Ole Miss entered Tuesday’s game against Georgia as a long shot to make the NCAA Tournament. The Rebels may be out of the picture with another crushing defeat.

Georgia defeated Ole Miss 69-66 on Tuesday night at Stegman Coliseum in Athens. With the loss, Chris Beard’s team is now 7-10 in SEC play, with a 20-10 overall record.

It was a tight game much of the night, with UGA pulling away late. Georgia had a 35-32 lead at halftime. Both teams scored 34 points in the second half.

The Rebels led for the last time at the 15:26 mark of the second half, 41-40. The Bulldogs were up for 36:37 of 40 minutes, extending its lead to 11 points at the 2:45 mark, 65-54.

Ole Miss shot just 39% (25-of-64) to Georgia’s 44% (25-of-57). The Rebels were slightly better from 3-point range (6-of-22 to 4-of-21), while UGA was more productive at the foul line (15-of-17 to 10-of-12). The Dawgs dominated the glass (39-30 rebounds) and points in the pain (36-22).

March outlook for Ole Miss

Twenty wins has been the magic number for many SEC teams over the years, but Ole Miss is on the outside looking in, needing a miracle run in next week’s SEC Tournament.

Entering Tuesday’s game, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi did not include the Rebels in the First Four Out or the Next Four Out. After those 8 teams, Ole Miss was listed in a “next” group after Texas A&M, James Madison and Kansas State.

Before the loss, Ole Miss was No. 78 in the NET rankings that are used to seed the NCAA Tournament. Georgia was No. 104 in the NET rankings, making it a Quad 2 road loss. The Rebels are now 2-7 in Quad 1, 3-3 in Quad 2, 8-0 in Quad 3 and 7-0 in Quad 4.

The Rebels close out the regular season at home against Texas A&M. The Aggies are No. 54 in the NET rankings, making it a Quad 2 opportunity for Ole Miss.

The SEC’s automatic bid will be handed out in Nashville next week. It looks to be Ole Miss’ only hope to go dancing.

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