How to Watch: Ole Miss Basketball vs. North Carolina Tar Heels in the NCAA Tourney

Chris Beard and the Rebels will prepare for a clash in Milwaukee, take on the Tar Heels in March Madness.

Mar 20, 2025; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Chris Beard speaks during an NCAA Tournament First Round Practice press conference at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images / Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

The No. 6 seeded Ole Miss Rebels will take on No. 11 North Carolina on Friday afternoon in Milwaukee (Wisc.) in a win or go home showdown in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament.

This marks the 10th appearance for Ole Miss at the NCAA Tournament, with their last invite coming in 2019.

The Rebels are 5-9 all-time in tournament play, making their furthest run in 2001 to the Sweet 16 where they fell to Arizona after wins over Iona and Notre Dame.

They've played in Milwaukee once before in 1999, when they defeated Villanova in the first round before falling to Michigan State in the second. Their six seed is the highest since 2001, and the third highest overall after they were a four seed in 1998 and a three seed in 2001.

Now, the program will look to make noise once again up North in a clash against North Carolina with Chris Beard eager for the pivotal Round 1 matchup.

"In my opinion, the most important game in any tournament is the first game. It’s something Coach Knight talked about often. The first time he said it, I didn’t have to put it in my journal. I heard it, I thought about it, and I think about it every day since," Beard said on Thursday.

"For us, with our team, we set up every tournament as a four-team tournament. We never look that far ahead, whether it’s the conference tournament or now the national tournament. We’re in a four-team bracket here. We had to wait a couple days to find out who the fourth team was, North Carolina."

How to Watch: Ole Miss Rebels vs. North Carolina Tar Heels

Start Time: 4:05 p.m. ET, March 21
Channel: TNT
Location: Milwaukee (Wisc.)

Are You Ready? pic.twitter.com/AVwIemrkun

— Ole Miss Men’s Basketball (@OleMissMBB) March 21, 2025

The Final Betting Odds: Ole Miss vs. North Carolina

Spread:
- Ole Miss: (+1.5)
- North Carolina: (-1.5)

Moneyline:
- Ole Miss: (+105)
- North Carolina: (-125)

Over/Under: 155.5

The Ole Miss Rebels will enter the clash in Milwaukee as 1.5-point underdogs with Vegas favoring the Tar Heels following impressive victory over San Diego State.

NCAA Tournament First Round Slate:

(All Times Eastern)

Friday, March 21 (First Round/Round of 64)

(8) Mississippi State vs. (9) Baylor, 12:15 p.m. | CBS
(2) Alabama vs. (15) Robert Morris, 12:40 p.m. | truTV
(3) Iowa State vs. (14) Lipscomb, 1:30 p.m. | TNT
(5) Memphis vs. (12) Colorado State, 2 p.m. | TBS
(1) Duke vs. (16) Mount St. Mary's/American, 2:50 p.m. | CBS
(7) Saint Mary's vs. (10) Vanderbilt, 3:15 p.m. | truTV
(6) Ole Miss vs. (11) North Carolina, 4:05 p.m. | TNT
(4) Maryland vs. (13) Grand Canyon, 4:35 p.m. | TBS
(1) Florida vs. (16) Norfolk State, 6:50 p.m. | TNT
(3) Kentucky vs. (14) Troy, 7:10 p.m. | CBS
(7) Marquette vs. (10) New Mexico, 7:25 p.m. | TBS
(4) Arizona vs. (13) Akron, 7:35 p.m. | truTV
(8) UConn vs. (9) Oklahoma, 9:25 p.m. | TNT
(6) Illinois vs. (11) Xavier/Texas, 9:45 p.m. | TNT
(2) Michigan State vs. (15) Bryant, 10 p.m. | TBS
(5) Oregon vs. (12) Liberty, 10:10 p.m. | truTV

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