Ole Miss saw its miracle run in the SEC Tournament come to an end Saturday in an exciting way.
The Rebels, the tournament’s No. 15-seed, fell to No. 3-seed Arkansas, 93-90 in overtime. It was an impressive showing this week from an Ole Miss team that won just four SEC games during the regular season and whose only path to the NCAA Tournament was to win the tournament, securing the conference’s automatic berth into the big dance.
Afterwards, Ole Miss guard AJ Storr, who had a game-tying layup at the end of regulation that sent the game into overtime, and forward Malik Dia spoke to reporters about the semifinal loss to the Razorbacks. Here’s what they said:
Storr on game-tying layup…
I saw him press up on me, so I just went around him and laid it up.
Storr on coach Chris Beard…
I appreciate Coach Beard. He works really hard and he deserves to win. I’m thankful he recruited me to come here. There were a lot of ups and downs this season, but he never quit on us. He kept coaching us hard and holding us accountable. I just wish we could keep playing.
Dia on Beard…
Coach Beard got the best out of me every day. Practices were intense, games were intense. All he cares about is winning. That’s the biggest lesson I’ll take from him — the importance of winning and doing whatever it takes to win, in basketball and in life. People talk about the process and the work, but it’s real here at Ole Miss. I appreciate him for giving me the opportunity to play in the SEC and play for him.
Storr on lessons learned in one season at Ole Miss…
Just to keep fighting through whatever you go through in life. Everything won’t be perfect all the time. What matters is how you respond — how you wake up the next day and approach it. Just keeping a balanced mindset and being ready for whatever comes next.
