March 13, 2026; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide guard Houston Mallette (95) and forward Aiden Sherrell (22) double-teamed in the first half against the Mississippi Rebels at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images AJ Storr scored 17 points, Ilias Kamardine had 14 of his 16 points in the second half, and 15th-seeded Ole Miss still never trailed in the Southeastern Conference tournament after an 80-79 win over second-seeded Alabama in the quarterfinals on Friday in Nashville, Tennessee.
Malik Dia added 14 points and Patton Pinkins had 13 for the Rebels (15-19). The Rebels (15-19) held a 13-point lead with 13 minutes remaining before holding off the Crimson Tide.
The Rebels were close for the second straight time, losing all but two of a 23-point lead in the second round, a 76-72 win over Georgia.
Lavaron Pilon Jr. had 28 points and made five 3-pointers, Aden Holloway had 18 points and Aiden Sherrell added 14 for the No. 15 Crimson Tide (23-9), who has won nine of 10.
Kamardine made two big baskets to secure the Rebels’ spot in the semifinals, where they will play the winner of the Arkansas-Oklahoma game.
The Rebels, who led by as many as 14 points at halftime, went ahead by 13 on Eduardo Klafke’s 3-pointer with 13 minutes, 19 seconds left in the game before the Crimson Tide shut out the game.
The Tide cut the score to 71-68 on Amari Allen’s jumper with 6:15 left, and Kamardine’s forced 3-pointer as the shot clock expired gave the Rebels a 78-71 lead with 3:47 left.
Sherrell’s dunk brought Alabama up 78-75, and Kamardine responded with a jumper with 1:08 left to restore the Rebels’ lead to five.
Taylor Bol Bowen’s layup made it 80-77, and Philon hit two free throws with 13.4 seconds left after Kamardine’s miss to get the Tide within one.
Klafke missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 9.4 seconds left, and Alabama secured the rebound before driving the lane and James Scott blocking Sherrell’s layup attempt.
Scott was fouled and missed a free throw with 0.5 seconds left, but Alabama couldn’t get a shot off before time expired.
The Rebels have lost 12 of 13 to close the regular season, and their only path to the NCAA Tournament is winning the SEC Tournament for the first time since 2013.
Alabama shot 40.6% from the field and 31.0% from 3-point range against an Ole Miss defense that held Texas to 35.2% shooting and Georgia to 36.4% shooting.
The Rebels have held double-digit leads in each of their three tournament wins. They avenged a 93-74 regular season loss to the Crimson Tide on February 11.
–Field level media
