How It Happened: Ole Miss Basketball Powers Past Austin Peay in 72-65 Victory

OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss men's basketball defended their home court, as they beat Austin Peay 72-65 to secure their fifth straight win to begin the season on Tuesday night at the SJB Pavilion.

While Ole Miss (5-0) struggled in the first half, shooting 13-of-38, 34.2% from the field and 4-of-17, 23.5% from three, their defense stepped up and held the Governors (3-2) to an eight-point deficit at halftime, 31-23. The home team kept the visitors at bay, holding Austin Peay to 9-35, 25.7 percent from the field over the first 20 minutes of action.

In the second half, the Governors began to chip away at the Rebels' halftime lead. With 11:38 to play, Austin Peay's Collin Parker hit a deep three from the right wing to cut the score to 48-35 in favor of the Rebels.

Parker's three sparked the beginning of a 14-0 run for the Governors, which brought the Governors within two, 48-46.

Ilias Kamardine hit a three-pointer from the left wing at the 8:06 mark to end the Governors' run and put the Rebels up five. However, Austin Peay would hit a deep three at the 6:23 mark to tie the game at 52-all.

The Rebels responded as Kamardine converted an and-one layup with 4:39 to play to put the Rebels up 60-54. From that moment on, the Rebels continued to capitalize on their momentum and never looked back.

Malik Dia led the way for the Rebels with 18 points, followed by Kamardine with 15 points. AJ Storr also scored in double figures with 11.

Ole Miss will travel to Palm Springs, California for its next matchup in the Acrisure Series, where the Rebels will face begin the tournament against the Iowa Hawkeyes on Tuesday, Nov. 25 on the CBS Sports Network.

NOTABLES

- Malik Dia recorded a season-best seven rebounds to go with his game-high 18 points.
- Ole Miss committed just 11 fouls, tied for the fewest in a game under Chris Beard at Ole Miss.
- While scoring 15 points, Ilias Kamardine pulled in a season-high seven rebounds and tied his season-best with seven assists.

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