Ole Miss women hold off Baylor, advance to Sweet 16
Ole Miss is headed back to the Sweet 16.
In a back-and-forth affair, the No. 5-seeded Rebels won the final minute and knocked off No. 4 Baylor 69-63 in the second round of the NCAA Women’s Tournament on Sunday in Waco, Texas. With the victory, Ole Miss advances to the third round for the second time in the last three years.
The game was tied 61-61 with 1:05 to go. Senior Madison Scott buried a midrange jumper with 40 seconds left to give the Rebels (22-10) a 63-61 lead, and K.K. Deans drained six free throws in the game’s final 29 seconds to ice the win.
“I'm a shooter,” Scott said. “I put in the work and get up shots every day outside of what's required. I don't know if you guys noticed down the stretch I missed three shots in a row. Of course a part of me wanted to be in my head, but I had to remember I put up shots every single day, that I shoot these shots, that I am very capable of hitting these shots.”
The game was tied at 48 entering the fourth quarter. At that point, Rebels Starr Jacobs and Kennedy Todd-Williams each had three fouls. But their teammates picked them up.
Deans hit a 3-pointer and Scott knocked down a 20-footer to give Ole Miss a 54-48 lead, and that forced Baylor to call timeout with 7:39 to go in the game. The Rebels made it 57-52 on a layup by freshman Sira Thienou, who finished with a team-high 16 points.
Baylor (28-8) fought back, with a layup by Sarah Andrews tying it at 61-61.
Following Scott’s go-ahead jumper, Baylor airballed a 3-pointer, and Deans hit two free throws. Jada Walker’s layup brought the Bears within 65-63 with 20 seconds left, but Deans again made two at the line, and Baylor’s next possession ended with another missed 3-pointer.
Scott, who saw early foul trouble, finished with 14 points. Deans scored 13, with 11 of those coming in the fourth quarter.
“Yeah, you know, don't tell K.K. this, but I love her to death,” Ole Miss head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin said. “She is really in a lot of ways a mini me, all right? That's why she drives me nuts most times. But, she's fearless. She's a leader. She's competitive. She's a winner.”
Ole Miss started well and led 20-16 after one quarter, but the points became elusive in the second period. The Rebels were held scoreless for the final 5:39 of the half, and Baylor used a 10-0 run to lead 29-26 at the break.
Ole Miss finally ended its drought on a jumper by Scott 35 seconds into the second half. The teams went back and forth, with five ties and three lead changes in the third quarter.
Aaronet Vonleh led Baylor with 16 points, but she battled foul trouble in the fourth quarter. Walker scored 15 points, while Andrews had 14.
The Bears shot 45.8% from the floor but made just 2 of 15 from behind the arc. They also committed 21 turnovers against an Ole Miss team that ranks 19th nationally in takeaways.
“One thing that will always be there is our defense, because that's a will thing,” Scott said. “Coach Yo harps on us being willing to do what it takes to win. Again, defense shows we're doing what it takes to win.”
Ole Miss will face either UCLA or Richmond on Friday in Spokane, Washington.
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