Alabama Basketball Fends Off Mississippi State: 3 Takeaways

Alabama basketball won an absolute dog fight against the Mississippi State Bulldogs to pull out the win late with clutch buckets and rebounds to secure the game.

Alabama basketball went into Humphrey Coliseum and pulled out the 88-84 win, making the blue-collar plays late to fend off the upset-minded Bulldogs. The team secured the win and stays one game back in the SEC standings.

Derrion Reid was back for the first time in 18 days and was on a minute restriction, scoring two points with four rebounds in only 12 minutes of action.

Grant Nelson hit a big shot to put the Tide ahead from three with just over two minutes remaining in the game. 

Alabama had only 14 turnovers, and the team had 18 assists on the night, with Mark Sears leading the charge with nine assists.

Alabama’s Mouhamed Dioubate won the hard hat yet again for the Tide and continues leading the team with the most hard hats.

“Wow! That was quite the game. If you like big shotmaking, that was a good game to be at and watch,” said head coach Nate Oats.

Takeaway #1: Josh Hubbard was unstoppable

Josh Hubbard finished with 38 points on 14-28 shooting. No matter if a guard, a wing, or a big man tried to trap or slow him down, Hubbard would rise up or blow by the defense and score at will. 

Hubbard was shaken up and slow to get up in the first half, but he came back into the game, and every time he got the ball, the shot seemed to go down.

The attention on Hubbard was so big that it left big man and Birmingham native Keshawn Murphy wide open on the pick-and-roll for many dunks and contested layups to have 18 points. Murphy missed a wide-open layup late with just 13 seconds remaining with the chance to take the lead.

Takeaway #2: Chris Youngblood’s coming out party  

Chris Youngblood got his second start in an Alabama uniform and was unconscious from downtown after the first three of the night dropped. Youngblood finished with 23 points on 7-10 from three, and the Bulldogs continued to leave him open on the top of the key or in the corner.  Youngblood was the best guy trying to “slow” down Hubbard on the defensive end.

“Hopefully, this is Chris’s coming out party. He looked pretty good on both sides of the ball. He’s starting to exert his demeanor, will, and competitiveness. It’s great to see,” said Oats.

As a team, the Tide shot 15-31 (48%) from downtown and, after struggling from deep all season, is now starting to get into a good groove.

Aden Holloway finished with 12 points, was in double-figures again, and got the scoring started on an and-one-three.

Sears responded to the criticism and the adversity and finished with a near double-double and 17 points on an efficient 6-11 shooting.

Grant Nelson had a solid night, finished with 15 points, and was getting open around the rim from dimes from Sears. 

“It’s a war. I mean, that’s why I wanted to come to the SEC,” said Youngblood.

Takeaway #3: Alabama wins the rebounding battle

Alabama won the rebounding battle 41-35, but the offensive rebounds were the difference, with Alabama grabbing 17 and Dioubate having seven offensive rebounds, grabbing big boards after missed free throws in the final seconds to give the Tide extra chances to extend the lead. 

“He’s a winner,” said Oats on Dioubate.

Coach Chris Jans’s teams are always tough-minded on the glass, but the Tide overcame that, with Clifford Omoruyi and Nelson also grabbing seven rebounds each.

Sears almost had a triple-double bid with only six rebounds, but got the offense started quickly after grabbing a rebound to get down the floor within the first five-10 seconds of the shot clock. 

Bama limited Cameron Matthews, who does everything for the Bulldogs, with only six rebounds and fouled out after only 30 minutes of action. The Bulldogs had 13 offensive rebounds, with Matthews grabbing four of them.

Next up for Alabama basketball (18-3, 7-1): vs Georgia (15-6, 3-5) – Feb. 1 at 4 p.m. EST

Next up for Mississippi State basketball (16-5, 4-4): vs. Missouri (16-4, 5-2) – Feb. 1 at 1 p.m. EST