No. 4 Alabama Basketball Pulls Away in Final Minutes to Beat LSU, 80-73

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— Nate Oats wanted to see his team's maturity in Saturday night's game against a team at the bottom of the SEC standings while No. 4 Alabama is trying to compete for an SEC title.

That maturity was tested big time with the Crimson Tide playing the entire second half without its leading scorer and a lot of sloppy turnovers and mistakes in the first half. But thanks to an energetic spurt after the final media timeout, Alabama turned a narrow lead into a double-digit lead on the way to a 80-73 win over LSU (12-7, 1-5 SEC) inside Coleman Coliseum.

"I couldn't be more proud of our guys in the second half," Oats said.

Mark Sears was scoreless in the first half and did not start or play in the second half for the first time this season. He has been averaging 19 points and almost 33 minutes a game for the Crimson TIde this season. Even with the game coming down to the wire, Oats did not put Sears in.

After the game, Oats declined to comment specifically on why Sears didn't play, but instead said the coaching staff chose to play the people in the second half that were going to give them the best chance to win. Forward Clifford Omoruyi also did not start the second half after starting the first. Oats was pleased with the way he played in the second half (four points and seven rebounds after just two boards in the first half.)

Most of the game was a back-and-forth affair with eight ties and 13 lead changes. Alabama's lead hovered around five or six points for most of the second half, but the Crimson Tide went on an 8-0 run after the final media timeout to go ahead by 13 with 2:09 left. However, the Tigers showed some fight and cut the Alabama lead back down to six points with less than a minute left.

Neither team could gather any sort of sustained momentum or build a large lead in the first half. Alabama's largest lead was six points, but turnovers and poor rebounding allowed LSU back into the game any time the Tide went on a run for a 40-40 tie at the half.

Alabama's two biggest issues in the first half were turnovers and offensive rebounds by LSU. The Crimson Tide cut down on both categories in the second half. After allowing 13 offensive rebounds and 10 second-chance points in the first half, LSU only had four offensive boards and four second-chance points in the second half.

Crimson Tide guard Aden Holloway said rebounding was a big focus at halftime.

"In the first half, we were playing–– not bad ––but they would just give that little extra effort to go get the offensive rebound," Holloway said. "And we just made it a super key to just give that little bit of extra umph to just finish the possession, give us extra possessions on offense."

In a close game, Alabama showed improvements at the free throw line, shooting 79 percent, and making clutch free throws in the final important minutes of the game.

Chris Youngblood got his first start in an Alabama uniform and scored seven of Alabama's first nine points in the game, finishing with 13 points. Holloway led the Tide with 19 points, finishing in double figures for the sixth time in the first seven SEC Games.

"It felt good," Youngblood said after the game. "You know, it's funny, because at first, my family thought I was going to be mad about not starting, but I was like, 'Man, this team is wonderful.'"

Alabama improves to 17-3 (6-1 SEC) and will travel to No. 14 Mississippi State on Wednesday.

Alabama Basketball vs. LSU final stats- Jan. 25, 2025 | Statbroadcast

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