Manny Obaseki sank the decisive 3-pointer with 12.5 seconds left as No. 13 Texas A&M rallied to beat No. 16 Ole Miss 63-62 on Wednesday night in Oxford, Miss.
Zhuric Phelps scored 14 points, Obaseki contributed 12 and Pharrel Payne added 10 points for the Aggies (15-4, 4-2 Southeastern Conference), who finished the game on an 11-2 run.
Sean Pedulla logged 16 points, Malik Dia and Jaylen Murray added 12 each and Jaemyn Brakefield scored 10 for the Rebels (15-4, 4-2). Brakefield grabbed eight rebounds, and Murray dished out six assists.
Dia made a layup to start the second-half scoring and he added a field goal and a later free throw as Ole Miss expanded its lead to 39-28 with 17:02 to go. Phelps made a field goal and Payne added two to pull Texas A&M within five points.
Dia made another basket, but the Aggies scored six straight to get within one point. Pedulla hit a 3-pointer and a jumper to help the Rebels push the lead to six. Obaseki’s 3-pointer and jumper help Texas A&M get within 49-47 with 8:16 remaining.
The Aggies got within two again before Dia made a basket and Brakefield added a 3-pointer for a 57-50 lead. Payne hit a field goal, but Brakefield answered with a three-point play for a 60-52 lead with 3:49 left.
Texas A&M scored the six points, including Phelps’ layup that cut the gap to 60-58 with 29 seconds to go. Murrell made two free throws before Phelps’ basket with 21 seconds left sliced the deficit to two.
Davon Barnes missed the front end of a one-and-one for the Rebels before Obaseki hit his 3-pointer. Brakefield missed a jump shot before time expired.
In the early going, both teams went nearly four minutes without a field goal before Phelps’ hoop tied the score at 5-5.
Murray and Pedulla each made a 3-pointer during an 8-0 Rebels run. Hayden Hefner stopped the surge by making a 3-pointer, but Pedulla and Davon Barnes made consecutive treys to give Ole Miss a 21-10 lead.
Hefner’s 3-pointer trimmed the margin to 29-21 and Texas A&M got within five points before Pedulla’s jumper left the Rebels with a 33-26 halftime lead.
–Field Level Media
