LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY- No.14 Ole Miss 20-5 (7-3 SEC) and no. 18 Kentucky 19-7 (6-6 SEC) dueled it out in a very important matchup that could have big implications on the SEC and NCAA tournament. Kentucky would look at avenge a tough loss to Ole Miss in 2025, where Coach Yo’s squad brought home the win 66-57. Ole Miss begins a gauntlet of conference games, following Kentucky, Ole Miss will face Tennessee, LSU, and South Carolina all ranked teams.
Ole Miss would go down 14-9 early, as Clara Strack would begin the game on fire for the Wildcats, finishing the first quarter with eight points. Both squads attacked the paint heavy to start the game, only seven attempts from behind the arc in the first quarter between the teams, as Kentucky would open a tight lead over Coach Yo’s team 17-11 to end the first period. Ole Miss’ leading scorer Cotie McMahon struggled to start the game, going 0-3 as Kentucky centered a defensive game plan to force Ole Miss to rely on other options.
The Wildcats picked up where they left off in the second quarter, back-to-back three’s for Kentucky would quickly extend their lead to 24-15. Christine Iwuala would pick up her second foul early in the second quarter, removing the Rebels double-double machine from the game early. Kentucky would continue their dominance after a timeout from Ole Miss, finding good rhythm the Wildcats would fire away a 19-0 run, and did not look back. The Rebels could not find any momentum offensively, shooting 0-4 in two possessions, Kentucky would quickly make the game ugly, extending their lead to 36-15 with just over four minutes to play in the second quarter. Ole Miss would attempt to chip away at the lead, despite an 0-15 effort shooting in a 9 minute span for the Rebels, Ole Miss would find success at the charity stripe in the first half shooting 9-12 at the line. Kentucky would take a staggering 39-20 lead to end the first half McMahon would continue her struggles shooting 0-8 in the first half. Shot’s simply couldn’t fall for Ole Miss, there was no other recipe for the disaster displayed in the first half.
Ole Miss would begin the second half with better energy, as McMahon notched her first made shot of the game, and a couple of forced turnovers, the Rebels looked to storm back. Ole Miss would start the third quarter on a 5-0 run, as the downhill attack from Cotie McMahon and Ole Miss would begin. Seemingly taking their foot off the gas, Kentucky would only find the basket once in the first four minutes of the second half, as defensive pressure would begin to reign for Ole Miss. The Rebels downhill attack would be relentless for the Wildcats, gaining four attempts from the free throw line in the third quarter, Ole Miss would do everything in their power to eliminate the 45-31 Kentucky lead. Latasha Lattimore continued to be reliable for Ole Miss on the offensive side of the ball, her aggression to score and get rebounds helped the Rebels, as she notched six rebounds in the third quarter. At the end of the third, Ole Miss would find themselves down 55-42, shooting 85% from the charity stripe would continue to be a pivotal marking for Ole Miss.
Ole Miss would find momentum in the fourth quarter, skimming the lead to just six points with back-to-back buckets from McMahon as Ole Miss would continue to attack downhill and make this ranked matchup a must see game. Quickly, momentum would favor Kentucky, a few empty possessions would find the Wildcats back up ten points, and a two minute scoring drought would push away chances for the Rebels to make a comeback. Clara Strack would continue her first half dominance in the second half, scoring ten straight points in the fourth quarter, as the Rebels simply could not find a answer. Kentucky would have nothing but success in the late stretch, scoring seven straight field goal attempts, as the Rebels suffer their fourth conference loss of the season.
Ole Miss will matchup with no. 22 Tennessee Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. ct