Wild Second Half Caps Comeback Win for Alabama Basketball over Mississippi State, 80-75

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Two technical fouls called on Alabama basketball coach Nate Oats were just a small part of what was one of the wildest games of the season inside Coleman Coliseum, as the Crimson Tide downed Mississippi State 80-75.

Following Oats' technical fouls, Alabama outscored Mississippi State 23-15 to close out the game and take home the victory.

"Our guys answered the bell," Oats said after the game. "I thought the staff did a great job — Charlie [Henry], [Antoine] Pettway and Bryan [Hodgson] kind of came together [and] got the guys to rally together.

"I thought their energy picked up, they played hard and the staff did a great job."

The opening minutes were a discombobulated back-and-forth contest between the Crimson Tide and the Bulldogs. At the first media timeout, though, Alabama had jumped to a 7-4 lead thanks to a 5-0 run boosted by a 3-pointer by Jahvon Quinerly.

A 10-2 run at the midway point of the first half featuring another 3-pointer from Quinerly increased the Crimson Tide's lead to 8 points, its largest of the opening 20 minutes.

While Quinerly had garnered the most attention on offense in the first half, freshman center Charles Bediako had displayed the most effort on defense. In the opening half, Bediako had recorded both five rebounds and five blocks, with four of his rebounds coming on the defensive end of the court. Couple that with eight points, and Bediako had a big part in Alabama's 34-30 halftime lead over Mississippi State.

The second half started out strong for Quinerly, with the junior guard recording his third 3-pointer of the game and recording a layup on the next possession. However, the Bulldogs were unfazed, draining five of their first six baskets of the second half from beyond the arc. At the 14:21 mark, Mississippi State has climbed back to tie the game 47-47.

After going 0-for-4 from 3-point territory in the first half, Mississippi State had shot 6-for-6 over the first seven minutes. However, Alabama was able to maintain either a tie or the lead, forcing the Bulldogs to try and play keep-up rather than re-taking the lead.

At the 9:36 mark, a free throw by Mississippi State's Iverson Molinar resulted in the Bulldogs taking a 56-55 lead. A non-call on the opposite end caused Oats — who had already had multiple fiery outbursts on the night — to be called for a technical foul after another exchange with an official. The resulting free throws by Mississippi State gave the Bulldogs a 58-55 lead.

Alabama responded with a dunk from Bediako, assisted by Quinerly. Bediako was also fouled on the play, giving him an and-1 opportunity. However, as Bediako stepped up to the free-throw line, Oats was called for his second technical foul on the night, ejecting him from the game.

Two more free throws by MSU gave the Bulldogs the lead back. Including the free throws both before and after the second technical for Oats, MSU had constructed a 12-2 run to pull out to a 64-57 lead with 7:26 left to play.

A 3-point basket by James Rojas put the Crimson Tide back on track. With Alabama's defense on the opposite end holding strong, a layup by Quinerly put the Crimson Tide down by 2. On the Bulldogs' next possession, an offensive foul gave Alabama the ball back once again. Bediako was fouled on the offensive end, where he drained both of his free throws to tie the game at 64.

Mississippi State responded with a dunk, and Keon Ellis missed a three. However, Alabama's defense held firm. JD Davison rebounded a missed shot by MSU, driving the ball down the court. When Quinerly missed a three, Davison was under the net once again for the put-back 2 points. After being fouled, Davison made the and-1, giving the Crimson Tide a narrow 67-66 lead.

A dunk by Bediako marks the first points for either team in almost three minutes, increasing Alabama's lead to 69-66 and marking a 12-2 run over the course of 5:15. That run increased to 14-2 mid-range jumper from Quinerly, and then to 16-2 after two free throws from Darius Miles.

The run ultimately eclipsed at 18-2.

"He fights for us, and we fight for him," Bediako said of his team's effort following Oats' ejection.

A posterizing dunk by Miles created one of the loudest reactions from the Coleman crowd in recent memory, with the fans being so loud that the Mississippi State players on the court couldn't hear the officials whistles as MSU coach Ben Howland frantically called a timeout.

The final seconds weren't enough for the Bulldogs to mount a comeback, and Crimson Tide took home the 80-75 victory.

With Charlie Henry taking Oats' spot after the ejection, Quinerly was first to credit Henry with his leadership and ability to step up into the role.

"I think [Henry] did a good job of making adjustments on the fly, and guys were ready to execute as planned," Quinerly said. "I'm happy he got his first win as a head coach."

Quinerly finished the game with the most points for Alabama with 21, followed by Bediako with his 15 and Miles and Shackelford with their 12 each. Davison totaled just seven points, but made up for it on the defensive end of the court with a team-leading 10 rebounds.

In rebounding, Shackelford finished second on the team with eight, followed by Miles with seven and Bediako with five. Bediako also concluded the game with six blocks, tied for his career high.

With the win, Alabama improves to 17-9 on the season and is 7-6 in SEC play. Mississippi State falls to 14-11 overall and is 5-7 in the conference.

Gallery: No. 25 Alabama 80, Mississippi State 75