OXFORD — Stefan Moody scored 22 points and the Ole Miss men’s basketball team survived two field goal misses in the final 10 seconds Saturday night to defeat Tennessee 59-57.
Jarvis Summers added 13 points for the Rebels (19-8, 10-4 Southeastern Conference), including the game-winning free throw with 27 seconds left. Ole Miss has won eight of its last nine starts and remained tied with Texas A&M for third place in the conference.
Tennessee (14-12, 6-8), placed three players in double figures, led by Armani Moore with 15 points. Josh Richardson had 13 points, but misfired twice in the final 10 seconds. Kevin Punter added 12, with four 3-pointers.
The loss was the fifth in the last six starts for the Vols, who shot 22 of 50 (44 percent) from the field and out rebounded Ole Miss 37-27. The Rebels countered by forcing 13 turnovers and holding Tennessee without a field goal in the final 4 minutes, 12 seconds.
The Rebels finished 21 of 54 (38.9 percent), including 11 of 31 from 3-point range. Ole Miss, ranked second in the nation in free throw percentage, managed only 6 of 10 but got two from Moody and one from Summers in the final two minutes for the margin of victory.
Tennessee led 30-27 at halftime despite going more than nine minutes without a basket. Moore had 10 first-half points as the Vols closed with a 10-0 run in the final two minutes.
The Vols pushed the lead to 41-33 with 15:16 left on consecutive 3-point shots from Kevin Punter. Ole Miss was only 2-of-15 from the field to open the second half as Tennessee built its biggest lead.
Ole Miss answered with a 19-6 surge, keyed by Moody with 11 points, to take a 52-47 lead with 7:57 left. Tennessee regained the lead on Moore’s free throw, 57-56 with 3:07 left, setting up the decisive free throws and defensive stand by the Rebels.
NOTES: Tennessee’s Moore had a game-high nine rebounds and added five assists, two steals, and two blocked shots. … In the SEC, the Volunteers are 2-5 in games decided by six points or less. … The Rebels have won 36 games against SEC foes in the past three seasons, trailing only Kentucky and Florida. … Summers had eight assists and has 67 assists in the past 10 games. … In the past three seasons, Ole Miss is 4-1 against Tennessee.
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