BamaCentral Courtside After Alabama's 89-75 Win Over South Carolina

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama basketball beat South Carolina 89-75 at home on Saturday night.

But if you backtrack a bit, it's been quite the last few weeks for the Crimson Tide. Despite being the only team in the country to make each of the last two NCAA Tournament Elite Eights, Alabama found itself ninth in the conference standings after falling to Florida on Feb. 1. UA was removed from the AP Top 25 for the first time since Jan. 22, 2024, ending a 42-week streak of being on the prestigious list.

Due to its 4-4 record against the conference at the time, head coach Nate Oats considered the Texas A&M game on Feb. 4 as a "tipping point" for the rest of the season, and the Tide prevailed.

Since the win over the Aggies, Alabama has beaten Auburn, Ole Miss and now South Carolina — leading to what is now tied for the fourth-best record in the conference. The Crimson Tide has been on the right side of the tipping point, and it is finding its rhythm more and more with each win during the streak.

The Crimson Tide's victory over the Gamecocks was led by the guards. Oats has stated numerous times that Labaron Philon Jr. and Aden Holloway have the potential to be the "best backcourt in the country," and they've played pivotal roles throughout the streak. The duo combined for 39 points on Saturday night, as Holloway led UA with 20 and Philon was tied as the runner-up with 19.

Philon scored the same number of points as fellow guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr., who has come up big for the Tide in each of the last two games. Against Ole Miss, Wrightsell had 18 of his 21 points in the second half on Wrightsell 7 of 13 from deep. He's come off the bench in each of his last two games, as he's emerged as a tremendous sixth-man option.

The Crimson Tide has turned things around after a worrisome first half of SEC play, as it has a decent chance to return to the AP Top 25 on Monday. But perhaps more importantly, Alabama has six more games in the regular season, with No. 21 Arkansas being the only currently ranked opponent. Capitalizing against unranked opponents will be a necessity for the rest of the way.

Watch the above video as BamaCentral's Katie Windham and Hunter De Siver provide thoughts and takeaways from the Alabama men's basketball team's 89-75 home win over South Carolina on Saturday night.

BamaCentral Courtside After Alabama's 89-75 Win Over South Carolina

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