OXFORD — Markel Crawford scored 16 points to lead four in double figures as the Ole Miss men’s basketball team beat Sam Houston State 82-69 on Wednesday night.
“The biggest thing was coming out here and getting the W,” said Crawford, who finished 6-for-11 from the field and added four rebounds and three assists. “But it was great to see those shots go in and my confidence is up.”
The Rebels (5-4) snapped a three-game losing streak, taking a 39-33 halftime lead and stretched it by as many as 20 points midway through the second half. Devontae Shuler scored 14 points, Bruce Stevens added 13, and Deandre Burnett had 12.
“I’m happy for Markel because he had really been struggling,” Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy said. “But, we’re still not playing with the sense of urgency that we need for a whole 40 minutes.”
Chris Galbreath Jr. had a game-high 22 points and nine rebounds for Sam Houston State (5-5). John Dewey III and Cameron Delaney had 12 points apiece as the Bearkats were 26-for-64 (40 percent) from the field.
Dewey had 10 of the Bearkats’ 19 assists.
The Rebels shot 31-for-60 (52 percent) from the field, 10-for-29 (35 percent) from 3-point range, including 4-for-8 shooting from Crawford. Ole Miss outrebounded Sam Houston State 43-30, including a team-high nine from Marcanvis Hymon.
Hymon has provided effective defense, but Stevens has been the best offensive option. Dominik Olejniczak and Justas Furmanavicius have shown flashes in limited playing time, but have been inconsistent.
“This ain’t football,” Kennedy said. “It’s pretty clear KG (Hymon) is our best defender and Bruce (Stevens) is our best offensive player inside. But you can’t play them on separate sides like you can in football.”
Sam Houston State fell behind 30-11 in the opening eight minutes before it cut the deficit to 43-37 early in the second half. Galbreath, a 6-foot-7 senior forward followed up a 24-point, 10-rebound performance against Baylor with another strong performance. The Bearkats, with nine underclassmen in the playing rotation, couldn’t match up on the perimeter to mount a serious second-half challenge.
“We are not playing with that sense of urgency,” Kennedy said. “It is the same thing I keep saying. They hear it every single day that they have to believe and buy in.”
Ole Miss will play host to Illinois State at 2:30 p.m. Saturday (SEC Network) at The Pavilion at Ole Miss.
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