The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Nicholls State
Ole Miss Overcomes Shaky Start To Down Nicholls State
12/21/2002 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 21, 2002
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Box Score
OXFORD, Miss. - Junior Aaron Harper scored 16 of his game-high 21 points in the second half as Ole Miss erased an eight-point halftime deficit to defeat Nicholls State 63-52 Saturday afternoon at the Tad Smith Coliseum.
Trailing 29-21 at halftime, Ole Miss (6-2) opened the second half with a 23-5 run to take a 44-34 lead with 12:24 remaining. The Rebels scored the first seven points of the half and pulled within one at 29-28 on Aaron Harper's three pointer. Freshman guard Trey Pearson's trey with 17:34 to go put Ole Miss in the lead for good at 31-30.
The lead was the Rebels' first since holding a 6-5 advantage early in the first half.
Ole Miss would lead by as many as 19 points at 62-43.
The Rebels finished shooting 50 percent from the floor for the game, hitting 22-of-44 shots. Ole Miss hit on 54.2 percent from the field in the second half, making 13-of-24 field goals, including 7-of-12 from behind the arc.
After connecting on 12-of-23 shots in the first half to build its 29-21 halftime lead, Nicholls State (2-6) struggled from the floor in the second half against the Rebels' increased defensive pressure. The Colonels managed to hit just 6-of-18 from the field in the second half and also committed nine of their 12 turnovers.
Both teams finished with 26 rebounds each.
Anthony Wilcher led Nicholls State with 18 points.
Ole Miss jumped out to a quick 6-2 lead, before the Colonels went on a 14-4 run to take a 16-10 lead. The Rebels answered with six straight points to tie the game at 16-16 before Nicholls State went on a 13-5 spurt over the final 9:14 of the first half to build its 29-21 halftime advantage.
The Rebels will return to action Monday night at 7:00 p.m., when they host Evansville at the Tad Smith Coliseum.
