MILWAUKEE — Sean Pedulla scored 20 points, Jaemyn Brakefield had 19 and Mississippi beat Iowa State 91-78 on Sunday night to reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament for just the second time in school history.
Mississippi (24-11) is one of seven Southeastern Conference schools still standing, the most teams any conference has sent to the third round in one season. Ole Miss fans started chanting “SEC!” with over 5½ minutes left and the game well out of reach.
Next up for the sixth-seeded Rebels is the winner of New Mexico-Michigan State in a South Region semifinal on Friday in Atlanta.
In its 10th NCAA Tournament appearance, Ole Miss has advanced to its first regional semifinal since 2001. Second-year coach Chris Beard is working on another March run after he directed Texas Tech to the 2019 NCAA Tournament final.
Beard went from Texas Tech to Texas and was midway through his second season with the Longhorns when he got fired in January 2023 after a domestic violence arrest. The charges were ultimately dropped, and Ole Miss hired Beard just two months after Texas let him go.
Now he’s looking to make a Final Four run at a second school.
Malik Dia scored 18 points for Ole Miss, and Matthew Murrell had 15. Jaylen Murray finished with 11.
Curtis Jones had 26 points for the third-seeded Cyclones (25-10). Joshua Jefferson scored 13 points, and Nate Heise added 11.
