TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The No. 22/22 Alabama men’s basketball team overwhelmed the South Alabama Jaguars 102-46 Tuesday night in Coleman Coliseum. It marked the third consecutive 100-point game for the Crimson Tide to open the 2023-24 campaign, the first time that has occurred since 1956-57.

 

Mark Sears led four Alabama (3-0) players with a game-high 17 points, while freshman Sam Walters added 16 off the bench, Nick Pringle (12) and Mohamed Wague (10) also contributed double figures as all 13 UA players who saw action scored at least two points.

 

The Jaguars (1-2) were led by Maxwell Land scoring 15 points.

 

Head Coach Nate Oats Postgame Comments

“That was a lot more like what we are trying to get on the defensive end. I thought our effort was significantly improved from everybody on the team. Thought some guys really stepped up … I think I think we've gotten 23 threes up every single game. We'd like to get a few more off as long as we're shooting it. But we've been pretty efficient. Offensively, our guys had us down for 1.52 points per possession which is about as good as you're going to see anywhere. This was not a super high possession game, I think we had us down for 67 possessions, so not that many possessions to score 102 points. I thought we played hard no matter what the score was. Overall, I am happy with our effort. We need to get one more great defensive game against Mercer Friday night going into that Thanksgiving tournament in Destin.”

 

TEAM STATS

• Alabama has now won 18 straight games at Coleman Coliseum and has won by double-digits 14 times during the streak
• The 46 points allowed by the Tide defense was the third time in the Nate Oats era that an opponent failed to reach 50 points
• Alabama finished the contest shooting 62 percent (34-55) from the field and 52 percent (12-23) from beyond the arc and 73 percent (22-30) from the charity stripe
• In comparison, the Jaguars shot 23 percent (14-60) from the floor, 17 percent (5-29) from beyond-the-arc, and 62 percent (13-21) from the line
• Alabama dominated in nearly every statistical category, including outscoring South Alabama in the paint 44-12 and holding a 52-14 edge in bench points
• Alabama won the battle of the boards 49-26
• UA had 21 assists on 34 made field goals

 

FIRST HALF

• After trailing early, 13-7, Alabama would go on to outscore USA 40-10 to take a 47-23 lead into the locker room
• The Crimson Tide held the Jaguars to three of their last 13 field goals headed into the locker room
• UA shot 63 percent (17-27) from the field, 58 percent (7-12) from deep, and 50 percent (6-12) from the line
• Alabama held a 23-13 edge on the boards and a 7-0 lead in fast break points
• Mark Sears led the game at half with 13 points, nine of which came from the three, contributing an additional four assists and three rebounds

 

SECOND HALF

• The Crimson Tide continued to dominate, outscoring the Jaguars 55-23 over the final 20 minutes
• Alabama’s defense was equally dominant, limiting South Alabama to just 15 percent (4-27) from the floor and beyond the arc (2-13)
• Nick Pringle scored 10 of his 12 points in the second stanza on a perfect 5-5 shooting
• After hitting only 6-12 free throws in the opening half, UA finished the game by connecting on 16-18 from the charity stripe

 

UP NEXT

• Alabama will open play in the Emerald Coast Classic Friday night when it hosts the Mercer Bears Friday night in Coleman Coliseum
• The game will tipoff at 7 p.m. CT and will air live on SEC Network+

 

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