PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — Alex Jensen has at least one thing to be thankful for this year.
After back-to-back losses against Cal Poly and Grand Canyon, Jensen's squad made quite the turnaround late Wednesday night in a Thanksgiving eve meeting with Ole Miss in the third-place game of the Acrisure Classic Series.
The Runnin' Utes controlled a 14-point lead with 15:37 left to play at Acrisure Arena against a Rebels team expected to compete in this season's NCAA Tournament. But in the end, it was Terrence Brown hitting two free throws to lift Utah to a 75-74 win.
It's the first win for Utah over an SEC opponent since a win over No. 6 Kentucky in Las Vegas on Dec. 18, 2019.
Ole Miss (5-2) used a 13-2 run over a three-minute period late in the game to erase Utah's (6-2) double-digit lead, before eventually taking its first lead since the opening minutes of the game with a driving layup off a shot clock violation turnover by the Utes.
But Utah kept the game in reach, and Don McHenry hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:12 left to play to give the Utes some hope. Ole Miss answered with a quick jumper on the other end as the two teams traded scoring opportunities — mostly from the free-throw line.
The pivotal moment of the closing minute was when Brown and Jacob Patrick locked in on defense and forced Ole Miss into a shot clock violation of their own, giving Utah the ball back with nine seconds left to play and a 1-point deficit.
Brown took the inbounds pass the length of the floor, driving to the rim, before being tripped up in the post. He was sent to the free-throw line where he hit both attempts. With 4.4 seconds left to play, Ole Miss moved the ball down the court but failed to get a shot off before the buzzer sounded, giving Utah a much-needed win.
Brown, who was held to just 9 points a night earlier against Grand Canyon, finished with 14 points — including two 3-pointers — and four assists in the win.
Big game tonight from Utah's Don McHenry in a big Utes win over Ole Miss:
— Sam Kayser (@KayserHoops) November 27, 2025
27 PTS
3 ASTS
2 REBS
2 STLS
10-15 FG
5-6 3PT
McHenry was an under-the-radar transfer this past spring and has made a good pairing with fellow backcourt mate, Terrence Brown. A dangerous duo as we inch… pic.twitter.com/2S8t2JfBZ4
But the star of the night for the Utes was McHenry, who scored 10 points — including two 3-pointers — over a five-minute stretch en route to a 19-point first-half performance to give Utah an 8-point lead going into the halftime break.
McHenry cooled a bit in the second half but finished with a team-high 27 points, including five made 3-pointers, on 10-of-15 shooting, while adding three rebounds and two assists. Kendyl Sanders added 9 points, including two 3-pointers, to help pace the Utes to its first-half lead that ballooned to 14.
Utah shot 47% from the field, but was a much-improved 10-of-19 from behind the 3-point line, even while being outrebounded 30-27 to Ole Miss. The Rebels shot 50% and outscored the Utes in the post 40-26, but couldn't match the 3-point shooting (29%) of Utah.
Ole Miss had four players finish in double-digit scoring, with Malik Dia leading the way with 17 points and nine rebounds, and Ilias Kamardine adding 15 points, three assists and two rebounds in the loss.
Utah returns to action on Dec. 2 (8 p.m. MST, ACCNX) in Berkeley, California, in a road contest against former Pac-12 foe California.
