Ole Miss lost its third-straight SEC game on Saturday, falling to the previously-reeling Georgia Bulldogs 78-74 in Oxford.
The Bulldogs came into the game losers of four-straight, sitting at 0-4 in conference play. Ole Miss led for the majority of the first half but was behind 29-28 at the intermission. Then, Georgia’s offense arose from the dead.
Ty Fagan, Sahvir Wheeler, K.D. Johnson and Toumani Camara all reached double digits for the Bulldogs, and Fagan went 9-of-9 from the floor, the majority of which came in the second half. He finished with 19 on the day.
When Georgia’s offense woke up, so did Ole Miss’, but it wasn’t enough. Devontae Shuler finished 4-of-8 from three and dropped 24, and Jarkel Joiner dropped 22. The difference in the game came down to the free throw line where the Rebels went 5-of-15.
This game marked the second in a row that the Rebels had a legit shot to win late but failed to do so. The difference in this game from the previous matchup against Florida was that the Rebels had to claw back from a double-digit deficit themselves and were unable to cash in on some opportunities late in the ballgame.
Not to be overtly-negative, I am just good for one man’s opinion after all, but it appears the frustration is mounting around the fanbase here in mid-January concerning this team. It’s a long season, but so far, the Rebels haven’t shown an ability to win close games, a problem that reared its head time and time again last season as well. Games like the one on Saturday against a winless conference opponent at home have to be wins, and that mark was missed against the Bulldogs.
The Rebels travel to Starkville for their next game on Tuesday with an 8pm tip against Mississippi State. The game will be carried by SEC Network.