No. 5 Vanderbilt's slim hopes for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament all but ended with Friday night's 89-78 defeat to Ole Miss, a loss that saw head coach Shea Ralph ejected for arguing with officials in the fourth quarter. The Rebels befuddled the Commodores defensively from the start, building a 32-point lead through three quarters. Vanderbilt showed new life after Ralph's ejection, with Mikayla Blakes scoring 13 fourth-quarter points to spark a late rally, but Ole Miss held on.

Blakes finished with 24 points on 0-for-10 shooting in the first half. Ralph was ejected after yelling at officials during Blakes' fourth foul call, later stating, 'I wasn't trying to get kicked out.' The loss likely dashes Vanderbilt's tournament seeding hopes, though Ralph insists it changes nothing about their season ahead, adding it only 'adds fuel to the fire.'.