Ole Miss Cruises Past ULM 83-60

OXFORD, Miss. – Ball distribution proved to be a major key to the Ole Miss men's basketball team's 83-60 victory over ULM. The Rebels (5-2) produced 25 assists on 33 made baskets en route to a wire-to-wire win Saturday afternoon at The Pavilion.

The constant ball movement allowed the Rebels to shoot 52.4 percent (33 of 63) from the floor. Ole Miss used its size to control the boards and the paint throughout the contest. The Rebels outrebounded the Warhawks (3-4) 41-24, a season high in rebounding margin, and held a 36-18 advantage on points in the paint.

For the third time in the last four games, junior guard Breein Tyree reached the 20-point plateau and led the Rebels in points. Behind Tyree's 20 points, freshmen Blake Hinson finished off a strong week by setting new career highs in points (17) and threes (4). The Deltona, Florida, native went 6 of 8 from the field, including 4 for 5 beyond the arc. Terence Davis added 15 points, 13 of them coming in the second half, and a team-high eight rebounds.

All five starters contributed in their own way. Besides Davis, Hinson and Tyree reaching double figures in scoring, Dominik Olejniczak recorded eight points on a perfect 4 of 4 shooting. Devontae Shuler matched his career high in assists (6), while committing only one turnover. Off the bench, Bruce Stevens scored nine points to go along with seven rebounds. KJ Buffen added six points, five rebounds and a team-high two steals.

Defensively, the Rebels held ULM's Daishon Smith to nine points on 2 of 11 from the field. Coming into the game averaging 20.0 ppg as the Warhawks' leading scorer, Smith never got going as he was pressured by Terence Davis for most of the day. Travis Munnings led ULM with 17 points.

Ole Miss wasted no time jumping out to a 7-0 lead. After coming up empty on their opening possession, the Rebels scored on their next six trips down the floor. Tyree knocked down his first three shots, scoring seven of the team's first 14 points to put the Rebels up nine early.

The lead grew to double digits after a Stevens' three from the top of the key with 13:25 remaining in the first half, prompting ULM coach Keith Richard to call a timeout. After a pair of missed free throws by the Warhawks, Stevens showed his versatility by adding a baby hook on the block to make it 21-9 Ole Miss. ULM came into the contest as one of the nation's best teams in defending the three at 26.8 percent, but the Rebels hit four of their first seven three-point attempts. A Hinson three, his second of the game, gave Ole Miss a 24-11 cushion midway through the first half.

The Warhawks got within seven, but a 7-1 run by the Rebels gave the home team a 44-31 lead at the half. Ole Miss shot 63.0 percent from the field (17 of 27) and held a 19-9 advantage on the boards. Hinson scored 14 points to lead the way, making five of his first seven attempts.

Just like he did to start the game, Tyree began the half with a bang. Back-to-back threes grew the Ole Miss lead to 19, forcing ULM to take a timeout just over a minute into the second half. Coming out of the break, the Warhawks got back to their first half deficit, 13, but that's as close as they would get throughout the remainder of the game.

A 12-0 Ole Miss run balloon the lead to 25, and it started on the defensive end. Olejniczak used his long arms to come up with a steal before the ball found the hands of Tyree. The junior guard did the rest, throwing down the reverse dunk that drew a roar from The Pavilion crowd. From there, the Rebels extended the game to 77-52, going into cruise control for the remainder of the game for the 23-point victory.

Following back-to-back home games, Ole Miss has the midweek off due to final exams. After wrapping up the academic semester, the Rebels will fly north to Normal, Illinois. Ole Miss faces Illinois State next Saturday (Dec. 8) at Redbird Arena. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. CT. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and can be heard on the airwaves of the Ole Miss IMG Sports Network.

For the latest news and updates regarding Ole Miss Men's Basketball, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMBB, on Facebook at Ole Miss Men's Basketball and on Instagram at olemissmbb.

TIP-INS

Ole Miss improved to 4-0 at home this season.
The Rebels tallied a season-high 25 assists, the most in a game since last season versus Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Dec. 19, 2017).
10 Rebels appearing in the game recorded at least one assist; Devontae Shuler matched his career high with a team-best six assists.
Ole Miss dominated down low, outrebounding ULM 41-24 and holding a 36-18 advantage on points in the paint.
The Rebels shot over 50 percent from the field for the third time this season.
After scoring a career-high 15 points Wednesday versus San Diego, freshman Blake Hinson set a new career high with 17 points; Hinson also knocked down a career-high four 3-pointers, going 4 of 5 from beyond the arc.
Breein Tyree scored a team-high 20 points, reaching the 20-point mark for the third time in the last four games; Tyree has reached double figures in 13 straight games and is averaging 21.0 ppg over the last four contests.
Terence Davis scored 15 points and passed Fred Cox (1,105) for 32nd on the Ole Miss all-time scoring list; Davis now has 1,114 for his Rebel career.

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Team Stats

Breein Tyree

Blake Hinson

Terence Davis

Bruce Stevens

Players Mentioned

KJ Buffen

Terence Davis

Blake Hinson

Dominik Olejniczak

Devontae Shuler

Bruce Stevens

Breein Tyree

Players Mentioned

KJ Buffen

Terence Davis

Blake Hinson

Dominik Olejniczak

Devontae Shuler

Bruce Stevens

Breein Tyree

The University of Mississippi Athletics