Vanderbilt vs. Ole Miss results: Rebels stay on the bubble, move on to SEC finals

Andy Lyons

Ole Miss crushed Vanderbilt to stay alive in the SEC tournament. They take on Florida for the championship Sunday.

The Mississippi Rebels defeated the Vanderbilt Commodores, 64-52, and will face the Florida Gators in the SEC Tournament title game.

Ole Miss struggled with Vanderbilt early on. The Commodores upset Kentucky in the quarterfinal round and seemed primed to pull off another one, leading 23-16 early in the first half, However, the Rebels came back with a 10-3 run and went into halftime tied up.

The second half was all Ole Miss. Vanderbilt managed 26 points while the Rebels ran up and down the court. A 28-6 run put this game away quickly, making most of the second half a mere formality. The Commodores finished the day shooting just 35.2 percent from the field. Ole Miss made 44 percent of its field goals and narrowly won the rebounding battle, 36-34.

Marshall Henderson led the Rebels with 23 points. Reginald Buckner chipped in 15 points and nine rebounds. As for Vanderbilt, Kedren Johnson led the way with 12 points.

With the win, Ole Miss will take on Florida in the SEC championship game. They're still on the bubble right now, but this game keeps them in the conversation. SB Nation's Chris Dobbertean has the Rebels as one of his "first four out" teams at the moment.