Rebels knock off Razorbacks
By By Will Bardwell / staff writer
March 7, 2004
OXFORD Justin Reed got his wish and Aaron Harper didn't, but both Ole Miss seniors went out with a win in the last home game of their college careers on Saturday.
Reed got his, throwing down a thunderous one-handed slam during a key 16-0 run in the second half that powered Ole Miss to a 55-45 win over Arkansas.
The two seniors accounted for more than half their team's offense. Reed scored a game-high 19 points and Reed added 11.
The win left the Rebels, 13-14 overall and 5-11 in the Southeastern Conference, needing two wins in this week's SEC Tournament to secure a .500 record and a chance at a bid to the National Invitation Tournament.
The Rebels appeared out of Saturday's game early in the second half. Arkansas led 21-16 at halftime, and after Harper picked up his fourth foul three minutes into the second period, the Razorbacks were poised to take control of the game after a Vincent Hunter layup put Arkansas up 32-24 with 12:10 left.
But the Rebels suddenly came alive, unleashing a 16-0 run to go up 40-32. Reed hit a three-pointer from the corner with 8:42 to go that gave Ole Miss a 33-32 lead. It was only the Rebels' second lead of the afternoon, but it was the last one they needed.
Reed's dunk put Ole Miss up by five, and a baseline jumper by Kendrick Fox his only basket of the game completed the 16-point turnaround with four minutes to play.
Harper almost got his farewell dunk with less than 10 seconds to play when he picked off an Arkansas pass and sprinted toward the hoop, but was fouled on his way up and had to settle for a trip to the free-throw line.
The Rebels held Arkansas scoreless for nearly nine minutes during the run and turned the Razorbacks' eight-point lead into an eight-point advantage of their own.
The Razorbacks missed 12 straight shots during the Rebels' run. The drought mimicked much of the frustration that the Rebels endured in the first half, when they shot a dismal 6-of-25 (24 percent) from the floor. Arkansas fared little better, shooting 6-of-17 (35 percent) before halftime.
Harper scored eight of Ole Miss' first 10 points by nailing two three-pointers and weaving through the lane for a layup with 8:30 left.
But Harper picked up his second and third fouls a minute and a half later when he fouled Hunter while fighting for a loose ball, then picked up a technical foul in an ensuing scuffle.
The fouls forced Harper to the bench for the rest of the period, but Reed drained two three-pointers over the next minute to give Ole Miss a brief 16-13 lead.
The absence of the Rebels' second-leading scorer soon caught up with Ole Miss. After Reed's second trey with 6:05 remaining, Ole Miss went scoreless the rest of the half.
Reed and Harper shot a combined 6-of-14 in the first half. The rest of the Rebels were 0-of-11.
The Rebels listened. Twenty-five of Ole Miss' 39 second-half points came from neither Reed nor Harper, and seven were scored by Tommie Eddie, a 6-foot-7, 260-pound back-up.
Still, the Rebels shot just 14-of-45 (31 percent) for the game.
No one scored in double figures for the Razorbacks, who were 16-of-50 (32 percent) from the floor and were led by Michael Jones' nine points.
