Alabama In-State Seniors Reflect on 'Amazing' Time With the Crimson Tide

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— All good things must come to an end.

No. 7 Alabama men's basketball faces No. 5 Florida at 6 p.m. CT in Coleman Coliseum tonight. It'll be the last time numerous members of the Crimson Tide play in the arena as the team celebrates Senior Night. The ceremony will be held after the game.

Two of the seniors are guards Mark Sears and Chris Youngblood. Both of which didn't commit to Alabama out of high school as Sears transferred to the Tide from Ohio in 2022 while Youngblood left South Florida in the offseason.

Another thing the backcourt duo has in common is that they are both from the state of Alabama as Sears first resided in Muscle Shoals while Youngblood was born in Tuscaloosa. In other words, they've grown up watching the Crimson Tide and have made their respective marks on the program.

“As a kid who came to my first game here when I was in seventh grade, it probably would've been really hard to imagine me being here and to be a part of the successful teams I’ve been on," Sears said during Friday's press conference. "It’s been amazing.”

Sears, alongside NBA players Brandon Miller and Noah Clowney, led Alabama to the NCAA Tournament's No. 1 overall seed in the guard's first season with the Crimson Tide in 2022-23, as it reached the Sweet 16. But after Miller and Clowney were drafted, Sears became the leader last season and paved the way to Alabama's first-ever Final Four.

The Tide is currently projected to be a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament as the No. 7 team in the AP Top 25. While this is a very good standing less than two weeks from Selection Sunday, Alabama was ranked as the No. 2 team in the preseason. The program's increase in expectations over the years is part of Sears' favorite moment at Alabama.

"For me, just seeing the atmosphere of the fans grow over the years I've been here," Sears said. "That's been really amazing because my first year, we had really good fans and good support, but to compare it to this year, every game has been pretty much sold out. That's a big shoutout to our supporters and fans that come and show love to us."

Youngblood transferred out of South Florida after being named the American Athletic Conference's Player of the Year. He was the clear-cut main piece on the Bulls but left anyway for a tougher challenge on one of the premier teams in the SEC. But of course, the chance to play for your hometown team in college is tough to refuse.

Nevertheless, Youngblood suffered a foot injury over the summer, which forced him to make his Alabama debut against Creighton in the 10th game of the season. The time away from basketball had a big impact on Youngblood.

“When I first got here, it was kind of hard to soak it in because you want to stay focused and work hard," Youngblood said. "When I got hurt, that really gave me time to actually sit back and think, ‘Man, I live like 5-10 minutes away from my house right now, like, 10 years ago.’ I really didn’t even realize it until I had time to sit back and think about it. It's just helped me cherish every moment, every practice, every long film session, everything."

But although Youngblood loves his home and it's part of why he transferred to the Crimson Tide, he revealed that his favorite moments with the team have come on the road this season. This makes sense as he was the ultimate silencer of the hostile Mississippi State crowd in January when he scored 23 points on 7-for-10 from behind the arc in a thrilling 88-84 win.

“On the road, it’s like you’re against the world and you have to come together as a group and as a team to survive. So to just experience all the road trips and all the road games, just making memories, that’s the best part.”

Alabama head coach Nate Oats is also looking forward to Senior Night and is happy for those who are about to play their final game in Coleman Coliseum. But he singled out Sears after spending the last three years together.

The guard currently sits as Division I’s active leader in points with 2,706 in his career. The dual-threat is also the only player in the SEC to rank in the top-2 in scoring (No. 2 with 19.1 points per game) and assists (No. 2 with 5.0 per game). Yet Sears didn't have any high-major offers coming out of high school and according to Oats, is "a kid that was overlooked by ourselves."

“I’ve said this a few times and it’s continuing, I think he’s playing the best basketball of his career on both sides of the ball right now,” Oats said. “The fans should come out not just to recognize Mark, but it would be great to show him the recognition he deserves on Senior Night, being a kid from Alabama who’s elevated this program to heights never seen.”

Tonight, Alabama guards Mark Sears and Chris Youngblood, forward Grant Nelson, center Clifford Omoruyi and walk-on Max Scharnowski will be honored for all they've done for the program.

Read More: