No. 25 Ole Miss Defeats Missouri on the Road

From start to finish, it was all Ole Miss Thursday afternoon from Mizzou Arena, as the Rebels shut down one of the nation’s best shooting teams in a 61-45 victory over Missouri. The win over the Tigers marked the program’s first since Mizzou joined the SEC in 2012.
 
An efficient night from Shakira Austin carried RV/No. 25 Ole Miss (18-4, 6-3 SEC) in the complete Missouri (16-7, 5-5 SEC), as the Rebels never trailed. The seventh win on the road is the most in a season for the program in the 21^st century and ties the most in a single season since 1993-94.
 
Austin recorded her 15^th double-digit game of the year with 17 points off of 7-of-9 from the field. Lashonda Monk was a handful for Mizzou to deal with as she grabbed a season-high seven steals for her sixth multi-steal game in SEC play. Caitlin McGee had herself a career-high performance, grabbing a career and team high 10 rebounds.
 
As a team, Ole Miss forced 21 turnovers, forcing 15 or more in eight of nine SEC games. The 41 points allowed to the Tigers were the fewest points allowed in an SEC road game since 1991.
 
Ole Miss took off on a 6-0 run right after tip to begin a hot shooting first quarter, with the Rebels converting on 8-of-13 field goals at a 62 percent clip while holding Mizzou to 32 percent from the floor.
 
The Rebel defense proved to be a problem for Missouri to solve, as the Tigers struggled to reach the basket into the second quarter. Ole Miss held Missouri scoreless for the final five and a half minutes of the half, while a 7-0 Rebel run extended their lead by 15 at the break at 29-14. The 14 points by the Tigers were the fewest scored in a first half this season.
 
Mizzou came out energized in the third pulling within 14 until Mimi Reid responded with a triple to pad the lead. Scoring came at a balanced rate, with four Rebels with five or more points through three quarters.
 
As one of the best teams in Division I in forcing turnovers, Ole Miss did just that especially in the fourth quarter with five by the Tigers in a four-minute stretch. The Rebels extended their lead going up by as many 21 with four minutes remaining in the game. It was all enough as Ole Miss slowed down the Tigers to steal a road win, 61-45.
 
Ole Miss is back in action Monday night (Feb. 7) to host another ranked foe in No. 15 LSU from the SJB Pavilion. The tilt against the Tigers will air on SEC Network at 6 p.m. CT.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports