The 10th-seeded Alabama men’s basketball team (18-13, 8-10 Southeastern Conference) knocked down 12 treys to defeat the seventh-seeded Ole Miss Rebels (20-12, 10-8 SEC) 81-73 on Thursday night at Bridgestone Arena in the second round of the 2016 SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament. The Crimson Tide moves on to the quarterfinals to take on No. 2 seed Kentucky on Friday at 6 p.m. CT.

Ole Miss scored the game’s first six points before sophomore Riley Norris knocked down a three-pointer to get Alabama on the board. Norris had nine of the team’s first 11 points. Senior Retin Obasohan picked up two fouls less than five minutes in, forcing him to sit out almost seven minutes. However, Alabama had several players step up in his absence, going on an 18-7 run without the senior on the floor. The Tide shot a blistering 15-of-27 from the field in the opening 20 minutes, including 8-for-13 from deep. Arthur Edwards had 10 points and Norris ended with nine as Alabama held a 40-36 lead at the break.

Obasohan, who was scoreless in the first half, scored seven points in less than four minutes to begin the second half as the Tide went ahead by eight. The Rebels’ Stefan Moody did all he could to keep his team close, but Alabama never allowed Ole Miss to get closer than five points the rest of the way. Obasohan poured in a total of 17 points in the second half to help the Tide hold off the Rebels.

Norris added 16 points for the game, while Edwards and sophomore Justin Coleman chipped in 15 each. Norris hauled in a game-high 11 rebounds for a double-double. Moody recorded 39 points for Ole Miss on 12-of-27 shooting. Defensively, Alabama blocked a season-high 12 shots.

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