Ole Miss hits just enough FTs, holds off UT Martin 72-68

OXFORD, Miss. -- — Matthew Murrell scored 16 points, Myles Burns added 13 and Mississippi held off UT Martin for a 72-68 victory on Friday night.

KK Curry scored four points during a 12-4 run that pulled UT Martin to 70-68 with 16 seconds left. TJ Caldwell made a pair of free throws with 10 seconds left to seal it for Ole Miss (4-0).

UT Martin shot better from the floor, 45% compared to the Rebels' 39%, but Ole Miss made 25 of 38 free throws (66%) and had 17 offensive rebounds.

Murrell was 6-of-17 shooting from the floor and 2 of 9 from long range. Burns was 4 of 9 from the field and made 5 of 8 from the line.

Parker Stewart scored 13 points to lead UT Martin (2-3). Curry finished with 12 points, and Desmond Williams and Chris Nix each had 10.

Ole Miss pulled away from a 47-all tie, making eight free throws in a 10-2 run, for a 57-49 lead with 7:54 remaining. A one-handed dunk from Burns and Amaree Abram's 3-pointer helped make it a 10-point lead with 4:24 to play.

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