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  • Davon Barns Proves To Be Clutch For No. 23 Ole Miss As The Rebels Down Texas, 72-69

Davon Barns Proves To Be Clutch For No. 23 Ole Miss As The Rebels Down Texas, 72-69

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Basketball

Davon Barns hit a crucial pair of free throws as a physical battle came down to the wire with No. 23 Ole Miss (16-5, 5-3 SEC) defeating Texas (14-7, 3-5 SEC) 72-69 Wednesday night at the SJB Pavilion.

Texas came out hot jumping out to an early 11-2 over the first five minutes of action. Ole Miss would respond with a quick 10-1 run to knot things at 12 with 12:54 remaining in the first half.

The Longhorns would stretch their lead to 13 with 5:43 remaining, holding the Rebels to only four points over nearly five minutes of play. However, Ole Miss would chip away again, cutting the deficit to 38-34 as the half closed.

Sean Pedulla led Ole Miss with 11 points over the first 20 minutes as Jaemyn Brakefield and Dre Davis added eight points each.

It was a physical battle between both sides across the second half as the game came down to the final minute of action.

Both sides traded blows as neither team led by more than three points until the 5:02 mark of the second half. Jaemyn Brakefield converted a huge bucket plus the foul to put Ole Miss up 61-58. A Brakefield steal on the following Texas possession led to a Dre Davis fastbreak slam as the SJB Pavilion came unglued with 5:02 to play.

The Longhorns would trim the lead to two after Tre Johnson converted all three free throws after he was fouled beyond the arc, putting Texas right back in the fight. Ole Miss would stretch the lead to five again before the Longhorns knotted things at 66 after a quick 5-0 run over 0:57 of play.

The score would even up again at 68 with 1:25 left before Ole Miss took a 70-68 lead after a Pedulla bucket in the paint. Texas’ Arthur Kaluma would only convert one of two at the charity stripe as the Rebels held a one-point lead with 49 seconds left.

The Rebel defense would bear down as Tre Johnson could not convert a late triple for Texas. Davon Barnes grabbed a crucial board and was fouled with just eight ticks left on the clock. Barnes would step to the line and convert the pair pushing the lead to three.

Texas would get one final look with two seconds left but came up empty as Ole Miss held on for their fifth conference victory of the season.

Three Rebels scored in double-figures led by Pedulla with 19 points on 50.0 percent shooting from the field. The Rebels took care of the rock as they tied a season-low with just four turnovers on the night.

Ole Miss remains home and will welcome the No. 1 team in the land, Auburn (19-1, 7-0 SEC) Saturday, February 1 at the SJB Pavilion. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. CT on ESPN.

NOTABLES

  • Ole Miss tied their season-best with just four turnovers (also vs. Colorado State), led by Sean Pedulla and Matthew Murrell who combined for nine assists and no turnovers.
  • Pedulla carded his 16th game in double-figures this season with a team-high 19 points. It marks his eighth game leading the team in scoring this season.
  • Three Rebels scored in double-figures: Pedulla (19), Jaemyn Brakefield (18), and Dre Davis (17). The trio combined for 54 points on 48.7 percent shooting.
  • Dre Davis pulled down seven rebounds to lead the Rebels on the glass. Three Rebels grabbed five or more boards in the win.
  • Ole Miss held Texas to just 22.7 percent shooting from three-point range. It is the 10th time this season that the Rebels have held their opponent to less than 30.0 percent from deep.
  • Ole Miss got to the free-throw line 25 times converting 19-of-25 attempts.