Just when Ole Miss men's basketball thought they had found their rhythm, Vanderbilt crushed their confidence in a overtime dogfight at the SBJ Pavilion on Tuesday night.
With Commodores' Tyler Tanner making both of his free throws in the final seconds of the thrilling overtime, Vanderbilt came out on top in the 89-86 down-to-the-wire game and handed Ole Miss its 11th loss in their last 12 games.
Following their massive upset win over Auburn last time, a win against a ranked Vanderbilt would have been massive for Ole Miss. The win would mean there was still a sliver of hope at the Rebels' postseason chances— it was a long shot wrapped in a prayer anyway.
Ole Miss stumbles in the final minutes vs. Vanderbilt
The Rebels were fighting it perfectly till the end, until Ilias Kamardine missing his second free throw at the end of the second half slightly put the pressure on them.
They still managed to push the game into an overtime, and it all boiled down to Patton Pinkins three-point jump shot with 0:3 remaining on the clock.
He missed it, and Vanderbilt finished with that 3-point lead over the Rebels.
FINAL in Overtime
— Brad Logan (@BradLoganCOTE) March 4, 2026
Vanderbilt 89
Ole Miss 86 pic.twitter.com/tDfoPiIOOc
Pinkins still finished with the highest points on the scoreboard among the Rebels, 16 for 4 rebounds and 2 assists, followed by 14 each from Kamardine and AJ Storr.
A 12-17 Ole Miss squad now has a final chance against South Carolina on Saturday at home to put one last win on their already embarrassing record this season.
And the hopes of Nashville? They've long been a pipe dream, and today's loss proved why it is so yet again.