hard, and I was proud of the effort,” Memphis coach Tubby Smith said. “We had that one stretch where we just blew up. It began when we fouled a 3-point shooter and you can’t do that. We’ve got to play smarter, but Ole Miss made plays when they had to. Credit them.”
K. J. Lawson had 17 points to lead Memphis (6-2), while Markel Crawford and Jeremiah Martin had 16 and 14, respectively. The Tigers used a 24-5 surge early in the second half to build a 62-57 lead with 9 minutes, 50 seconds left, but couldn’t match Ole Miss in the final eight minutes.
Ole Miss was 25 of 58 (43 percent) from the field, while Memphis was 26 of 61 (43). The Tigers were 19 of 29 (66 percent) from the free-throw line and outrebounded the Rebels 38-37, led by Dedric Lawson and Crawford with six apiece.
Lawson, the Tigers’ leading scorer and rebounder, was limited to eight points and six rebounds in 19 minutes. The Tigers still managed to build a five-point lead entering the final eight minutes despite extended foul trouble.
Memphis finished with four starters at four fouls apiece and got only 13 points from the bench. The foul trouble and depth issues were obvious in the Rebels’ late run. Ole Miss had only four turnovers in the second half and only one during the game-winning surge.
The victory was especially important for Ole Miss because it was coming off a 77-62 loss to Middle Tennessee State on Wednesday. Kennedy tried to find a spark early in the game and inserted Neal after the opening six minutes. The transfer guard responded with three assists and a steal to go with his 12 points. His 3-pointer capped the 20-3 burst that gave the Rebels a 81-69 lead with 3:01 remaining.
Ole Mis will play Dec. 11 at Virginia Tech before closing the month with a four-game homestand.
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