No. 5 Alabama survives rock fight against No. 10 Texas A&M

No. 5 Alabama basketball went on the road and picked up a huge win over No. 10 Texas A&M, winning 94-88 in an extremely physical battle from the opening tap to the final buzzer.

Alabama went with the same starting unit its used all of SEC play: Mark Sears, Labaron Philon, Jarin Stevenson, Grant Nelson and Cliff Omoruyi.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Alabama started the game strong, specifically getting great minutes from Stevenson. He scored five points, matching his season average, and recorded a block in the first four minutes of the game, with the Crimson Tide leading 8-3 at the first media timeout thanks to some solid defensive play.

Alabama’s shooters got off to a decent start, with Aden Holloway and Chris Youngblood coming off the bench and knocking down a three each. The story of the first quarter of the game though was the foul count. By the under-12 timeout, 13 fouls had already been called with eight of them being against Alabama.

Texas A&M continued to play an extremely physical game, and Alabama handled it decently well. Omoruyi had a nice opening quarter to the game, leading all players with six rebounds at the under-8 timeout.

Alabama knocked down 3-point looks at a fantastic clip throughout the first half, but was called for foul after foul on the defensive end. The number of fouls called allowed Texas A&M to stay in the game and keep it close, shooting over 20 free throws in the first half alone.

Sears was huge down the stretch of the first half, knocking down back-to-back threes to maintain Alabama’s lead as the frame drew to a close. The Tide went into the halftime break leading 52-44, making 10 first half threes but allowing 26 opposing free throw attempts.

The second half got off to a rough start, with Omoruyi going down with an ankle injury. Alabama kept battling through the sloppiness and physicality of the game as the second half began, holding onto a 7-point lead at the first media timeout of the half.

The Crimson Tide continued to battle as the second half went on, pushing the lead out to double figures at the under-12 timeout. Youngblood then spurred on an 8-0 run, extending the Alabama lead to 15 points, prompting a timeout from Buzz Williams with 10 minutes left in the game.

Alabama’s defense kept the Aggies at bay in the second half, holding that 15-point lead it built as the game drew nearer and nearer to its end. But the Aggies answered after a half of offensive struggles, taking a quick 7-0 burst to cut the lead back to single digits with just under six minutes to play.

The Aggies kept fighting, cutting the lead even more thanks to a few Alabama turnovers, with the Tide holding just an 83-78 advantage with three minutes to play.

PLAYERS OF THE GAME

Mark Sears — 27 points, 4 assists

Aden Holloway — 15 points, 3 3PM

Chris Youngblood — 14 points, 5 rebounds

WHAT’S NEXT

The challenge of the SEC continues, as No. 23 Ole Miss will come to Coleman Coliseum for the Crimson Tide’s third game against a ranked team in its last four contests. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. on ESPNU.

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