Basketball
No. 22 Mississippi State sweeps Ole Miss with Saturday win
Ole Miss jumped out to an early lead but Mississippi State was able to secure an 81-71 victory in the second meeting between the rivals.
It’s a good thing Ole Miss won its last two games against the only SEC teams not in consideration for a NCAA Tournament invite because Saturday’s game against Mississippi State wasn’t a good one for the Rebels.
Ole Miss made just 38 percent of its shots in an 81-71 loss that saw the Rebels have to fight back from a 19-point deficit midway through the second half.
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17-4 run for State 🔥#HailState🐶 | 📺 ESPN pic.twitter.com/f2nrDDn2Hz
— Mississippi State Men's Basketball (@HailStateMBK) February 16, 2025
It’s not a loss that will hurt Ole Miss’s chances of advancing to the big dance in March. According to ESPN’s bubble watch, the Rebels have a 99 percent chance at playing in the NCAA Tournament, which is actually higher than Mississippi State’s chances (95 percent).
But the Bulldogs will have bragging rights (barring a rematch in the SEC tournament) for the next year after beating the Rebels for the second time this season.
The Bulldogs fell behind by as many as eight points early against Ole Miss, but came back quickly to lead the Rebels 40-33 at halftime.
Jaylen Murray led the Rebels in scoring with 14 points followed by Sean Pedulla with 13 and Jaemyn Brakefield’s 10. Malik Dia had the most rebounds for Ole Miss with eight and Pedulla and Dre Davis had the most assists (four).
FREE BALL + THREE BALL#HottyToddy x #Culture pic.twitter.com/xzBr4GE0qv
— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) February 15, 2025
Mississippi State had five players score 10 or more points with R Melendez leading the way with 17 points.
Ole Miss will have a full week to rest and recover before its next game at Vanderbilt next Saturday. That will tipoff at 2:30 p.m. on SEC Network.
| Mon, Nov 4 |  | vs Long Island University | W, 90-60 |
| Fri, Nov 8 |  | vs Grambling | W, 66-64 |
| Tue, Nov 12 |  | vs South Alabama | W, 64-54 |
| Sat, Nov 16 |  | vs Colorado State | W, 84-69 |
| Thu, Nov 21 |  | vs Oral Roberts | L, 100-68 |
| Thu, Nov 28 |  | vs BYU | W, 96-85 OT |
| Fri, Nov 29 |  | vs 13 Purdue | L, 80-78 |
| Tue, Dec 3 |  | @ Louisville | W, 86-63 |
| Sat, Dec 7 |  | vs Lindenwood | W, 86-53 |
| Sat, Dec 14 |  | vs Southern Miss | W, 77-46 |
| Tue, Dec 17 |  | vs Southern | W, 74-61 |
| Sat, Dec 21 |  | vs Queens University | W, 80-62 |
| Sat, Dec 28 |  | @ Memphis | L, 87-70 |
| Sat, Jan 4 |  | vs Georgia | W, 63-51 |
| Wed, Jan 8 |  | @ 23 Arkansas | W, 73-66 |
| Sat, Jan 11 |  | vs LSU | W, 77-65 |
| Tue, Jan 14 |  | @ 5 Alabama | W, 74-64 |
| Sat, Jan 18 |  | @ 17 Mississippi State | L, 81-84 |
| Wed, Jan 22 |  | vs 13 Texas A&M | L, 62-63 |
| Sat, Jan 25 |  | @ Missouri | L, 83-75 |
| Wed, Jan 29 |  | vs Texas | W, 72-69 |
| Sat, Feb 1 |  | vs 2 Auburn | L, 92-82 |
| Tue, Feb 4 |  | vs 10 Kentucky | W, 98-84 |
| Sat, Feb 8 | | @ LSU | 7:30 PM SECN |
| Wed, Feb 12 |  | @ South Carolina | 6:00 PM SECN |
| Sat, Feb 15 | | vs 17 Mississippi State | 5:00 PM TBA |
| Sat, Feb 22 |  | @ Vanderbilt | 2:30 PM SECN |
| Wed, Feb 26 | | @ 2 Auburn | 6:00 PM TBA |
| Sat, Mar 1 |  | vs 12 Oklahoma | 1:00 PM TBA |
| Wed, Mar 5 |  | vs 1 Tennessee | 8:00 PM TBA |
| Sat, Mar 8 |  | @ 6 Florida | 5:00 PM SECN |