Live Updates for No. 17 Alabama Basketball at No. 22 Tennessee

No. 17 Alabama basketball will play its 29th game of the regular season, and the 16th of SEC play, on Saturday, Feb. 28, on the road against No. 22 Tennessee.

The Crimson Tide has won seven straight games and is eyeing an eighth at Thompson-Boling Arena. This is the second time that Alabama will face the Volunteers, as Alabama fell to Tennessee in Tuscaloosa in January.

Alabama head coach Nate Oats has thrived against the SEC throughout his tenure, but the same could not be said when facing the Volunteers. The loss a month ago to head coach Rick Barnes and company brought UA's losing streak against Tennessee to five games. It's the first time that the Tide has dropped this many games to the Vols since 1968-72 — a streak that came two years before Oats was born (Oct. 13, 1974).

A couple of streaks are on the line for Alabama in Knoxville. No matter what, one streak will end, while the other will continue. Can the Tide be on the correct end for both?

Follow along for score updates and analysis as the Crimson Tide takes on the Volunteers in Knoxville, Tennessee. Be sure to refresh your browser, as live updates will be at the top.

FINAL: Alabama 71, Tennessee 69

FINAL: Alabama 71, Tennessee 69

What a comeback!

Alabama has won its 8th game in a row and breaks a 5-game losing streak to Tennessee. The Crimson Tide has sole possession of 2nd place in the SEC. pic.twitter.com/Ldb056ys2v
— Hunter De Siver (@HunterDeSiver) March 1, 2026

What a comeback! Alabama has won its 8th game in a row and breaks a 5-game losing streak to Tennessee. The Crimson Tide has sole possession of 2nd place in the SEC.

Second Half:

TIMEOUT (19.2 2H): Alabama 71, Tennessee 69: Labaron Philon has been an absolute monster in these final 10 minutes. Alabama holds its first lead of the game. Can it hang on for 20 more seconds?

PHILON.
PHILON.
PHILON. pic.twitter.com/a5kx3zuZUO
— Alabama Men’s Basketball (@AlabamaMBB) March 1, 2026

TIMEOUT (1:01 2H): Alabama 69, Tennessee 69: Just incredible grit shown in the second half by the Crimson Tide. Alabama leads 41-29 in the period after only scoring 28 in the first period. The momentum is in UA's favor.

Labaron Philon has come up big the last several minutes as he's now up to 21 points for the game, including 13 in the second half.

TIMEOUT (3:22 2H): Tennessee 67, Alabama 61: Here we go! Latrell Wrightsell is up to TWENTY-FIVE points in this one. He's 6 of 8 from deep and has led Alabama to a big comeback in this one. That said, the Crimson Tide still needs a few stops and consistency defensively.

Philon has really come alive in the second half as he's now up to 15 for the game.

TIMEOUT (7:32 2H): Tennessee 59, Alabama 53: Alabama is not out of it yet. Wrightsell (11 points) and Holloway have combined for 19 of the Crimso Tide's 25 points this half.

Nate Oats has now received a technical (14:05 left in second half) in back-to-back games.

Per the ESPN broadcast, Tennessee forward Nate Ament is not expected to return vs. Alabama after a collision in the first half. He had 29 points last time vs. The Crimson Tide and had 2 before today's injury.

TIMEOUT (15:20 2H): Tennessee 48, Alabama 40: Really solid start to the latter period for Alabama as Alabama hit its first 4 shots. This includes two 3-pointers by Aden Holloway and a 4-point play by Latrell Wrightsell. But Alabama has now missed its last 4 shots.

HALFTIME: Tennessee 40, Alabama 28

HALFTIME: Tennessee 40, Alabama 28 pic.twitter.com/iOhvUV1lnS
— Hunter De Siver (@HunterDeSiver) March 1, 2026

Alabama trails Tennessee 40-28 at halftime. The Crimson Tide is on pace for 56 points. Alabama finished the following games with under 60 points in Nate Oats' tenure since 2019-20:

50 vs. Missouri in 2020
56 vs. Clemson in 2020
55 vs. Kentucky in 2022
59 vs. Tennessee in 2023

First Half:

TIMEOUT (3:20 1H): Tennessee 28, Alabama 22: Latrell Wrightsell Jr. has practically been Alabama's only form of offensive success of late. He's up to 11 points (half of the Crimson Tide's) on 4 of 5 from the field, including 3 of 4 from deep.

5:11: Tennessee 26, Alabama 16: Tennessee offensive rebounds + Alabama turnovers = 18; Alabama points = 16

6:44: Alabama is now at its largest deficit with Tennessee leading 24-16.

TIMEOUT (7:42 1H): Tennessee 20, Alabama 16: Nate Ament was down in pain holding his right leg after colliding with Amari Allen and Latrell Wrightsell Jr. He walked it off without support from trainers. Ament had 29 points earlier this season against Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

It's a bit bizarre how Tennessee only has six second-chance points despite grabbing 10 offensive rebounds. The Vols will very likely get into a rhythm during additional opportunities, and Alabama must hit the glass before that happens.

Alabama's offense has looked pretty solid after a really rough start. Latrell Wrightsell Jr. has five points and two rebounds.

Alabama-Tennessee on pace for a final score of 64-56 in favor of the Vols after 10 minutes into the first half.

TIMEOUT (11:58 1H): Tennessee 14, Alabama 11: Nate Oats said Tennessee is the best offensive rebounding team in the country and they've backed it up thus far. The Vols are already up to seven offensive rebounds, but Alabama is staying in it due to the ball not falling in Tennessee's net.

Both offenses are returning to normalcy, as Alabama has hit each of its last three field goal attempts, while Tennessee has converted its last four.

Alabama guard Labaron Philon Jr., who rested during Wednesday's win over Mississippi State, gets the Crimson Tide on the board with 15:31 remaining in the first half vs. Tennessee.

TIMEOUT (15:55 1H): Tennessee 5, Alabama 0: Alabama is up to 4 turnovers and is yet to hit one of its 4 shots. Tennessee is 2 of 7 from the field with 3 turnovers. We've got an ugly start to this one as Labaron Philon checked in seconds before the timeout after missing last game.

Alabama really struggled with its baseline inbounding plays against Tennessee last year and the Crimson Tide's first two turnovers in this one came in that area.

Pregame:

Tipoff time for Alabama at Tennessee has been pushed back from 5 p.m. CT to 5:10 due to the Arizona-Kansas game still in play on ESPN; Arizona leads 78-59 with 4:16 remaining in the second half.

Starting Lineups:

Alabama:
G Aden Holloway
G Latrell Wrightsell Jr.
F Amari Allen
F London Jemison
F Aiden Sherrell

Labaron Philon Jr. will come off the bench after missing Wednesday's game vs. Mississippi State.

Tennessee:
G Ja'Kobi Gillespie
G Bishop Boswell
F Nate Ament
F Jaylen Carey
C Felix Okpara

Officials: Don Daily, Vladimir Voyard-Tadal, Lucas Santos

Alabama Final Availability Report (Feb. 28):

Collins Onyejiaka — Out
Davion Hannah — Out
Keitenn Bristow — Out

Tennessee Final Availability Report (Feb. 28):

Clarence Massamba — Out
Cade Phillips — Out

UPDATE: Alabama guard Labaron Philon Jr. is no longer included on the availability report after initially being listed as "probable" on Friday night. He will be available to play for the Crimson Tide against the Vols.

Philon was out for Wednesday's win over Mississippi State due to an undisclosed injury. Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats gave an update on the sophomore during Friday's press conference.

“He participated in some of practice today,” Oats said. “He’s a guy that doesn’t like to sit out. He doesn’t like to sit out practice or games, so he’s chomping at the bit to get back. We’ll see if (Alabama trainer) Clarke (Holter) clears him to play, but he did participate in some of practice today. Hopefully, he responds well and he’s able to go tomorrow.”

Alabama Scholarship Players Available vs. Tennessee:

G Labaron Philon Jr.
G Aden Holloway
G Latrell Wrightsell Jr.
G Houston Mallette
G Jalil Bethea
F Amari Allen
F Taylor Bol Bowen
F London Jemison
F Aiden Sherrell
C Noah Williamson

How to Watch: Alabama at Tennessee

Who: No. 17 Alabama (21-7, 11-4 SEC) at No. 22 Tennessee (20-8, 10-5 SEC)

What: Alabama's 16th game of SEC Play (eighth on the road)

When: Saturday, Feb. 28, 5 p.m. CT

Where: Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center, Knoxville, Tenn.

TV: ESPN

Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network (Play-By-Play: Chris Stewart, Color: Bryan Passink). The pregame show will begin one hour prior to tipoff.

SiriusXM: Channel 81 (Alabama), Channel 84 (Tennessee)

Series: Alabama leads 81-75, with the first matchup occurring on Feb. 6, 1914. The Crimson Tide is 24-45 on the road against the Volunteers.

Last Meeting: Alabama fell to Tennessee 79-73 at home on Jan. 24. All eyes were on NBA G League player Charles Bediako returning to the Crimson Tide, as in his first game of a temporary restraining order, he finished with 13 points, three rebounds and a pair of steals and blocks in 25 minutes. Labaron Philon Jr. led UA with 26 points, but it wasn't enough. While the Crimson Tide held its own without Aden Holloway and Amari Allen, Tennessee started extremely strong in the second half, as Volunteers Nate Ament (29 points) and Ja'Kobi Gillespie (24) combined for 53 points on the night.

Last time out, Alabama: The Crimson Tide cruised past Mississippi State 100-75 at home on Feb. 25. Alabama tied its season-high for 3-pointers with 22, including 16 in the first half. Amari Allen went 5 for 5 from deep in the first half and finished the night with a team-best 23 points. While Labaron Philon Jr. sat out with an injury, Aden Holloway led the way with 16 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists. Nevertheless, Alabama's heater turned cold during the second half, as Mississippi State adjusted defensively and the Tide shot 6 of 23 (26 percent) from behind the arc.

Last time out, Tennessee: The Volunteers fell to Missouri 73-69 on the road on Feb. 24. Tigers guard T.O. Barrett (28 points) and forward Mark Mitchell (23) obliterated the Vols by combining for 51 points. That's about 70 percent of Mizzou's scoring total! Ja'Kobi Gillespie (19 points), Nate Ament (17), Felix Okpara (15) and Bishop Boswell (13) each finished in double figures for Tennessee, but it wasn't enough. Volunteers forward Jaylen Carey (10 rebounds), plus Okpara (8) and Ament (7) combined for 25 boards.

Alabama Stat Leaders

Points: Labaron Philon Jr. (21.3 on 50.3 FG%) *THIRD IN SEC*
Rebounds: Amari Allen (7.5, including 1.7 offensive) *FOURTH IN SEC*
Assists: Labaron Philon Jr. (5.0 with 2.7 turnovers) *FOURTH IN SEC*

Tennessee Stat Leaders

Points: Ja'Kobi Gillespie (18.1 on 41.2 FG%) *SIXTH IN SEC*
Rebounds: Nate Ament (6.5, including 1.7 offensive) *16th IN SEC*
Assists: Ja'Kobi Gillespie (5.4 with 2.3 turnovers) *SECOND IN SEC*

Subscribe to BamaCentral's Free Newsletter

Add us as a preferred source on Google