OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — Meechie Johnson made a three-point play and Jacobi Wright drilled a 3-pointer from the corner with 44 seconds left to lift South Carolina past Ole Miss, 64-61 on Saturday.
Ole Miss hit 6 of 14 shots from behind the 3-point arc in the first half but went 0-9 over the final 20 minutes and missed opportunities to close out a win. With a two-point lead and 2:24 to play the Rebels worked for an open look and found Myles Burns with an open lane to the basket. He could not get his open look to fall and, after Chico Carter Jr. was whistled for an intentional foul, Burns missed both free throws.
Tye Fagan hit two free throws with 1:31 left to give Ole Miss a four-point lead, 59-55, Johnson drove the lane for a layup and added a free throw to get the Gamecocks within one, and after Fagan turned it over, Wright buried a wide-open 3-pointer to take the lead. Johnson added 3 of 4 from the line to put the game out of reach and Fagan added a layup with a second left for the final margin.
Hayden Brown scored 18 points to lead South Carolina (9-16, 2-10 Southeastern Conference). Wright hit 3 of 5 from distance and scored 17 points with five boards and four assists. Johnson contributed 13 points.
Fagan led Ole Miss (10-15, 2-10) with 17 points. Robert Allen finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.
Mississippi plays at Florida Wednesday. South Carolina travels to face Vanderbilt Tuesday.
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