Ole Miss defeated Alabama 80-79 on Friday

NASHVILLE, Tenn.(Ole Miss Athletics) – The Ole Miss men’s basketball team managed to survive a half-court heave at the buzzer, defeating tournament two-seed No. 15 Alabama 80-79 on Friday night at Bridgestone Arena. The Rebels are now lined up for a semifinal battle against the winner of No. 17 Arkansas and Oklahoma on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. on ESPN.

With just over one minute left to play, a turnaround jumper by Ole Miss’s Ilias Kamardine made it a five-point game, leading to a timeout by Ole Miss. Coming out of the break, Alabama would score a layup to cut Ole Miss’s lead to three, 80-77, with 52 seconds remaining.

Following another timeout, Kamardine would miss another jumper attempt, leading to an Alabama rebound before drawing a foul. A pair of free throws from the Tide made it a one-point game with 13 seconds left.

Ole Miss’s Eduardo Klafke was fouled with nine seconds on the board and went to the line for a one-and-one opportunity. Missing the first free throw, Alabama’s Aiden Sherrell would attempt a game-winning bucket before it was blocked by Ole Miss.

An Alabama half-court shot as the clock hit zeros wouldn’t fall.

Skip AdTo open the game, Ole Miss (15-19, 4-14 SEC) struck first with back-to-back threes from Malik Dia on its first two possessions.

Alabama (23-9, 13-5 SEC) quickly climbed back to knot the game at 14-all at the 13:45 mark, before Ole Miss hit seven consecutive field goals to go up 33-22 with under nine minutes left in the first half.

Over the next five minutes of action, the Rebels would maintain a double-digit lead. Despite Alabama getting within five points down the stretch, Ole Miss would manage to secure a 47-41 lead at the midway break.

The second half started like the first, with Ole Miss’s Travis Perry burying a three-pointer on its opening possession. The Rebels would build back up to a 63-50 advantage through the first seven minutes after Eduardo Klafkecashed in his second three-pointer of the half.

However, Alabama stormed back, cutting Ole Miss’s lead to 66-62, causing Ole Miss to call a timeout with nine minutes remaining. Coming out of the timeout, Ole Miss’s Ilias Kamardinewould knock down a three-pointer. Alabama would respond by knocking down a pair of free throws and get a defensive stop, leading to a three-pointer on its next possession to cut Ole Miss’s lead to 69-66 with under seven to play.

Kamardine would come back down on the Rebels’ next possession and score a floater, putting the Rebels back up five, 71-66 at the 6:27 mark.

With 1:42 remaining, Alabama’s Aiden Sherell scored a dunk to put the team back within one possession, 78-75. The thrilling final sequence would see Ole Miss seal the victory, sending the team to the semifinals of the SEC Tournament for the first time since their 2013 SEC Championship run.