With one of its key playmakers out of commission, the Ole Miss men’s basketball team suffered its second SEC loss Tuesday, losing 85-70 to the No. 22 Auburn Tigers.
Ole Miss (9-7, 2-2 SEC) looked unstoppable against the Tigers in the first half of play. The Rebels were led in scoring by Breein Tyree with 12 points in the first 20 minutes of action.
But the Rebels went into the road game minus team leader Deandre Burnett a senior who was battling flu-like symptoms back at the hotel.
By halftime, Ole Miss, holding a 45-35 advantage, appeared to be on track to snap Auburn’s 12-game winning streak.
In the second half, Auburn turned up its level of play and started to climb back into the contest, out-scoring Ole Miss 14-7 in the first 7 minutes of action. The Tigers took a 53-52 lead at the 11:52 mark and never looked back.
Head Coach Andy Kennedy’s squad had four different players score in double figures. Tyree finished the night with 24 points, while Terence Davis joined him with 13 points of his own, Bruce Stevens dropped in a total of 12 points, and Dominik Olejniczak cashed in 10 points.
The Tigers’ defense surged after halftime, only allowing the Rebels to score 25 points in the second half. Ole Miss shot 34 percent from the field and 28 percent from downtown on the night. Auburn woke up after halftime and hit 43 percent from the field.
Auburn found a way to get to the charity stripe 37 times and connected 29 times. The Rebels went 14-27 from the free throw line on the night.
Ole Miss plays host to Florida on Saturday. Tip-off set for 12 p.m.
Adam Brown is the Sports Editor of HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at adam.brown@hottytoddy.com
