Ole Miss overcomes sleepy start to take down Alcorn State

Kezza Giffa had a team-leading 14 points off the bench as Ole Miss recovered from a slow start for a 79-43 win against Alcorn State on Monday in Oxford, Miss.

Malik Dia and James Scott each totalled 11 rebounds for the Rebels (8-5), who improved to 6-1 at home on the season. Scott added 13 points, as did Patton Pinkins.

Tycen McDaniels posted 17 points, including going 2-for-2 from beyond the arc, and added six rebounds for the Braves (1-11), who have played 12 consecutive road games to start their season.

McDaniels' three-point shot started an early run that gave Alcorn State an 8-0 lead with 17:31 left in the first half. Ole Miss had five turnovers and no field goals with 14:47 remaining on the clock.

The Rebels got on the board with a three-point shot by Koren Johnson, and a 19-0 run allowed them to take a 19-8 lead with 9:27 minutes left.

Ole Miss took its largest lead of the half, 29-16, with 5:00 remaining. The Braves tried to chip away at the deficit but trailed 37-25 at halftime.

Ole Miss continued the assault in the second half and increased the lead to 45-28 with 16:49 left to play. The Rebels took a 22-point lead and were up 53-31 with 13:21 on the clock.

Dia's back-to-back layups made it 65-35 with 7:11 left in the second half. A 16-0 run over 6:21 made it 71-35 in favor of Ole Miss with 3:45 left to play.

The Braves added to their tally in the last minute of the game but were held to just 15 points on the half to solidify the 79-43 final.

--Field Level Media