Ole Miss Falls to Wichita State in Close Game

By Adam Brown
Sports Editor
adam.brown@hottytoddy.com

The Ole Miss men’s basketball team dropped an 83-79 heartbreaker to Wichita State inside the Pavilion on Saturday afternoon.

“A real disappointing loss for us,” head coach Kermit Davis said. “Wichita State made some unbelievable shots, and then there are some that we didn’t guard.”

Ole Miss (5-3, 0-1 SEC) was led on the court by senior Devontae Shuler who put up 20 points. His teammate KJ Buffen added 18, and Romello White put up 11 points with a team-high seven rebounds.

“Devontae, I thought this was his best game of the year,” Davis said. “He was solid all night. He tried to compete and shot it for a good percentage with four rebounds and only one turnover. We need him like that.”  

The Rebels shot 42.4% from the floor as Wichita State hit 52% in the contest.

Wichita State’s Tyson Etienne led the way with 29 points while knocking down five three-pointers. The Shockers had two other players reach double figures. Alterique Gilbert added 14 points while Dexter Dennis was right behind him with 10 of his own.

“We could not keep them off the line at the end,” Davis said. “I thought we had some active hands and created some good offense.”

The Rebels finished the regular season, non-conference schedule with a record of 5-2.

Ole Miss will return to SEC play on Wednesday as they play host to Auburn. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. on the SEC Network.