Dre Davis leads No. 23 Ole Miss past his old Louisville squad

Dre Davis scored 18 points against his former team to lead No. 23 Ole Miss to an 86-63 victory over the host Louisville Cardinals in an SEC/ACC Challenge matchup on Tuesday.The Rebels (7-1) led nearly from wire to wire, shooting 56.7 percent. They took advantage of the shorthanded Cardinals (5-3) and dominated inside, scoring 48 points in the paint.Davis, a fifth-year senior who played his first two seasons at Louisville, made 8 of 11 shots to match his season high in points. He led the team despite sitting out eight minutes of the first half with three fouls.Sean Pedulla added 16 points and a season-high seven assists for Ole Miss. Davon Barnes pitched in 11 points, while Matthew Murrell and Jaylen Murray finished with 10 apiece.Chucky Hepburn led Louisville with 19 points. J’Vonne Hadley added 12 points and nine rebounds. Louisville shot just 33.3 percent (19 of 57) and made a mere 5 of 30 3-pointers for a season-low 16.7 percent.While Ole Miss shot well, the Cardinals started poorly by missing 16 of their first 20 attempts, including their first 11 3-point tries. The hosts’ struggles allowed the Rebels to build a 27-15 lead with 6:40 remaining in the first half.Louisville climbed back, getting within nine points before halftime. Reyne Smith’s 3-pointer two minutes into the second half cut the Ole Miss lead to 42-37.

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