College basketball roundup: Ole Miss wins on buzzer-beater; MSU, JSU score victories

Published 8:48 pm Saturday, February 6, 2021

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Devontae Shuler hit a step-back jumper from inside the center of the arc with 0.2 seconds left in overtime, and Ole Miss overcame a 14-point, second-half deficit to beat Auburn 86-84 on Saturday.

Romello White scored a career-high 30 points with 10 rebounds and blocked four shots for Ole Miss. Shuler, who missed a potential game winner with two seconds left in regulation, finished with 26 points and made four 3-pointers. Shuler and White scored four points apiece in OT.

Robert Allen added 12 points for Ole Miss (10-8, 5-6 Southeastern Conference), which has won 14 of the past 18 matchups against Auburn (10-10, 4-7).

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Jaylin Williams, Devan Cambridge, and Allen Flanigan scored 16 points apiece for Auburn. Freshman Sharife Cooper added 15 points and had a career-high 14 assists.
Ole Miss trailed trailed by 14 points early in the second half and 61-51 with about 10 minutes left.

Shuler scored five points, including a 3-pointer, and White added a layup as the Rebels closed on a 7-2 run to force overtime tied at 72. It was the only tie of the second half and the Rebels’ first lead since 16-15 with 13:30 left in the first half.

Ole Miss overcame a double-digit deficit in the second half for the second game in a row, after beating Tennessee 52-50 on Tuesday.

“So proud for our players hanging tough,” Ole Miss coach Kermit Davis said. “We got good play off the bench. (Devontae) Shuler and (Romello) White were fantastic. Just a great week for the Rebels.”

Mississippi State 75, South Carolina 59
D.J. Stewart Jr. scored 29 points on 4-for-6 shooting from 3-point range, and Mississippi State pulled away from South Carolina in the second half.

AJ Lawson’s dunk with 13:44 remaining brought the Gamecocks within 50-49. Mississippi State (11-9, 5-6 SEC) responded with a 13-0 outburst over the next five minutes and South Carolina never recovered. The run started and ended with jump shots from Stewart.

Iverson Molinar scored 16 points for the Bulldogs, who shot 26-for-56 (46 percent) overall, including 10-for-19 (53 percent) from 3-point range.

Derek Fountain registered a solid all-around performance off the bench for Mississippi State He either set or tied his career-highs with nine points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block over 29 minutes of action.

Fountain drained three of his four shot attempts, canned both of his 3s and added a free throw for a traditional three-point play.

“The player of the game, for me, was Derek Fountain. He came in the game with incredible stability to be able to play a matchup with their small forwards at the power forwards position … He’s always learning and has a phenomenal attitude,” Mississippi State coach Ben Howland said. “I’m really happy to see a guy like that being rewarded. There was no nervousness out of him, it was really cool.”

The Bulldogs head home to face LSU on Wednesday.

Rice 76, Southern Miss 68
Quincy Olivari had 20 points as Rice beat Southern Miss to finish a two-game series sweep in Houston.

Max Fiedler had 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists for Rice (12-8, 6-6 Conference USA). Travis Evee added 11 points.

Tyler Stevenson scored a career-high 31 points and had 10 rebounds for the Golden Eagles (7-12, 3-9), who have now lost six straight games. DeAndre Pinckney added seven rebounds.

Southern Miss (7-12, 3-9) turned a 69-60 deficit with 3:26 remaining into 69-66 at 1:36, thanks to a second-chance layup by Stevenson, put-back slam by DeAndre Pinckney and a long jumper by Justin Johnson. Rice responded with a layup and two free-throws to take a 73-66 lead with 47 ticks left.

Jackson State 74, Alcorn State 66
Tristan Jarrett had 21 points as Jackson State topped Alcorn State on Saturday.
Jonas James had 19 points for Jackson State (5-5, 5-0 Southwestern Athletic Conference), which earned its fifth consecutive victory. Cainan McClelland added 11 points. Ken Evans had 10 points. Jayveous McKinnis had eight points, 15 rebounds, and three blocks.

Troymain Crosby scored a season-high 25 points for the Braves (3-8, 3-3). Oddyst Walker added 10 points. Kurk Lee had six rebounds.

Alcorn made one field goal in a nearly 13-minute span of the second half, which allowed Jackson State to open a 54-45 lead with 6:52 remaining.

A 10-3 run by JSU moments later gave the Tigers a 70-57 lead with 2:28 to go.