The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss Stays Unbeaten at Home
12/22/2006 | Men's Basketball
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) - Dwayne Curtis scored 25 points and grabbed 13 rebounds Friday as Ole Miss defeated Alabama A&M 81-57.
Clarence Sanders scored 23 points, Kenny Williams had 13 points and 13 rebounds and Bam Doyne added 11 points for Ole Miss (11-2). The Rebels finished unbeaten in nonconference home games at 7-0.
The Rebels have won 20 of their last 21 nonconference home games, including 11 straight. Ole Miss is off to its best start since 2000-01, when the Rebels started 11-0 and eventually advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
Cornelius Hester led Alabama A&M (5-5) with 19 points, 18 coming in the first half. Trant Simpson added 17 points for the Bulldogs.
Sanders connected on five consecutive shots in the opening five minutes, including four 3-pointers. The Rebels used the surge to take a 16-11 lead and never trailed again.
Ole Miss led 44-34 at halftime and continued to pull away in the second half. Alabama A&M came no closer than 12 points in the final 15 minutes. The biggest lead came at 77-51 on a Curtis layup with 4:08 left.
After a holiday break, the Rebels return to the hardwood on Dec. 30, as they hit the road for the Saint Louis Billikens. The non-conference finale is set for 1 p.m. CT at the Scottrade Center.
Ole Miss' next home game will be the SEC opener against Kentucky on Jan. 6.