Cotie McMahon in action at Texas on Sunday.
AUSTIN, Texas – Ole Miss fell behind by 19 points to nationally-ranked Notre Dame but rallied to overcome the deficit inside the Pavilion earlier this season.
On Sunday, the Rebels did the same thing at the Moody center in Austin, but the 2nd-ranked Texas Longhorns proved too tall a hill to climb. Trailing by as many 19 in the third quarter, the Rebels fought back furiously but succumbed to Texas 67-64. The game ended when Cotie McMahon’s would-be-tying three-point shot rattled off the rim.
The loss dropped Ole Miss’ record to 14-3 overall and to 1-1 inside the rough and tumble SEC. Texas improved to 17-0 for the first time since 1986, a year in which the Longhorns won the national championship. The Longhorns improved to 2-0 in SEC play.
It was the ninth win in the last 10 meetings for Texas in its series with Ole Miss.
McMahon led Ole Miss with a game-high 19 points, but in addition to her missed three-point shot that closed the game, she also missed a pair of critical free throws down the stretch run. She was followed by Latasha Lattimore’s 17 points and Siera Thienou’s 14. Christeen Iuwala scored six and led Ole Miss with six rebounds. Desrae Kyles also had six boards for the Rebels.
Jordan Lee paced the Longhorns with 17 points.
Ole Miss out-rebound Texas 30-29.
Free-throws were basically even with Ole Miss making 16-of-20 and Texas connecting on 15-of-21. Texas shot 46.3 to Ole Miss’ 45.1 from the field. The Longhorns connected on 18.2 percent from beyond the arc, while Ole Miss shot 16.7 percent.
Texas led the game 21-17 at the end of one quarter and 35-21 at the half. The Longhorns carried a 55-40 lead into the final period.
NEXT UP
Ole Miss will stay on the road for its second consecutive game when the Rebels play at No. 8 Oklahoma on Thursday. Oklahoma defeated Mississippi State 95-47 Sunday in Norman. The victory extended the Sooners’ (14-1, 2-0 SEC) win streak to 13 games.