Barring a late-season rush, Ole Miss doesn't have the credentials for a spot in the NCAA Tournament field, but the Rebels remained on track for an NIT berth with a victory over Auburn.
After going to the locker room down seven points at halftime, the Rebels turned up the pressure in the second-half and rallied for a 61-54 victory that made them 15-9 overall and 5-5 in the SEC.
"We defended much better in the second half, and we turned them over," coach Andy Kennedy said of the success against the visiting Tigers. "They had 16 turnovers at the end of the game and 10 in the second half.
"They had turnovers that led us to have some opportunities in the open floor. Every team needs easier basket opportunities, and I thought we created that with our defense in the second half."
Ole Miss' shooting percentage improved from a meager 34.8 percent in the first half to 53.8 percent in the second, when the Rebels were 14-of-26 from the field.
The victory gave the Rebels a share of fifth place in the conference along with Alabama, Arkansas, and Tennessee.
With everybody ahead of them except league-leader Kentucky losing over the weekend, the Rebels were just a game out of tying for third place, currently shared by Mississippi State and Vanderbilt, and two games back of second-place Florida with six conference games remaining.
The Rebels have two big games with Vanderbilt at home and Kentucky on the road coming up next, then finish with two home games (LSU and Alabama) and two on the road Tennessee and Arkansas).
NOTES, QUOTES
--Junior F Murphy Holloway broke out of a brief slump that saw him score only 16 points in the losses at Alabama and Mississippi State the previous two games to score 20 points and grab 11 rebounds against Auburn for his eighth double-double of the season.
"That's the best Murphy has played in a while," coach Andy Kennedy said. "He's been unlike himself in the last couple of games as far as production. It's challenged him.
"But he made some huge plays. He knocked some balls away, and I think that was the key to the game."
--Poor free-throw shooting could have proved costly for Ole Miss. The Rebels were only 13-of-25 from the stripe against Auburn, which got to the line only 10 times for the game, making six.
Troubles at the line have been a season-long problem. The Rebels have made only 59.2 percent of their opportunities for the season and just 58.2 percent in their 10 SEC games.
Both figures are the worst in the conference.
--Ole Miss improved to 10-1 at home with the win over the Tigers.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"We were challenging guys. Somebody had to step up." -- Coach Andy Kennedy, on the response he got from junior F Murphy Holloway in the second half.
THIS WEEK'S GAMES
--vs. Vanderbilt, Feb. 16
Vandy has an experienced lineup all around. C Festus Ezeli will present a challenge inside, and John Jenkins and Jeffery Taylor are threats from the perimeter. The Commodores could be vulnerable coming off a disappointing loss to Kentucky.
--at Kentucky, Feb. 18
The Rebels are taking on the favorite for national Freshman of the Year in F Anthony Davis, who also could be considered a strong candidate for Player of the Year nationally if the Wildcats continue to roll. The backcourt is going to have to step up for the Rebels.
FUTURES MARKET
Senior F Terrance Henry scored only four points against Auburn, matching his season low. That gave him 949 in his career. To get to 1,000, he needs to average 6.4 points a game, assuming the Rebels play just one game in the SEC tournament and just one in a national tournament. His average through 24 games was 11.5 a game.
PLAYER NOTES
--Junior F Reginald Bucker added four more blocks against Auburn to raise his school career record to 215. He has 56 for the season in 22 games. He set the school single-season record of 95 last season.
--Junior G Nick Williams recovered from a scoreless game at Mississippi to go 5-of-8 from the field (3-of-6 on treys) for 13 points against Auburn, the eighth time he has been in double figures over the last nine games.
