It’s been two weeks since we saw Ole Miss put on a dominant run in the SEC Tournament. Sometimes breaks like that dull a team’s dominance. Sometimes, though, it doesn’t.
And it didn’t for the Rebels.
Ole Miss, a No. 5-seed in the Sacramento Region of the NCAA Women’s Tournament, put on a dominant display against No. 12-seed Gonzaga, 81-66.
That defensive showing that showed up in Nashville, showed up in Minneapolis.
Gonzaga didn’t make its first field goal until five minutes had passed, committed 21 turnovers and had nine shots blocked. It started from the tipoff. The Bulldogs didn’t make their first field goal until five minutes had passed, committed seven first half turnovers, had two shot clock violations and ended the first quarter with nine points.
We got shooters😏#HottyToddy x #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/q81tlCHv0M
— Ole Miss Women's BB (@OleMissWBB) March 20, 2026
That type of defensive disruption continued the entire game. Ole Miss ended the game with 14 steals and nine blocks. The Rebels lived up to their “dictate and disrupt” mantra.
Offensively, Ole Miss wasn’t shooting lights out, but they made plenty of baskets and ended the game with a 42 shooting percentage. It also had four players score 11 or more points. Cotie McMahon and Latasha Lattimore tied for the team-lead with 13 points, Denim Deshields had 11 and Sira Theinou had 12 in her first game in nearly a month.
Thienou showed why her presence matters, being a constant disruptor on defense (four blocks, three steals) and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds. Christeen Iwuala also had boards.
Yeah, she’s EVERYWHERE😮💨
Sira Thienou👏#HottyToddy x #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/z2Am2b0Imm— Ole Miss Women's BB (@OleMissWBB) March 20, 2026
Where the Rebels excelled was at the free throw line (16-of-20) and beyond the three-point line (7-of-18).
Ole Miss also had a combined 15 assists and with 13 turnovers (most of which came when the Rebels’ starters were on the bench late), that was a large part of the offensive success it did have. It was on full display in the third quarter when the Rebels went on a 22-5 run that built a 63-31 lead.
Gonzaga made the score a lot closer with a late 22-2 surge while Ole Miss rested most of its starters. The Bulldogs closed it to within 10 points with 42 seconds left. But a pair of free throws by Lattimore and a steal with 30 seconds left ended that late game threat.
Overall, it was the type of performance needed from Ole Miss. Enough offense and dominant defense is a winning formula in the NCAA Tournament.
Ole Miss Leaders
- Points: Latasha Lattimore, 15
- Rebounds: Christeen Iwuala/Sira Thienou, 8
- Assists: Denim DeShields, 4
- Steals: Sira Thienou/Tianna Thompson, 3
- Blocks: Sira Thienou, 4
Next Up
That’s one down. Five more to go.
The Rebels will keep on dancing in a second round game on Sunday against the winner of No. 4 Minnesota (22-8) and No. 13 seed Green Bay (25-8) later Friday.
