Ole Miss just wasn’t ready for its third NCAA Tournament bid this decade, Oklahoma outperformed the Rebels in nearly every facet of the game en route to a 95-72 win. They move on to face the winner of Virginia vs. Gardner-Webb in the third round. The thought going into this game was that Oklahoma’s defense would tote the load for the Sooners, but inexplicably hot shooting led to a 50-point performance in the first half against the Rebels. Fifty, count ‘em, 50 points in only 20 minutes of American college basketball. That’s not ideal by any metric. OU started out 12-for-16 shooting and led 29-18 at the 12-minute media timeout. Somehow, things got worse from there. Four Sooners notched five or more points at the eight-minute mark as the Sooner lead swelled to more than 20 points with four minutes left in the half. Most of what could be blamed was hot shooting by Oklahoma, but there were also repeated attempts to make interior passes and drive into the Sooner defense that led to 11 turnovers and 12 points off those mistakes (OU committed just three turnovers). The Rebels’ inability to get to the free throw line didn’t help things—their first trip to the charity stripe came with only 1:39 left in the first half. The Sooners outscored Ole Miss by 18 points from the line. The second half was more of the same as the Sooners started out 6-for-7 from the field, stymieing any chance for the Rebels to cut significantly into the lead. Ole Miss shrank to 12 at times, but the Rebels could never capture the momentum. This game was a dud, but it shouldn’t overshadow an incredible first season for head coach Kermit Davis and the final year for senior Terence Davis. Picked preseason to finish last in the Southeastern Conference, Ole Miss won 20 games, finished in the top half of the league and knocked off multiple top-25 opponents. This team made it back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in nearly half a decade and happened to run into a hot-shooting Sooner that held a significant advantage in the post. Delete this game from your mental and physical DVR, Rebel fans, because it’s nothing you’ll ever want to watch again. But save the high points of this season. They were undoubtedly unexpected and joyous and look forward to the Kermit Davis era in year two. Comment below or tweet @redcuprebellion with your thoughts on this season. What moments will you never forget? How do you feel about next season now?<doc-sep>Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images The Oklahoma Sooners likely earned a date with the top-seeded Virginia Cavaliers thanks to their first NCAA men's tournament win since 2016. The No. 9 seed in the South region defeated the No. 8 Ole Miss Rebels 95-72 in the round of 64 on Friday in Columbia, South Carolina. As long as the Cavaliers avoid losing to a No. 16 seed for the second straight year, Oklahoma will have a shot at the ACC powerhouse. Rashard Odomes (20 points), Christian James (20 points), Kristian Doolittle (19 points, 14 rebounds, five assists and two steals) and Brady Manek (18 points and three steals) led the way for the Sooners in a balanced attack. The Big 12 representative never trailed. Terence Davis spearheaded the losing effort for the Rebels with 17 points, six assists and five rebounds. 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The Sooners were the 70th-best offensive team in the country and 20th-best defensive team in the country during the season, per KenPom's pace-adjusted rankings, but they poured in the first 12 points of the game and finished the first half with 50 on 66.7 percent shooting from deep and 59.4 percent shooting from the field. Their defense deserves plenty of credit for forcing turnovers and parlaying them into transition opportunities on the other end, but it was just the type of offensive firepower that leads to upsets in the tournament. Oklahoma will likely have a chance to do just that against Virginia in the next round. Thriving against the Cavaliers' stout defense is much easier said than done. A pack-line defense that finished fifth in KenPom's rankings clogs the lane and cuts off any penetration, which forces opponents out of their comfort zone and into contested long-range shots. What's more, opposing offenses don't have the same number of possessions they are accustomed to as they look to establish a rhythm. Virginia finished last in the country in KenPom's tempo (353rd) and minimizes possessions by dribbling the air out of the ball and swinging passes along the perimeter until it gets an ideal look. That shrinks the margin of error for the opponent because falling behind by even six or seven points against the Cavaliers feels like falling behind by 15 or more against other teams due to the snail-like pace. Virginia lost a mere three games all season, but two of them were to the mighty Duke Blue Devils who can attack that slower pace and stifling defense with three potential top-five picks in Zion Williamson, RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish. The other was to Florida State, who has the extreme size and athleticism to shoot over the pack-line defense. Oklahoma didn't have that type of consistent offensive talent during the regular season, as James was the only player who averaged more than 12 points a night. However, the firepower and ruthless efficiency on display Friday was a different story. Odomes used his size and physicality at 6'6" to bully his way into the lane against the overmatched Rebels guards. The versatile Doolittle did a little bit of everything by cutting into the lane, facilitating and battling for boards so he could immediately hit ball-handlers with outlet passes to get the offense rolling in the other direction. James and Manek combined for six three-pointers, taking advantage of situations when Ole Miss sent defenders toward Odomes and Doolittle. If the Sooners are able to replicate the offensive explosion they unleashed against the Rebels with a variety of playmakers when they face the Cavaliers, they can stun the South Region's top seed and play their way into the Sweet 16. What's Next? Oklahoma will face the winner of the game between the Virginia Cavaliers and Gardner-Webb Bulldogs in the round of 32 on Sunday.<doc-sep>According to the oddsmakers at Westgate Las Vegas Superbook, UVA opens as an 11.5-point favorite over the Sooners, which defeated the Ole Miss Rebels, 95-72 on Friday. UVA advanced with a 71-56 win over the Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs, who led the Wahoos by as many as 14 points in the first half in Columbia, S.C. on Saturday. Virginia used a 5-0 run to end the first half to get within six of Gardner-Webb before opening the second half on a 22-5 run to take control of the game and win going away. De'Andre Hunter led the way for the Wahoos, scoring a game-high 23 points in the victory. With a minute left in the contest, he had outscored the Bulldogs, 17-14 in the second half, before Tony Bennett emptied the bench. While the offense certainly came to life in the second half, it was the defensive intensity that really stood out with true freshman Kihei Clark being the catalyst. UVA turned Gardner-Webb over 12 times in the second half alone. Mamadi Diakite was UVA’s second-leading scorer in the game with 17 points and added a game-high, nine rebounds in the win. Ty Jerome rounded out Virginia’s double-figure scorers, finishing the game with 13 points and added six assists. He and Clark each had three steals in the win. Tony Bennett couldn’t be prouder of his team’s fight following the game. "I thought the way these guys on the last part of the first half to get it back to a six-point game was pivotal for us because Gardner-Webb's good,” said Bennett. “They move hard. They're quick. We understood that. They had a great backing, you could feel that. “But I thought the way these guys came out and fought. “And then the second half, there were a few adjustments that we did, but these guys really stepped up and played, and that's a pressure, there's no doubt about it. You know, when you're in that spot, you feel the crowd, but it's something we had to go through. I'm glad I'm up here this year feeling a little different than when I had Ty and Kyle with me last year. "But it's the beauty of the tournament. You just don't know. But we played well in the second half and the end of the first half, which we needed to do. I was proud of these guys the way they responded when it got a little -- well, it was just intense. That's the reality of it.” The tipoff time for UVA’s second-round matchup with Oklahoma will be announced later tonight.<doc-sep>
The 9th-seeded Oklahoma Sooners blitzed 8th-seeded Ole Miss from start to finish, winning 95-72 in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament. It’s OU’s first win in the Big Dance since reaching the Final Four three seasons ago. #Sooners SMASH the Rebels! (9) Oklahoma lights up (8) Ole Miss for 95 & advances to Round 2! #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/aIFWzffzC4 — NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) March 22, 2019 This was arguably Oklahoma’s most complete performance of the season. Not only did four players account for 77 points, there really were no dry spells throughout the contest. The defensive intensity was present from the tip, and even when Ole Miss finally found an offensive rhythm in the second half, the Rebels were simply unable to gain any significant ground on the near-flawless Sooners. look at this good-ass basketball team — C&C Machine (@CCMachine) March 22, 2019 Rashard Odomes and Christian James both scored 20 points, but the player of the game honor has to go to Kristian Doolittle. The junior put forth one of the best performances of his career, scoring 19 points, recording 14 rebounds and logging five assists. Ole Miss had absolutely no answer for him every time he had the ball anywhere near the basket, as evidenced by this incredible play in the second half. Lon Kruger couldn’t have scripted a better start to this one. For a team that has notoriously started games excruciatingly slow this season, Oklahoma wasted zero time settling in on both ends of the court. Before Ole Miss knew what hit it, the Sooners raced out to a quick 12-0 lead. The Sooners look serious! They've jumped out to a 12-0 lead over Ole Miss!#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/s9tL9elSrq — NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) March 22, 2019 Christian James was one of the seniors expected to play a key role in whether the Sooners advanced to the Round of 32 or saw their run end on Friday. In what could have been his final game in an Oklahoma uniform, James was completely dialed in to at the start, hitting his first three attempts from beyond the arc. He ended up going 7-12 from the field. If there was a singular story in the first half, it was Rashard Odomes, another senior who the team was counting on to come up with a big performance. Not only did he show up in Columbia, he showed out. He led the team in scoring through the first 20 minutes with 14 points on 6-7 shooting, including two three-point plays. The senior ended the day 8-10 from the field. Rashard Odomes dominated the paint with 14pts in the first half for OU!#MarchMadness | @OU_MBball pic.twitter.com/TfYaRdZs0W — NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) March 22, 2019 Going into halftime, the Sooners led the Rebels 50-33. Oklahoma shot a staggering 57.6% from the field, outscored Ole Miss 24-10 in the paint, and only turned the ball over once as opposed to nine giveaways from Mississippi. In the second half, Ole Miss came out with a heightened sense of urgency, and closed the gap to as close as 12, but the Sooners had an answer for everything the Rebels threw their way. Things went back and forth for a stretch until the game was bogged down quite a bit with an exodus of foul calls on both sides. Ole Miss was particularly affected by foul trouble due to a lack of quality depth compared to Oklahoma. As a result, the Sooners were 21-25 from the free throw line compared to the Rebels’ 3-4 showing at the charity stripe. Up next, Oklahoma will play the winner of No. 1 seeded Virginia and No. 16 seed Gardner Webb on Sunday, with time and broadcast info still to be determined. Follow Crimson & Cream Machine on Twitter!