Alabama Basketball Takes Down Mississippi State in Top-15 Road Matchup

STARKVILLE, Miss. — Alabama men's basketball head coach Nate Oats knew it would be "ridiculously hard" to take down Mississippi State on the road coming into Wednesday night.

The No. 4 Crimson Tide defeated No. 14 Mississippi State 88-84, but unlike most of Alabama's wins, this one was close throughout as the Bulldogs never allowed Oats and company to pull away.

"That was quite the game if you like big shot-making," Alabama head coach Nate Oats said during the postgame press conference. "A good game to watch...They're a tough team. One of the tougher teams in the league. That win is going to go a long ways for us."

The Starkville crowd literally ran into Humphrey Coliseum dressed head-to-toe in black, matching with the Bulldogs' uniform. Color theme nights typically create more noise and this was a prime example of that.

The noise in The Hump seemed to tick Alabama early as the Tide began the game with a couple of turnovers and a 1-for-5 start from downtown. Mississippi State took advantage of the Starkville supporters with numerous runs in the first half.

However, the same could be said for Alabama, as after that first media timeout, the Crimson Tide offense started to really heat up and take the lead and hold onto it well before halftime. Guard Chris Youngblood is a big reason for this as he tallied 12 points on a stellar 4-for-5 clip from long-range heading into the locker room.

After not putting up a single point and sitting in the second half of the LSU game, Preseason All-American guard Mark Sears scored five points and dished the same number of assists in the first 20 minutes. His ball movement was key in the Tide gaining open shots. A couple of those assists were to Grant Nelson, who had nine points and a pair of blocks to help Alabama take a 44-39 lead at the break.

The game of runs continued into the second half as Alabama quickly built a lead up to nine, but careless turnovers and poor shots put the Bulldogs in favor and brought the crowd back to life as Mississippi State took a 65-64 lead midway through the period.

The Bulldogs controlled the lead and the game itself for a bit with open looks inside and some conversions outside from star guard Josh Hubbard. Oats knew of Hubbard's prowess coming into the game, but still didn't have much of an answer as he surpassed the 30-point mark with more then seven minutes remaining in regulation. Simply put, he was unstoppable in the second half.

Now it was Alabama's turn to prevent a lead from growing, and just like the first half, Youngblood was the answer and the occasional silencer of the Bulldog crowd.

"Just stick to the script," Youngblood said in the postgame press conference when asked what his message was in the huddle, as he was frequently the voice of it. "On the road, the crowd goes crazy at the free-throw line, they're going to be loud regardless, but just don't let them rattle you. Stick to the script and just focus on what we've got to do because when we get a bucket the crowd goes quiet."

Youngblood helped Alabama reclaim the lead alongside Sears, who finished with 17 points and nine assists, and Nelson, who had 15 points and seven rebounds.

Up by one after three missed free throws by Nelson and forward Mouhamed Dioubate, center Clifford Omoruyi blocked Mississippi State on an attempt that all but certainly would've given Mississippi State the lead. Youngblood then went to the charity stripe and hit both shots. Youngblood finished a jaw-dropping 7-for-10 from behind the arc, leading to a 23-point outing.

The once deafening crowd went silent and headed for the exits with five seconds remaining.