Andy Kennedy’s goal of earning a bye for his Ole Miss Rebels in the first round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament became more of a reality Tuesday night with an 87-83 win over Alabama. While the ending at C.M. “Tad” Smith Coliseum wasn’t ideal — Alabama hit six 3-pointers in the final 1:55 to cut a double-digit lead down to four — the Rebels played much better than they did last Saturday at Mississippi State to earn the win.
Ole Miss (22-8 overall, 11-6 SEC) now sits in fourth place of the SEC standings, meaning they wouldn’t play until Friday, March 15 in the tournament, while Alabama (19-11, 11-6) is fifth and without a tie-breaker over the Rebels or Missouri, which sits in third place currently after earning a 30-point win over Arkansas Tuesday.
