Free throws.
In front of a packed house that included 5 star recruits CeCe Jefferson (football) and Malik Newman (basketball), Ole Miss defeated Florida 72-71. Trailing 71-70, Senior guard Jarvis Summers drained two free throws with 3.5 seconds left to give Ole Miss the win.
It was just the fourth SEC loss for the Gators in their last 27 conference games.
In a game that featured a lights out performance by Florida guard Michael Frazier, who shot 6 for 8 from three and had 27 points on the night, it was Summers who stole the show. The senior finsihed with 16 points, including five of six freebies.
The Rebels lead the nation in free throw percentage, shooting an outstanding 79.8 percent from the foul line.
“I keep thinking this bubble is going to pop as it relates to us leading the nation in free throw shooting,” said Ole Miss Coach Andy Kennedy. “But there may be something to it.”
Looking at the stats, Ole Miss had no business being in that game. Florida went 12-20 from the three point line and leading scorer Stefan Moody had an off night, only making two of his ten shots. However, that one strength saw them through as Ole Miss shot 16-19 at the foul line and 13-14 in the second half.
“If you look at the stat sheet, in just about every area we had won the battle,” said Florida Coach Billy Donovan. “There leading scorer goes 2-10 and we make 12 threes and we are in a complete battle.”
Florida looked like they were going to pull away a couple times. The Gators, who led by as many as 13, where unable to keep the Rebels from clawing their way back into the game.
“I was just proud of our fight, I just want to see us in the fight,” said Coach Kennedy. “If we are in the fight, we are good enough to win games.”
The Rebel bench produced 40 points for Ole Miss, out scoring the Gators reserves by 21.
Ole Miss effectively saved their season with this win. According to many analysts, the team who lost this game was effectively out of the NCAA tournament picture. The Rebels need to continue to rack up victories during the mid season stretch.
“You have got to be able to stack wins at this time of year,” said Coach Kennedy. “It was a vital game for us, we have not played well in this building in consecutive games.”
Ole Miss continues it’s fight for a NCAA Tournament bid with a home game against rival Mississippi State on Wednesday. The game will be carried by the SEC Network and tip off is set for 8:00 pm. 
