No. 18 Alabama beats No. 1 North Carolina 103-101 in 4 OTs
Mark Sears had 24 points, five rebounds and five assists, and No. 18 Alabama sent top-ranked North Carolina to a second straight loss with a 103-101 in a quadruple-overtime thriller in the third-place game of the Phil Knight Invitational tournament.
No. 11 UCLA beats 'Bama 88-78 in OT to reach Elite Eight
11 seed UCLA held on after Alabama's Alex Reese drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of regulation to beat the second-seeded Crimson Tide 88-78 in a Sweet 16 showdown Sunday night. AdSingleton was fouled and made two free throws for UCLA, pushing the lead to 65-62 with 4 seconds to go. But that still gave the Crimson Tide enough time to find Reese, whose tying 3-pointer splashed just before the buzzer. Jahvon Quinerly scored 20 points and John Petty Jr. had 16 for the Crimson Tide (26-7), who have lost eight of their nine games in the Sweet 16. UCLA has beaten Michigan in three of their four NCAA Tournament games, including the 1965 national championship in Portland, Oregon.
Dressed down: Alabama rolls over Pitino, Iona 68-55
This time, Pitino had his worst seed ever and second-seeded Alabama (25-6) was too much. AdโI thought their kids came ready to play,โ Alabama coach Nate Oats said. Iona forced 14 turnovers, and Alabama had trouble getting an open look for most of the first 30 minutes. Unfortunately, we didnโt have enough weapons to beat Alabama.โIona also got dominated 42-26 in rebounds, a stat Pitino said surprised him. Alabama is in the tournament with its best seeding in history, on the strength of its first SEC Tournament title in 30 years.
No. 6 Alabama adds another SEC title, edges LSU at tourney
6 Alabama won the Southeastern Conference Tournament for the first time since 1991, holding off a late flurry to edge LSU 80-79 Sunday. Alabama, the reigning national champions in football, won its seventh tournament title overall, second in the SEC only to Kentucky's 31. After Jones went a long way down the lane for his shot, Alabama turned to its defense. UP NEXTLSU is expecting to make consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since 2005 and 2006. AdAlabama will make the 21st NCAA Tournament appearance in program history.
Down 15, No. 6 Alabama rallies past Tennessee in SEC semis
6 Alabama rallied from a big deficit in the final 17 minutes to beat Tennessee 73-68 Saturday in the SEC Tournament semifinals. The Volunteers trailed 69-68 when Davonte Gaines missed two foul shots with 25 seconds left. Yves Ponsโ 3-pointer got Tennessee within 69-68 with 41.4 seconds left, but Quinerly added two free throws and Ellis two more with 3.7 seconds left to seal a tense game. Alabama: The Crimson Tide have thrived from long distance all season and werenโt about to change, even without Primo. It didnโt start well but ended better as Ellis hit a big 3 to help the Tide finish 7 of 28.
Alabama blows out Mississippi State 85-48 in SEC quarters
6 Alabama blew out Mississippi State 85-48 on Friday in an SEC quarterfinal. Alabama followed a couple of small early runs with a 17-0 surge over nearly five minutes for an eventual 43-13 cushion just before halftime. The Tide also swarmed the Bulldogs defensively, scoring 24 points off 14 first-half turnovers and holding them to 30% shooting overall. โTo get beat this badly was really, really a bitter pill,โ he said. Alabama drained 3s in bunches to put this game away early and protected the ball.
No. 6 Alabama holds off Mississippi State 64-59 to win SEC
Alabama guard Jahvon Quinerly (13) dribbles past Mississippi State guard Iverson Molinar (1) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in Starkville, Miss., Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021. 6 Alabama beat Mississippi State 64-59 on Saturday night to clinch its first SEC regular-season championship since 2002. AdKEY STATSQuinerly's effort keyed a huge bench advantage for Alabama, which dominated Mississippi State 36-5. Mississippi State: The Bulldogs had plenty of good looks in the first half that just didnโt fall. They also committed 16 turnovers for just 12 Alabama points, but those loomed large in a tight game.
Shackelford's 27 helps No. 8 Alabama hold off Vandy, 82-78
The result was familiar, if not the methodology: another Crimson Tide win. 8 Alabama came from behind to beat Vanderbilt 82-78 Saturday and move a step closer to a Southeastern Conference championship. Quinerly scored 15 points for the Tide, who made just 10 of 39 3-point attempts (25.6%). Alex Reese scored 10 points while Keon Ellis had eight points and nine rebounds, including a pair of free throws with 28 seconds left. Alabama overcame low scoring from Petty (six points) and Herb Jones (eight before fouling out).
No. 18 Missouri holds off frantic rally, tops No. 10 Alabama
18 Missouri built a 22-point lead in the second half, then held off a frantic rally by No. Jaden Shackelford scored 15 to lead Alabama (15-5, 10-1 SEC), whose first conference loss was almost an incredible comeback victory. AdAlabama is a volume 3-point shooting team, and when the Crimson Tide missed, Missouri started fast breaks with long rebounds. The Crimson Tide had their chances, too, with Alex Reese and James Rojas missing dunks and the making just 12 of 21 free throws. AdUP NEXTAlabama: The Crimson Tide travel to South Carolina on Tuesday.
Alabama stuns No. 7 Tennessee 71-63 in physical battle
The Crimson Tide (7-3, 2-0 Southeastern Conference) turned a one-point halftime lead into a double-digit advantage midway through the second behind Pettyโs trio of 3s and two more long-range makes by Joshua Primo. Primo and Herbert Jones finished with 11 points, and Jahvon Quinerly scored 10. Tennessee (7-1, 1-1) struggled from the field the entire game, hitting 21 of 66 shots (32%). Alabama's 31-29 lead at the break happened with the Crimson Tide shooting 39% (12 of 31), while Tennessee struggled shooting 33% (11 of 33). UP NEXTAlabama: The Crimson Tide will be home Tuesday to face Florida, which beat LSU on Saturday.