The Grove Report

Ole Miss Basketball Drops Hard-Fought Game to No. 1 Auburn 92-82

The Rebels came up short against No. 1 Auburn on Saturday afternoon.

Henry Stuart

Feb 1, 2025; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Auburn Tigers guard Tahaad Pettiford (0) shoots 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
Feb 1, 2025; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Auburn Tigers guard Tahaad Pettiford (0) shoots 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 / Petre Thomas-Imagn Images
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No. 23 Ole Miss basketball took on No. 1 Auburn this Saturday, and lost a hard-fought game by a final score of 92-82.

The Rebels (16-6, 5-4 SEC) were behind a majority of the game, but continued to claw their way back the entire 40 minutes. Ole Miss took a 41-34 deficit into the locker room at intermission and cut the lead to as little as one, but ultimately came up short.

As a team, the Rebels shot 46.4% from the floor, 31.6% from three-point range, and 68.6% from the free-throw line. Sean Pedulla led the team in scoring with 29 points, a season-high. Following Pedulla were Matthew Murrell with 17 and Jaemyn Brakefield with 12.

As a team, Auburn shot 48.4% from the floor, 50% from three-point range, and 78.3% from the free-throw line. Johni Broome led the Tigers in scoring with 20 points, followed by Chad Baker-Marza with 18, Denver Jones with 16, and Miles Kelly with 15.

The Tigers shot a blistering 50% from the 3-point line, out-shooting the Rebels by 19%. The Rebels also had trouble at the free-throw line, shooting just 63.3% from the stripe. The Tigers simply out-shot and out-paced the Rebels, and while Ole Miss made numerous rallies, it could ultimately never close the gap, in large part due to missed opportunities at the line.

The Rebels lost a tough one, but despite the tough shooting day, Ole Miss played Auburn wire-to-wire with the deficit reaching 10 points in the final seconds. While the loss stings, the Rebels showed again that they can compete with the nation's elite teams this season. Still, this knocks them to 5-4 in SEC play, a tough mark to hold after starting the slate 4-0.

The Rebels have another big test ahead on Tuesday as No. 12 Kentucky comes to Oxford. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. CT and will be televised on ESPN.

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Henry Stuart
HENRY STUART

Henry is a writing intern at Ole Miss OnSI. A native of Charlotte, North Carolina, his previous experience includes serving as a play-by-play commentator for high school athletics. Part-time or full-time: He will be part-time as he pursues his journalism degree at Ole Miss.

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