Burnett's 24 points lead Mississippi over Alabama 78-66

OXFORD, Miss. -- It's no secret that Mississippi's basketball team is built around a quartet of veteran guards.

When all of them are playing well at the same time, the Rebels are pretty good.

Deandre Burnett scored 24 points, Terence Davis and Markel Crawford both scored 15 and Mississippi beat Alabama 78-66 on Tuesday night.

Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy said Burnett, Davis, Crawford and Breein Tyree -- the four veterans who the Rebels depend on -- did a good job of penetrating Alabama's defense and then making the extra pass to get open looks.

"At the end of all of that, you've got to make the shot," Kennedy said. "And tonight we were fortunate enough to make them."

Ole Miss (11-9, 4-4 Southeastern Conference) remained undefeated at home during conference play. Alabama (13-7, 5-3) had its four-game winning streak snapped.

Ole Miss led the entire second half, though its 41-31 halftime advantage was quickly cut to 43-42. The Rebels responded with a crucial 15-6 run to create some separation and pull away for the win.

Ole Miss had an efficient night on offense, shooting 50 percent from the field. Burnett was 7 of 11, Davis was 5 of 10 and Crawford was 6 of 9. Tyree added nine points and four assists.

"Give (Ole Miss) credit, they've been a hot team at home during SEC play," Alabama coach Avery Johnson said. "You've got to play more than a 14- or 16-minute stretch to have success on the road in any building in the SEC.

"It was a great learning lesson for our team."

Alabama's star freshman Collin Sexton played 20 minutes after missing two straight games with an abdominal injury. He was mostly ineffective, shooting just 2 of 13 from the field.

The first half of the game featured wide swings in momentum with Ole Miss taking an early 18-9 lead.

Alabama responded with 18 straight points before Ole Miss came right back with 14 in a row. The Rebels ended the first half on a 23-4 run to take a 10-point lead by halftime.

"I'm really proud of our guys to take that punch and then finish the half strong," Kennedy said.

Ole Miss' Burnett led all players with 16 points in the first half, making 6 of 8 shots from the field, including 3 of 4 from 3-point range.

Alabama was led by Donta Hall's 14 points. Dazon Ingram scored 10.

BURNETT HITS 1,000 POINTS FOR CAREER

Burnett's 24 points gave him 1,020 for his career. He's scored 825 points during three seasons at Ole Miss and also had 195 points during his freshman season at Miami.

BIG PICTURE

Alabama: It was a tough night for Alabama, which came into Oxford on a roll, but struggled with its shooting touch. Sexton was a little rusty in his return after missing two games, but the Tide will certainly need him during the rest of the season.

Ole Miss: The Rebels are a handful to deal with on their home court and shot nearly 55 percent in the second half to pull away for the win. Ole Miss has some big games over the next week, traveling to Texas before a crucial SEC home game against No. 19 Auburn.

UP NEXT

Ole Miss travels to face Texas on Saturday in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.

Alabama hosts No. 12 Oklahoma on Saturday in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.