Short-handed Rebels fall to Kentucky

Feb 1, 2023 - 4:39 PM

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Ole Miss dropped its fourth straight game Tuesday with the Kentucky Wildcats taking a 75-66 win at the SJB Pavilion.

The Rebels (9-13, 1-8 SEC) kept things interesting with a tie game at halftime, but it became clear Kentucky (15-7, 6-3 SEC) was not going to allow the upset pretty quickly into the second half. The Wildcats opened up a six point lead in the first five minutes of the second period and stretched the lead to 13 by the eight minute break.

The breaking news for the Rebels came shortly before gametime with guard Daeshun Ruffin announcing he would be stepping away from the team via Twitter.

There’s no mention of the transfer portal, so fans could assume Ruffin may come back next season. Potentially he could be weighing a return based on who will be coaching as Kermit Davis sits squarely on the hot seat on the brink of a second consecutive losing season.

Ole Miss was also without its leading scorer Matthew Murrell who continues to battle a leg injury for the last couple weeks.

The Rebels desperately could have used some outside shooting as the team was four of 19 from deep. Freshmen guards TJ Caldwell and Amaree Abram shouldered the offensive load for Ole Miss combining for 29 points with both both playing more than 32 minutes.

Next up, a winnable game on the road against Vanderbilt on Saturday at 12 p.m. The sub .500 Commodores were blown out 101-44 by Alabama on Tuesday.