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Ole Miss basketball coach Andy Kennedy glances at the scoreboard as his team falls behind Mississippi State in the second half of their NCAA college basketball game in Starkville, Miss., Saturday, March 2, 2013. Mississippi State won 73-67. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
The Rebels split two games during the week, beating Texas A&M 82-73 with a well-rounded performance then falling flat in a 73-67 loss at struggling Mississippi State.
The loss basically ended the Rebels’ quest for their first NCAA tournament at-large bid since 2002.
Looking ahead
In the final week of the regular season Ole Miss has a Tuesday home game against Alabama for “Senior Night.” It’s an 8 p.m., start at Tad Smith Coliseum.
The Rebels will end SEC regular season play the way they began it, on the road. They visit LSU in a Saturday afternoon game.
After winning their first three league games on the road, the Rebels havs lost five in a row away from home.
Who’s hot
Murphy Holloway had 22 points and 19 rebounds against MSU. Holloway was 11 of 18 from the floor.
Who’s not
Just about everyone else falls into the “Who’s Not” category. Ole Miss only shot 33.8 percent at MSU.
Without Holloway, the Rebels hit just 14 of 56 field goal attempts to finish at 25 percent shooting. Marshall Henderson was 4 of 19 from the floor, 3 of 18 from 3-point range.
RPI watch
WarrenNolan.com has the Ole Miss RPI at 60 going into the Alabama game.
Alabama s 60th and LSU is 91st.
Bottom Line
An NCAA bid at 13-5 in the SEC wasn’t guaranteed, but there was a very real chance. There is no more chance for an at-large bid at 12-6 with two of those losses being to sub-200 RPI teams.
If the Rebels play the last three as uninspired as they did at MSU, things could get ugly.
Parrish Alford