Ole Miss Men’s Basketball to Face Texas in SEC Tournament First Round

The Ole Miss men’s basketball team is set to open the SEC Tournament on Wednesday night in Nashville, facing Texas at 6 p.m. in Bridgestone Arena. The game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.

Ole Miss enters the tournament with a 12-19 overall record and a 4-14 mark in SEC play. The Rebels are coached by Chris Beard, now in his third season, who has accumulated a 56-43 record at Ole Miss. Texas, led by first-year head coach Sean Miller, sports an 18-13 overall record and finished 9-9 in SEC action.

The matchup marks the 18th meeting between Ole Miss and Texas, with the Longhorns leading the series 10-7. Texas has won all three meetings on neutral ground, including this season’s game in Austin in February, where they edged Ole Miss 79-68. The teams previously met in 1955, with no postseason meetings between the programs until now.

In their latest encounter, Texas held off a late rally by Ole Miss, who led by three points with three and a half minutes remaining. Eduardo Klafke scored 16 points for Ole Miss, while Matas Vokietaitis led Texas with 27 points. The game was part of the regular season, with Texas finishing strong before entering the SEC Tournament as the 10th seed.

Texas finished the regular season with notable rankings in NCAA statistics, including fifth in free throws made per game and 22nd in scoring at 84.4 points per game. The Longhorns are considered on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament, according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi.

Ole Miss has a storied SEC history, with a 34-61 record in the tournament since 1933. The Rebels have won the conference twice, most recently in 2013. The team is known for its disciplined play, averaging 9.8 turnovers per game, third in the SEC, and has a strong bench contribution, averaging 30.2 points per game from reserves.

Key players for Ole Miss include senior guard AJ Storr, who has averaged 18.1 points in SEC games, and freshman Patton Pinkins, who scored 25 points in the team’s SEC opener. The team emphasizes defense, averaging 4.2 blocks per game, led by James Scott with 35 blocks this season.

Looking ahead, Ole Miss recently added two recruits for their 2026 class—small forward Jaron Saulsberry and combo guard Yohance Connor—aiming to bolster their roster for the future.

Source: Original Article