Field Level Media
Aug 27, 2012
Grant Williams hit a short jumper with 4.4 seconds remaining Wednesday night as seventh-ranked Tennessee rallied late to overtake Mississippi 73-71 in Southeastern Conference action in Oxford, Miss.
The Volunteers (25-3, 13-2 SEC) earned a 25th victory for the fifth time in school history, though they had lost two of their previous three games.
The Rebels (19-9, 9-6) lost for just the second time in their last seven games.
Mississippi took a 69-67 lead on a 3-pointer by Breein Tyree with 2:38 to go, and the Rebels retained a one-point advantage with Tyree at the free-throw line for a one-and-one with 17 seconds left.
But Tyree couldn't connect on his free throw -- Mississippi's only miss of the game -- and Williams countered at the other end with the go-ahead hoop.
The Rebels rushed the ball up the court, but Tyree was called for a charging foul while attempting a desperation 30-footer with 1.1 seconds left.
A technical foul was called on Mississippi coach Kermit Davis, allowing Williams to put Tennessee up 73-71 when he made one of two free throws.
The Volunteers then inbounded the ball and ran out the clock.
Williams had a game-high 21 points for Tennessee. Lamonte Turner chipped in with 17 points and Admiral Schofield 11 for the Volunteers, who won their fourth straight over Mississippi.
Tyree and Terence Davis had 16 points apiece for the Rebels, who had a three-game home winning streak snapped.
Blake Hinson added 14 points for Mississippi, while Bruce Stevens recorded 10 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
The Rebels led by as many as seven and the Volunteers by as many as eight in the second half before the game's final 10:09 featured 10 lead changes.
Tennessee scored the first eight points of the game, but it was Mississippi that held the upper hand at halftime, 39-34. Stevens' two hoops in the final minute of the period extended what had been just a one-point advantage.
Hinson put the Rebels up seven with a jumper to start the second half, but Tennessee then jumped into the lead, with Turner scoring nine straight points in a 14-0 flurry that put the Volunteers on top 48-41.
The Rebels made the next run, however, setting up the tight finish. Davis hit a 3-pointer to cap a 9-0 spurt that turned a 57-49 deficit into a 58-57 lead with 10:09 to go.
--Field Level Media