OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — Kario Oquendo scored all 15 of his points in the second half and his 10 straight points in the final four minutes carried Georgia to a 62-58 win over Ole Miss on Saturday.
The win came in first-year Georgia coach Mike White's first trip to Oxford, where he was a four-year starter for the Rebels, leading them to three straight 20-win seasons before becoming an assistant coach on teams that won two Southeastern Conference West titles.
Oquendo’s first points came on a 3-pointer four minutes into the second half, but his offense really came alive in the final six minutes, starting with a dunk and a layup to keep the Bulldogs within two. He knocked down a 3 to give Georgia a 57-56 lead with 2:20 left and knocked down another with 1:04 left to make it 60-56. His two free throws with three seconds left put the game out of reach.
Matthew Murrell dribbled the length of the floor and scored at the basket with 42 seconds left to get Ole Miss within two, but Georgia was able to run the shot clock down before Terry Roberts launched a 3-point attempt that caromed off the rim for Braelen Bridges to corral to maintain possession. Oquendo snared a long in-bounds pass in the backcourt and drew an immediate foul before hitting both free throws with 3 seconds left to seal the victory and hand Mississippi its fifth straight loss to open conference play.
Oquendo finished 5 of 10 from the field and was 3 of 4 from beyond the arc. Roberts finished with 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Georgia (13-4, 3-1 SEC).
Murrell led Ole Miss (8-9, 0-5) with 13 points, four rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals. Amaree Abram contributed 12 points and five assists.
Georgia plays at Kentucky and Ole Miss plays at South Carolina, both on Tuesday.
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