The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

Whether it was the quick turnaround from Tuesday night or the emotional and physical toll spent to earn a berth in the round of 64, the Ole Miss Rebels simply did not have enough to survive and advance.

Bahamian sophomore forward Dwight Coleby and the No. 11 Rebels yesterday fell 76-57 to the Xavier Musketeers, the No. 6 seed in the West region, at the Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida.

Coleby finished with four points, four rebounds, two blocked shots, one steal and one assist in his foul plagued time on the floor.

Xavier will advance to face No.14 seed Georgia State Panthers, who dismissed No. 3 seed in the region, Baylor Bears. “It was a tough afternoon for us, but I’m really proud of our group for getting to the NCAA Tournament and advancing in the NCAA Tournament,” head coach Andy Kennedy said. “We certainly did not play well, and all the credit goes to Xavier. They were in complete control of tempo from the start, and we were never able to wrestle it away from them.”

In a matchup of 11 seeds, the Rebels overcame a 17-point halftime deficit to defeat the Brigham Young University Cougars 94-90 at the University of Dayton Arena in Dayton, Ohio, less than 48 hours ago.

Ole Miss scored 62 points in the second half Tuesday night, boarded a flight to Jacksonville, got to bed about 5am Wednesday and spent the next 30 hours between rest and practice sessions. They missed 18 of their first 27 shots.

In the second half they cut an 18-point deficit to 10 but it would be as close as they would come.

“We were trying to make a little run there at the end, before the wind came out of our sails,” Kennedy said. “They were up 10, and Coleby had it in the short corner, and if we score there and get it to seven or eight, but we threw it away, and it leads to an and-one on the other end.”

The Rebels ended the season by losing five of their final seven games.

Three other Bahamians left in the tournament will take the floor today in their respective regions.

In the East region are Lourawls “Tum Tum” Nairn Jr and the Spartans, who finished the regular season as Big 10 runners-up and come in as the No.7 seed. They will host the Georgia Bulldogs, ranked No.10, at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, broadcast live on truTV at 12:40pm.

Also in the East Region, Buddy Hield and the Oklahoma Sooners are slated to play at 6:50pm, broadcast on TBS. The Sooners were named the No.3 seed in the East region, hosted in Columbus, Ohio. They will face the No.14 seed, Albany Great Danes, at the Nationwide Arena.

The Sooners, and Hield in particular, look to avenge last year’s opening round loss where he struggled.

In the West Region, Tristian Curtis and Coastal Carolina enter the tournament as a No.16 seed and attempt to pull off the elusive “16 vs 1” upset for the second consecutive year. They will face the region’s No.1 seed Wisconsin Badgers 9:20pm on TBS at the Century Link Center in Omaha, Nebraska.