MINNEAPOLIS — Ole Miss women’s basketball had the type of game expected against Minnesota in a NCAA Tournament Round of 32 game — on the opponent’s home court. As anticipated, Sunday’s contest was a low-scoring game with big momentum swings, decisive moments and a large, loud crowd. Sure enough, it came down to last second — the final .8 to be exact — and within mere inches of being an epic moment in Ole Miss’ history. Alas, it’ll go into Minnesota’s history books as a 65-63 victory.

First Half

With both teams being so strong on defense, the expectation that this game would be a defensive battle was indeed correct.

Both sides had a combined 14 turnovers in the first 20 minutes and each forced the other’s offense into several awkward possessions. Ole Miss had two fewer turnovers but spent most of the half trailing the Gophers.

Having star player Cotie McMahon on the sideline for most of the first quarter with two fouls didn’t help the Rebels’ offensive struggles. In the first half, she played just ten minutes of the 20. Half. That’s it.

After the game, Coach Yo talked about what it meant to have her out for what ended up being almost 20 minutes of the 40-minute game.

Coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin

Minnesota ended the first quarter on a 15-6 run while McMahon was on the bench.

The Gophers shot 50% from the field in the first two quarters, including 4-for-6 on three-pointers. One of those threes was a halfcourt, buzzer-beater that gave them a five-point lead.

The second quarter was better for the Rebels, but even McMahon’s return to action couldn’t help fully close the gap. Several trips to the charity stripe (10-of-12) helped make the deficit just three points at halftime.

Second Half

McMahon’s foul trouble ended up being very costly.

Ole Miss had its chances in the final four minutes after McMahon fouled out of the game with the Rebels leading 59-54. She was a big reason, when in the game, Ole Miss played more like its usual “dictate and disrupt” style, going fast, forcing turnovers and getting to the foul line.The Gophers were the ones who looked out-of-sync. But once McMahon left, so did a key part of the Rebels’ offense.

Minnesota ended the game on an 11-4 run — yet only regained the lead back with 14.2 seconds remaining in the game.

Ole Miss had its chance and they nearly won the game that would have sent them to the Sweet 16.

Latasha Lattimore’s baseline drive for a layup was well drawn up and executed even better. However, it left 3.2 seconds on the clock which was more than enough time for the Gophers to inbound, dribble a few steps and drain the game-winning bucket.

Even then, Ole Miss wasn’t beaten. With 0.8 seconds on the clock, the Rebels drew up another play that gave Tianna Thompson a good look for a three. The shot, though, bounced off the front of the rim and the season comes to an end with the 65-63 loss.

Give Coach Yo’s Rebels credit. They never quit. When the regular season ended with a four-game losing streak and everyone had written them off, they dominated at the SEC Tournament, easily handling Gonzaga in the first round and come up just inches short of another Sweet 16 trip.

Team 51 didn’t achieve all of its goals, but it should be proud of the season it had and look towards a bright future for this program.

Ole Miss Leaders vs. Minnesota

• Points: Sira Thienou, 18
• Rebounds: Christeen Iwuala, 6
• Assists: Cotie McMahon, 4

Next Up

The NCAA transfer portal opens April 6 for 15 days. With seven seniors on the current roster, look for Coach Yo to be very active — and very successful — yet again. Of course the Rebels do have some very talented players — like sophomores Sira Thienou and Tianna Thompson — who will be anchors for Team 52.

Related

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – A shooting inside a Minneapolis apartment left a man dead and a teenager injured.

Fatal Minneapolis shooting

What we know:

Minneapolis police responded to the 2500 block of 17th Avenue South around 10:15 p.m. on Saturday.

Officers then found a dead 19-year-old man who had been shot.

Police also found a wounded 16-year-old boy who is expected to survive.

Investigators believe a fight among a group inside the apartment escalated to gunfire. 

Police say the suspects fled before authorities arrived and no arrests have been announced.

What we don’t know:

Details on the suspects have not been shared.

What you can do:

Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to contact Minneapolis police by emailing policetips@minneapolismn.gov or calling 612-673-5845.

Anonymous tips can also be sent to CrimeStoppers by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or submiting a tip online to www.CrimeStoppersMN.org. 

Less than a week after a blizzard and subzero temperatures, the mercury officially soared to 77 degrees at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on Saturday, breaking a record set 88 years ago in the Twin Cities.

On March 21, 1938, the recorded high was 76 degrees, according to the National Weather Service Twin Cities office.

“We went from a blizzard and lows below zero to near record warmth in just 6 days,” a KSTP meteorologist posted on X. “Now THAT is March Madness!”

The weather service said cooler temperatures are expected for the rest of the week and that other than a small chance the Twin Cities will see rain tonight, the rest of the week remains “quiet” weather-wise.

The area is looking at a possible high of 45 degrees on Sunday, a potential high of 55 on Monday, and a possible 60 degrees on Tuesday, the weather service said. Those days will most likely have partly cloudy skies, as well.