Ole Miss Rebels play the Ball State Cardinals in first round of NCAA Tournament

Updated Mar. 20, 2025 3:43 a.m. ET

Associated Press

Ball State Cardinals (27-7, 19-2 MAC) vs. Ole Miss Rebels (20-10, 11-7 SEC)

Waco, Texas; Friday, 6 p.m. EDT

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Rebels -12.5; over/under is 132.5

BOTTOM LINE: No. 25 Ole Miss and Ball State play in the NCAA Tournament opening round.

The Rebels' record in SEC play is 11-7, and their record is 9-3 against non-conference opponents. Ole Miss has a 1-3 record in games decided by less than 4 points.

The Cardinals' record in MAC action is 19-2. Ball State is 1-0 in games decided by less than 4 points.

Ole Miss makes 44.2% of its shots from the field this season, which is 6.5 percentage points higher than Ball State has allowed to its opponents (37.7%). Ball State has shot at a 45.2% rate from the field this season, 3.9 percentage points above the 41.3% shooting opponents of Ole Miss have averaged.

TOP PERFORMERS: Madison Scott is averaging 11.9 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.9 assists for the Rebels. Kirsten Deans is averaging 11.1 points over the last 10 games.

Alex Richard is shooting 54.7% and averaging 15.9 points for the Cardinals. Madelyn Bischoff is averaging 2.2 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Rebels: 6-4, averaging 71.8 points, 34.4 rebounds, 15.4 assists, 10.4 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 42.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 67.5 points per game.

Cardinals: 8-2, averaging 68.0 points, 34.4 rebounds, 15.8 assists, 6.3 steals and 3.5 blocks per game while shooting 45.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 58.3 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.