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Ole Miss Basketball: The End Result Of The SEC/Big12 Challenge

By Daniel Skipper

LEXINGTON, KY - FEBRUARY 28: John Calipari the head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats gives instructions to his team against the Ole Miss Rebels during the game at Rupp Arena on February 28, 2018 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
LEXINGTON, KY - FEBRUARY 28: John Calipari the head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats gives instructions to his team against the Ole Miss Rebels during the game at Rupp Arena on February 28, 2018 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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This past Saturday Ole Miss basketball was just one of the many SEC teams which took part in the annual SEC/Big12 Challenge.

While not all 14 SEC teams took part in the 6th annual SEC/Big12 Challenge Ole Miss basketball was one of the ten teams which did. The then No.20 Ole Miss Rebels fell in Oxford to No.24 Iowa State in a 87-73 decision. The Rebels were one of six SEC teams which fell in their games. The other five SEC teams which saw losses were Florida, Alabama, South Carolina, Arkansas and Vanderbilt.

This was a dominant showing by the Big12 winning six games of ten to give the Big12 the Challenge over a the SEC for the first time since the 2015-2016 season. In the 2017-2018 season the SEC took the Challenge by winning six games of ten themselves. The Challenge has had some exciting matchups over the past six seasons and this season was no exception. A number of contests matched ranked opponents from both conferences.

The End Results

Ole Miss Rebels
Ole Miss Rebels /

Ole Miss Rebels

We already know the end result of our favorite matchup between then No.20 Ole Miss and No.24 Iowa State. While the outcome wasn’t to the liking of Ole Miss basketball fans we watched a hot shooting Cyclones team handle the higher ranked Rebels. Of course, this matchup wasn’t the only ranked head-to-head contest this past weekend.

One of the biggest and most anticipated games was between No.8 Kentucky and No.9 Kansas which Calipari and the Wildcats won barn burner which saw the Wildcats trail at one point by double-digits in the first half of play. The Wildcats outdistanced the Jayhawks 71-63 and picked up a Top10 win.

There were five games in the SEC/Big12 Challenge which were decided by five points or less which points to the competitive nature of both conferences and the talent level of the 20 teams who participated in the annual event. While the Big12 won the war this season the SEC/Big12 Challenge it was announced this past Saturday has been scheduled for six more seasons.

Next. Top Ten Rebels of AK Era. dark

Without a doubt the SEC and Big12 are the premier basketball conferences in the nation and the SEC/Big12 Challenge has been a success over the past six seasons and appears to be headed to more great matchups in the coming years. Congrats to the SEC and Big12 teams who won and good luck the rest of the 2018-2019 season. Hotty Toddy!

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