Live Updates: No. 6 Alabama Basketball vs LSU at SEC Championship Sunday
Second Half
- LSU had multiple attempts and they all fell short. Alabama defeats the Tigers 80-79.
- Ellis blocks Smart's layup attempt. On the inbounds pass, LSU has to call a timeout. 7.3 seconds left.
- Jones takes it coast-to-coast and scores the layup. Timeout Alabama. Alabama leads 80-79 with 19.5 seconds on the clock.
- Watford misses the free throw.
- Watford scores another and-one basket. Foul on Ellis. LSU leads 79-78. 27.6 seconds left.
- Shackelford throws up a floater and it drops. 78-77 Alabama.
- Shackelford air balls a three-pointer and Smart nails another one to put LSU in front 77-76.
- Watford just committed his fourth foul with 1:46 left.
- Jones now has a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
- Jones just threw down a hammer over Smart but Smart responds with a three-pointer. Timeout LSU. 76-74 Alabama with 2:14 on the clock.
- Watford misses the front end of an one-and-one.
- Jones just picked up his third foul and LSU is in the bonus.
- Ellis cans a triple from the corner. Alabama back up 74-71. He's up to 14 points.
- Watford ties it at 71 with that layup.
- At the final media timeout, Alabama is still in front by two. 3:53 left in regulation. LSU hasn't scored from the field in two minutes of action.
- Quinerly throws the alley-oop to Gary and he slams it home. Alabama leads 71-69.
- A three-pointer from Watford ties the game at 69 with 5:30 to go.
- Watford scores the foul shot. 69-66 Alabama.
- Watford scores another and-one basket. Foul on Quinerly. Watford has 22 points.
- With that three-pointer, Shackelford has scored the last five points for Alabama. Crimson Tide up 69-63.
- Watford completes the old-fashioned three-point play.
- Gary with offensive rebound and put-back... Rinse and repeat. Timeout LSU. 64-60 Alabama. Crimson Tide on an 8-0 run.
- Another three-pointer from Shackelford. Alabama in front 62-60. Shackelford has 14 points and has made four triples.
- Gary gets the offensive rebound and Shackelford scores a three-pointer from the corner.
- Thomas scores the easy layup and its now 60-56 LSU.
- Another three-pointer from Smart puts LSU up 58-56. Timeout Alabama.
- Smart buries a triple in Jones' face cuts the deficit to one.
- Jones scores 1-of-2 at the line. 56-52 Alabama.
- Gary is checking in and Watford now has three fouls.
- "Ala-Bama" chants have started during the break.
- At the under 12-minute media timeout, Alabama leads 55-52 with 11:48 remaining. The Crimson Tide has made its last three shots from the floor.
- Shackelford converts a reserve layup and this crowd is on its feet. For only 3,000 fans, it has had great energy today.
- Reese knocks down a corner triple. Alabama in front, 53-52.
- Watford backs Reese down and gets the floater to go. 52-50 LSU.
- Thomas buries his fourth triple and Quinerly responds with a three-pointer of his own.
- Quinerly only scores one, tied at 47.
- Quinerly is back in and he is fouled by Smart on his way to the rim.
- Watford misses the free throw but LSU leads 47-46.
- Watford is fouled by Reese on his layup attempt and he scores the and-one basket.
- At the first media timeout, Alabama will have the ball still in front by one. LSU has missed its last four shots from the floor.
- Shackelford throws a lob up to Ellis who lays it in. 46-45 Alabama.
- Smart quickly hits a jumper and LSU is leading by one, 45-44.
- Shackelford gets a steal then Jones slams it home with authority. Alabama back in front, 44-43.
- Bruner is now called for a foul on Watford. Reese is coming in for him.
- A third layup from Hyatt gives the Tigers a 43-42 lead.
- Hyatt again goes one-on-one with Bruner and converts the easy two.
- Jones takes it to the rack and scores over Watford.
- Hyatt blows past Bruner for the layup.
- LSU starts with the ball and it's the same five for each team that started the game.
First Half
- Quinerly leads the Crimson Tide with 10 points and and four rebounds while Watford and Thomas have 13 points each for LSU.
- Alabama leads LSU at intermission 40-37. The Crimson Tide finished the half on a 7-0 run and made its last four shots from the field.
- Ellis forces his way in the lane after the miss from the Tigers and scores another layup.
- LSU misses and Quinerly comes down and scores the layup. Bama in front, 38-37.
- Quinerly connects on another triple. His second of the day.
- Gary blocks Thomas' shot but Watford is there for the easy put-back . 37-33 LSU.
- Ellis drives in the lane and gets his layup to roll around the rim and fall.
- Watford makes the first but misses the second. 35-31 LSU.
- Reese fouls Watford on his layup attempt. LSU is now the bonus.
- Gary misses the front end of the one-and-one.
- Ellis is back in the game.
- Watford is called for an over-the-back foul on Gary on Reese's long miss. Alabama is now in the bonus.
- Thomas makes both foul shots.
- Thomas will be at the foul line when play resumes after the foul by Petty. LSU has made five of its last seven shots. 3:01 to go.
- Quinerly quickly answers with a triple to cut it to 32-31.
- Thomas scores the layup in transition. 32-28 Tigers.
- A three-pointer from Smart gives LSU a 30-28 lead.
- Jones just committed his second foul.
- Watford gets the ball in the paint and scores again. Alabama doesn't have an answer for him right now.
- Petty gets a block which leads to Quinerly taking the ball coast-to-coast for the tear-drop shot.
- Watford scores again over Rojas. 26-25 Alabama. He has eight points on 4-of-7 shooting.
- Watford answers with a basket of his own on the other end.
- Petty backs Gaines down in the paint and scores the jumper. Gaines is called for a flopping warning. The pro-Alabama crowd loved that one.
- Hyatt scores two from the charity stripe. 24-21 Alabama.
- Smart misses a three-pointer but Hyatt is fouled by Petty on the put-back attempt.
- Ellis is on the exercise bike and appears to be fine.
- LSU has missed nine of its last 10 attempts from the field. Alabama's defense has controlled the last 3-4 minutes of this game. 24-19 UA at the under-8 media timeout.
- James Rojas is in for the first time today.
- Another basket for Gary. 24-19 Crimson Tide. He's up to four points and four rebounds.
- Ellis just took a hard fall on a loose ball and he was to walk gingerly over to the sideline. Jones is coming in for him.
- Another offensive rebound to Alabama. This time it is Gary and he scores a layup.
- Smart scores two and it is 20-19 Alabama.
- On the defensive end, Jones picks up his first foul, sending Smart to the line.
- After the timeout, Jones gets his own miss and scores the put-back.
- Watford is left open underneath the basket and scores the easy two. 18-17 Alabama with 11:08 remaining. The Mountain Brook, Ala. product is receiving boos every time he touches the rock.
- Reese nails a three from the wing and gives the Crimson Tide an 18-15 advantage.
- Jahvon Quinerly, Juwan Gary and Alex Reese have checked in for Alabama.
- Jones ties it up at 15 with that shot in the paint.
- Another triple from Thomas gives LSU a 15-13 lead at the 13:04 mark in the first half. He's up to nine points on 3-of-4 shooting from deep.
- Thomas cans another three-pointer and the Tigers have made its last four shots from the floor.
- Watford backs Jones down and scores the jumper.
- Shackelford makes his second three of the afternoon. 13-7 Alabama.
- Days scores the layup over Jones.
- Smart converts a bank shot in the paint. He has all five points for LSU.
- That was too easy for Petty. Just bodies his way in the paint and scores. 10-3 Alabama.
- Out of the break, Thomas nails a long three to get the Tigers on the board.
- Good ball movement leads to Shackelford drilling a three-pointer from the corner and Will Wade calls a timeout. 8-0 Crimson Tide. 18:17 to go.
- Watford is called for a charge.
- Smart's three rims out and Ellis is left open on the other end for a triple at the top-of-the-key. 5-0 Alabama.
- Ellis cuts to the basket and scores the layup. 2-0 UA.
- Jones wins the tip for Alabama.
Pregame
- A huge Alabama presence is in Bridgestone today. Watford just came out to a chorus of boos.
- LSU's starters: Trendon Watford, JaVonte Smart, Cameron Thomas, Darius Days and Aundre Hyatt.
- There was a pregame confrontation between both teams just minutes before tip-off. Coaches and officials had to break it up:
- Alabama's starters: Herb Jones, John Petty Jr., Jaden Shackelford, Jordan Bruner and Keon Ellis.
- Alabama's Josh Primo is still on a single crutch and wearing a knee brace. He sprained his MCL against Mississippi State on Friday.
- Today's officials are Pat Adams, Doug Shows and Joe Lindsey.
Game Preview
For the University of Alabama to win its first Southeastern Conference tournament championship, it will have to defeat LSU (18-8) for a third time this season.
The No. 3-seeded Tigers defeated Arkansas in the semifinals on Saturday afternoon 78-71 behind a 21-point performance from freshman phenom Cameron Thomas and 19 points from guard Javonte Smart.
Previously, the Crimson Tide (23-6) swept the regular-season series between both schools.
Back on Jan. 19, Alabama walked into the Pete Maravich Assembly and clobbered the Bayou Bengals 105-75 and set the SEC record for most three-pointers made in a single game with 23.
Two weeks later on Feb. 3 in Tuscaloosa, the Crimson Tide won again, 78-60, by smothering the visitors in the painted area by a margin of 52-26.
"We played LSU twice and beat 'em," coach Nate Oats said after the Crimson Tide moved past Tennessee 73-68 on Saturday. "They're ridiculously talented. Their offensive firepower is as good as anybody maybe in the country. I'm sure they'd make some adjustments and be ready to go. It's hard to beat a team as good as they are three times in a year."
Thomas, Smart, and forward Trendon Watford all average over 15 points a game and will be potent threats against the Crimson Tide's stellar defense. Forward Darius Days averages 12.1 points and 7.7 rebounds.
Here is everything you need to know about No. 6 Alabama basketball's SEC Tournament championship matchup against LSU:
No. 6 Alabama vs LSU
Where: Bridgestone Arena
When: Noon CT, Sunday
TV: ESPN
Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network
Online: ESPN.com
Last time out, Alabama: The Crimson Tide edged out Tennessee 73-68 on Saturday afternoon. Senior wing Herb Jones matched a career-high with 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, while sophomore guard Jahvon Quinerly dropped 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting.
Last time out, LSU: The Tigers snapped Arkansas' 12-SEC-game winning streak on Saturday, 78-71. Guards Cameron Thomas and JaVonte Smart combined for 40 points and five triples. Forward Darius Days added 13 points and eight rebounds. LSU held the Razorbacks to 23.1 percent from beyond-the-arc (6-of-26).
The series: The 135th meeting. Alabama owns the all-time record between both schools, 82-52. The Crimson Tide has won eight of the last 11 meetings against the Tigers. The last time both teams met in the SEC tournament was in 2014 and LSU came away victorious, 68-56.
More on the last meeting: Led by five players in double-figures, the Crimson Tide delivered an 18-point win over LSU, 78-60, inside Coleman Coliseum on Feb. 3. Guard Jaden Shackelford dropped a team-high 19 points on 7-of-16 shooting. Forward Alex Reese added 13 points, four rebounds, two blocks and one steal.
