Sean Pedulla, No. 23 Ole Miss hold off Texas

Field Level Media|published: Wed 29th January, 23:57 2025

Jan 29, 2025; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Texas Longhorns guard Tre Johnson (20) shoots fa three point basket as Mississippi Rebels guard Eduardo Klafke (8) defends during the first half at The Sandy and John Black Pavilion at Ole Miss. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Sean Pedulla scored a game-high 19 points and Davon Barnes had a crucial rebound before making a pair of late free throws as No. 23 Ole Miss outlasted Texas 72-69 on Wednesday in a key Southeastern Conference clash in Oxford, Miss.

The Longhorns led by four points at the half before Ole Miss leapfrogged to a three-point advantage on a three-point play by Jaemyn Brakefield with 5:23 to play. The Rebels pushed the margin to 63-58 on a fast-break dunk by Dre Davis 21 seconds later but Texas' Tre Johnson canned a 3-pointer with 2:21 left to produce the game's 10th tie at 66-66.

Brakefield laid in his own missed shot on Ole Miss's ensuing possession to put the Rebels back in front. The Longhorns' Kadin Shedrick followed suit with his dunk off a miss but Pedulla responded with a jumper for the lead with 1:02 to play.

Arthur Kaluma made a free throw to bring Texas to within a point with 49 seconds to play, but missed the second. After a miss by Pedulla with 35 seconds left, the Longhorns called a time out to set the table for a final shot. Johnson then missed a jumper and Barnes grabbed the rebound, was fouled with 8.9 seconds remaining and made both free throws.

Johnson ran the floor and missed a corner 3-pointer with 2 seconds left, allowing Ole Miss (16-5, 5-3 SEC) to escape with the victory and snap a three-game losing streak.

Brakeman scored 18 and Davis 17 for the Rebels, who had just four turnovers in the win. Johnson led the Longhorns (14-7, 3-5) with 22 points and Kaluma hit for 12.

The Longhorns roared out of the gate, scoring 11 of the game's first 13 points after a layup by Ze'rik Onyema at the 15:18 mark of the first half. Ole Miss swung back, tying the contest at 12-12 when Brakefield hit a jumper with 12:54 remaining in the half and then taking a 17-16 lead on another shot in the lane by Brakefield with 10:15 left.

Texas then reeled off a 9-0 surge that was capped by a jumper by Johnson with 8:04 to play before the break. The Longhorns eventually stretched the margin to a13 points before Ole Miss answered, closing to within two points before going to halftime down 38-34.

Johnson and Pedulla led their respective teams with 11 points apiece before halftime.

--Field Level Media

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