
Alabama Survives Saturday Night Scare by LSU
Tuscaloosa, Ala. - On Friday, Alabama head coach Nate Oats provided insight into the haunting that Alabama's 74-64 loss to Ole Miss still has on the Crimson Tide's head coach. Alabama responded to the loss to Ole Miss by defeating Kentucky on the road and Vanderbilt at home. However, Oats still wanted to see this year's Alabama team develop in maturity. To prove they had matured to Oats, the men's basketball team was going to have to put together 40 minutes of consistent defensive play against an LSU team that was 1-4 in SEC play coming into the night, and missing two of its top-four scorers so far this season.

Alabama did not answer the call that Oats made, overlooking a down LSU team in the first half. Alabama did some things well, shooting 33% from three and 50% from the field in the first half. Chris Youngblood was the catalyst of the Crimson Tide's offense in the first half, being the only Alabama player in double figures after the first 20 minutes. Youngblood had 11 points in the first half.
Veteran guard Mark Sears was off to an uncharacteristic start, being held scoreless in the first half for the second time this season. Sears's struggles were reflective of Alabama as a whole, with the Crimson Tide sick with the turnover bug once again in the first half. Alabama's eight turnovers, combined with allowing LSU to collect 23 rebounds to the Tide's 17, led to a tie game at 40 points after the first 20 minutes of play.
In the second half, Alabama saw its star player ride the bench. Mark Sears did not start the second half, Aden Holloway did. Sears did not play the entire second half for Alabama.
Despite Sears not playing in the second half, the television broadcast mentioned Mark Sears was not injured.
In the second half, despite the question marks around Sears, Alabama was able to grind out a win against LSU, thanks to strong performances by Aden Holloway and Grant Nelson. Of course, Mouhamed Dioubate made several key plays to help out Alabama in the game's closing minutes, including three rebounds which helped seal the victory.
Alabama will have to rethink its approach to limiting turnovers. The Crimson Tide had 14 on the night.
Alabama Stat Leaders
Points: Aden Holloway - 19
Rebounds: Clifford Omoruyi - 9
Assists: Mark Sears, Clifford Omoruyi, Labaron Philon - 3
Alabama Players in Double Figures
Chris Youngblood - 13
Aden Holloway - 19
Mouhamed Dioubate - 14
Grant Nelson - 12
Labaron Philon - 11
Alabama advances to 17-3 on the season, and 6-1 in SEC play with an 80-73 defeat of LSU. Alabama's next game will come on Wednesday, January 29 against Mississippi State at the Hump. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. CT.
Wyatt Fulton is the TIde 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.
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