No. 4 Alabama bounced back from back-to-back losses with a 96-83 win over No. 17 Kentucky on Saturday night, and the victory came with a number of notable achievements for the Crimson Tide.
Coach Nate Oats recorded his 26th win over a Top 25 opponent to set a school record, while guard Mark Sears became the second SEC player in the last 20 seasons to notch consecutive 30-point games against Top 25 teams (Kobe Brown achieved the feat at Missouri in 2022). Sears’ performance on Saturday also marked his 65th career 20-point game.
Mark Sears put up 30 today in @AlabamaMBB’s win over No. 17 Kentucky 🎯
Catching fire at the right time of year 🔥 https://t.co/TkNtPWaylp pic.twitter.com/i7k7pxIlJE
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) February 23, 2025
The win keeps Alabama in play for a Top 4 seed in the upcoming SEC Tournament, resulting in a double bye. The schedule doesn’t let up, Alabama hosts No. 21 Mississippi State on Tuesday night. Meanwhile, Kentucky drops to 7-7 in SEC play and travels to Oklahoma next Wednesday night.
Reversing recent trends
A 103-97 win at Kentucky on Jan. 18 jumpstarted a seven-game win streak for the Tide, which was broken in back-to-back losses against Auburn and Missouri entering Saturday night. The catalyst in those defeats were slow starts — Alabama dug early, double-digit first-half deficits which resulted in consecutive wire-to-wire losses.
Saturday’s game looked like more of the same, Kentucky raced out to a 20-9 lead in the game’s first five minutes. From that point on, Alabama took control — Kentucky’s last lead was a 32-31 score at the 5:54 mark in the first half. The most encouraging sign for Alabama fans is a much improved defensive effort. Alabama surrendered 204 points in its last two losses, and Kentucky ranked No. 3 nationally in points per game (85.8) entering Saturday. The Wildcats were under their average, and leading scorer Otega Oweh, who scored double digits points in 27 straight games, was held to just two points and fouled out.
Alabama didn’t shoot particularly well from 3-point range, just 31 percent, but dominated the game from inside the arc — which has been a staple of this year’s offense. The Crimson Tide shot 11-31 from three but 21-30 on 2-pointers. Alabama controlled the pace of the game, outscoring Kentucky 23-6 in transition points and held a decisive advantage in free throws, shooting 84 percent from the line compared to Kentucky’s 73 percent.
However, there’s one area where Alabama continued to struggle: turnovers. The Tide turned the ball over 15 more times on Saturday, continuing the team’s poor streak of late. It didn’t result in a loss on Saturday but will continue to be a point of emphasis moving forward.
Shorthanded Kentucky struggles to keep pace
Kentucky’s injury misfortune continued on Saturday with Lamont Butler and Jaxson Robinson out entirely, and the lack of Wildcat depth showed against Alabama. With the exception of Oweh, Kentucky’s starters played well, scoring 68 of the team’s total points. However, the bench couldn’t keep pace with Alabama’s, losing by a 29-15 margin.
Oweh’s absence can be chalked up to an anomaly, but it cannot happen for a Kentucky team that fell to .500 in SEC play. The amount of minutes that Kentucky’s bench is gaining in the absence of its injured players is potentially good for the Tournament stretch, but the offense needs to find answers in the short-term. Kentucky’s fouling was also a concern on Saturday. Oweh and Collin Chandler fouled out while Koby Brea had four fouls.
Kentucky coach Mark Pope said his team had a little fatigue and defensive coverage issues but noted he was proud of his younger players’ effort.
“They are getting better, and we got to keep getting better faster. Then we have to really focus on only making our mistakes, not making mistakes that aren’t us. We have to make mistakes the way we play and there were too many tonight where it wasn’t,” he said.
Key players finding their groove
Sears has been on a tear since his infamous benching against LSU on Jan. 25, scoring 24.8 points per game in each contest since. Saturday’s game was another example of Alabama’s ceiling when he’s at his best. Sears controlled the game on both sides of the court, scoring and facilitating with a team-high four assists. He made an impact defensively as well, helping out on Oweh and limiting Kentucky on the 3-point line. This upcoming stretch is key for Alabama, and Sears is trending towards a second straight spring of dominant basketball.
“Sears has playing the best basketball I’ve seen him play since he’s been here, on both sides of the ball. His defensive effort’s been the best it’s been. And then I think offensively he’s been really efficient,” Oats said.
Elsewhere, Aden Holloway’s hot shooting was a catalyst in Saturday’s win. He contributed 19 points off the bench, including five of Alabama’s 11 total 3-pointers.
go to work biz. pic.twitter.com/DTxK1d0XoR
— Alabama Men’s Basketball (@AlabamaMBB) February 23, 2025
It marks eight games out of nine where Holloway’s reached double digits. His pairing with Sears has proven to be a lethal scoring combination. And Alabama’s backcourt has Labaron Philon and Chris Youngblood contributing at a high level as well. Guard play is critical in March, and Alabama’s are gaining confidence at the right time.
(Photo: Brandon Sumrall / Getty Images)
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