OXFORD ― The trajectory of Ole Miss basketball's performance against Alabama mirrored the path the Rebels' season has traced.

At first, everything went right. The Rebels held a 14-point first-half advantage. Standout Alabama forward Grant Nelson sat on the bench with two quick fouls.

Then one Crimson Tide bucket became two. And Ole Miss couldn't stop the snowball, suffering a 103-88 defeat at the SJB Pavilion on Wednesday.

The loss ‒ the sixth in the last seven games for Ole Miss (19-9, 6-9 SEC) ‒ could be the one that finishes off the Rebels' at-large NCAA Tournament hopes for good. Ole Miss sat on the outside of the field looking in entering Wednesday's action, according to most experts, and does not have another opportunity for a Quadrant 1 win on its schedule after failing to capitalize against the Crimson Tide (20-8, 12-3).

Alabama did not lead in the first half. By the time 62 seconds had ticked off the clock in the second half, the Crimson Tide had claimed its first advantage.

The Rebels allowed Alabama to score on eight of its first nine possessions of the second half as the Crimson Tide established an eight-point lead. Ole Miss used the free-throw line effectively to restore parity briefly, but Alabama quickly responded, and broke off a 9-0 run in the span of 31 seconds that settled the result with 4:47 to go.

Ole Miss contributed to its own downfall with sloppy offensive play. The Rebels gave it away 14 times on the night. Five of those turnovers came in the first six minutes of the second half, allowing the Crimson Tide offense to right itself against a rushed and unorganized defensive unit on the other end.

According to KenPom, Alabama came into this game with college basketball's most efficient offense. The Rebels did well to mute it in the first half, allowing 36 points. They couldn't repeat the feat in the second half.

And Ole Miss didn't get the shooting performance it needed to go bucket-for-bucket with the visitors. The Rebels are 1-6 in SEC play when they fail to make 40% of their 3-pointers. They converted eight of their 22 attempts against the Tide.

FULL UPDATES: Ole Miss basketball live score updates vs Alabama: Rebels face Crimson Tide in SEC game

Allen Flanigan comes off the bench to help pace Ole Miss basketball offense

Star Ole Miss forward Allen Flanigan did not receive a suspension after being ejected from the Rebels' loss on Saturday, when his elbow connected with the head of a South Carolina player.

Beard dropped Flanigan to the bench in favor of Brandon Murray. It marked the first time this season that Flanigan didn't start, but Beard didn't wait long to get him involved.

Flanigan entered the game after 2:33 and made his impact felt.

The Auburn transfer delivered 12 first-half points, including an emphatic transition dunk that finished off an Ole Miss run.

Flanigan finished the game with 28 points on 7-of-10 shooting. Jaemyn Brakefield chipped in 21 points on an off night for leading scorer Matthew Murrell, who managed just 12.

Up next

Ole Miss travels to Columbia to take on Mizzou on Saturday (7:30 p.m., SEC Network). The Rebels beat the Tigers 79-76 on Feb. 17.

David Eckert covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at deckert@gannett.com or reach him on Twitter @davideckert98.

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This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Ole Miss basketball blows big lead vs. Alabama, loses sixth game in seven