The University of Mississippi Athletics
Saturday, March 7
Greenville, S.C.
6 PM
Ole Miss
23-11,8-8SEC
68
vs
85
Texas
30-3,13-3SEC
1
2
3
4
F
Ole Miss
16
16
23
13
68
Texas
22
20
15
28
85
No. 23 Women’s Basketball Falls in Semifinals of SEC Tournament
3/7/2026 | Women's Basketball
GREENVILLE, S.C. – No. 24/23 Ole Miss women's basketball's run at the 2026 SEC Tournament concluded after falling to No. 4/4 Texas, 85-68, Saturday evening at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina.
The Rebels (23-11, 8-8 SEC) battled in the second half after trailing by double-digits through the first half, but the Longhorns (30-3, 13-3 SEC) rode strong, opening and closing surges that would seal their win. Ole Miss leaves Greenville with a pair of strong victories, including a toppling of No. 5/5 Vanderbilt in the quarterfinal round yesterday, as the Rebels have now earned 34 wins all-time at the SEC Tournament.
Cotie McMahon and Denim DeShields excelled for the Rebels and kept Ole Miss in the fight throughout. The pair scored 20 points each, making 15 field goals between the two of them. For McMahon, it marked 19 games of at least 20 points this season. That is tied with Bianca Thomas for the second most in a single season by any Rebel ever. Thomas achieved her feat in the 2009-10 season.
McMahon also surpassed 670 points for the season, passing Thomas and Armintie Price for the fifth-most by an individual Rebel in single-season history. She finished the day with 675 for the season and has the opportunity to become just the third Rebel to ever surpass the 700-point mark for a single season in program history. Ole Miss legends Peggie and Jennifer Gillom are the only Rebels to have ever scored more than her in a single season.
For DeShields, her 20-piece marked an Ole Miss best for the senior. She also led the team with five assists and made a clutch 3-pointer as time expired in the third.
Texas forced a slow offensive start from Ole Miss to start the game. The Longhorns played full-court defense from the tipoff and forced multiple Rebel turnovers during inbounding plays. However, whenever Ole Miss passed the half court line, the Rebels were productive. By the media timeout, the Rebels were 5-of-8 in their field goal attempts, which included a made 3-pointer from McMahon. She continued to make an offensive impact, scoring 10 points in the quarter, but Ole Miss trailed 22-16 entering the second quarter.
The Longhorns stayed hot offensively early in the second quarter. Latasha Lattimore scored the first points of the frame, but the Longhorns rattled off 12 unanswered points afterward. Ole Miss retaliated with splintered five-point stretches that kept it in contention. McMahon and Christeen Iwuala paved the road for the Rebels, scoring six and five points, respectively, in the quarter. However, Texas missed only four field goals in the quarter en route to a 42-32 lead going into halftime.
The third quarter brought new life for the Rebels, as they went shot-for-shot with the Longhorns in the opening minutes. Lattimore drained two consecutive threes which helped bring the deficit within single digits. The middle half of the period saw an excess of free throws exchanged from both teams. The Rebels made eight free throws to the Longhorns six, and a three from DeShields as time expired in the quarter put Ole Miss within a possession of the lead, trailing only 57-55.
Texas regained momentum in the first five minutes of the quarter. It built its lead back to as high as 10, before DeShields once again cut into it with a layup. Texas found a burst of energy just over three minutes remaining, in which time it produced a pair of threes that would prove to be the dagger against Ole Miss. Texas added two more buckets to cushion its lead to fashion the final score of 85-68.
Ole Miss will travel back to Oxford and await its postseason fate on Selection Sunday, which is slated for March 15 at 7 p.m. CT. The Rebels will host a watch party at the SJB Pavilion that evening, which is open to the public. Details will be announced at a later date.
Follow the Rebels on X at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB and on Instagram at Ole MissWBB. You can also follow head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin on X at @YolettMcCuin.
Gallery: (3-7-2026) WBB vs. Texas - SEC Tournament
The Rebels (23-11, 8-8 SEC) battled in the second half after trailing by double-digits through the first half, but the Longhorns (30-3, 13-3 SEC) rode strong, opening and closing surges that would seal their win. Ole Miss leaves Greenville with a pair of strong victories, including a toppling of No. 5/5 Vanderbilt in the quarterfinal round yesterday, as the Rebels have now earned 34 wins all-time at the SEC Tournament.
Cotie McMahon and Denim DeShields excelled for the Rebels and kept Ole Miss in the fight throughout. The pair scored 20 points each, making 15 field goals between the two of them. For McMahon, it marked 19 games of at least 20 points this season. That is tied with Bianca Thomas for the second most in a single season by any Rebel ever. Thomas achieved her feat in the 2009-10 season.
McMahon also surpassed 670 points for the season, passing Thomas and Armintie Price for the fifth-most by an individual Rebel in single-season history. She finished the day with 675 for the season and has the opportunity to become just the third Rebel to ever surpass the 700-point mark for a single season in program history. Ole Miss legends Peggie and Jennifer Gillom are the only Rebels to have ever scored more than her in a single season.
For DeShields, her 20-piece marked an Ole Miss best for the senior. She also led the team with five assists and made a clutch 3-pointer as time expired in the third.
Texas forced a slow offensive start from Ole Miss to start the game. The Longhorns played full-court defense from the tipoff and forced multiple Rebel turnovers during inbounding plays. However, whenever Ole Miss passed the half court line, the Rebels were productive. By the media timeout, the Rebels were 5-of-8 in their field goal attempts, which included a made 3-pointer from McMahon. She continued to make an offensive impact, scoring 10 points in the quarter, but Ole Miss trailed 22-16 entering the second quarter.
The Longhorns stayed hot offensively early in the second quarter. Latasha Lattimore scored the first points of the frame, but the Longhorns rattled off 12 unanswered points afterward. Ole Miss retaliated with splintered five-point stretches that kept it in contention. McMahon and Christeen Iwuala paved the road for the Rebels, scoring six and five points, respectively, in the quarter. However, Texas missed only four field goals in the quarter en route to a 42-32 lead going into halftime.
The third quarter brought new life for the Rebels, as they went shot-for-shot with the Longhorns in the opening minutes. Lattimore drained two consecutive threes which helped bring the deficit within single digits. The middle half of the period saw an excess of free throws exchanged from both teams. The Rebels made eight free throws to the Longhorns six, and a three from DeShields as time expired in the quarter put Ole Miss within a possession of the lead, trailing only 57-55.
Texas regained momentum in the first five minutes of the quarter. It built its lead back to as high as 10, before DeShields once again cut into it with a layup. Texas found a burst of energy just over three minutes remaining, in which time it produced a pair of threes that would prove to be the dagger against Ole Miss. Texas added two more buckets to cushion its lead to fashion the final score of 85-68.
Ole Miss will travel back to Oxford and await its postseason fate on Selection Sunday, which is slated for March 15 at 7 p.m. CT. The Rebels will host a watch party at the SJB Pavilion that evening, which is open to the public. Details will be announced at a later date.
Follow the Rebels on X at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB and on Instagram at Ole MissWBB. You can also follow head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin on X at @YolettMcCuin.
Team Stats
UM
TX
FG%
.391
.525
3FG%
.263
.500
FT%
1.000
.864
RB
30
35
TO
14
13
STL
6
7
Game Leaders
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
20
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballF
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