Alabama men’s basketball took the victory over the Texas A&M Aggies on Wednesday night, defeating them 100–97 in a tightly contested matchup at Coleman Coliseum.
The narrow win came at a tough price for the Crimson Tide, who struggled to get many points in the paint early on. Offensively, Alabama started slow, but the Aggies matched the pace, keeping the game neck and neck from the opening tip.
After getting over the initial bump in the road, both teams kicked into a fast rhythm, turning the game into an offensive battle with consistent scoring on both ends of the court.
While struggling through the final stretch of the first half, the Tide was able to tie the game at 46–46 by the time the buzzer sounded.
The second half is when Alabama was able to step up its game. The team raised its field-goal percentage from 38.9% in the first half to 51.5% after the break.
The Crimson Tide’s real star of the show was its 3-point shooting. That success came as no shock, as Alabama leads the SEC in 3-point attempts per game, averaging 35.6.
Even though the Tide put up more shots from beyond the arc, Texas A&M finished with a higher number of made 3-pointers. Meanwhile, Alabama continued to struggle inside, totaling just 18 points in the paint with 14 minutes left in the game.
From there, Labaron Philon began to put on an outstanding performance that got Coleman Coliseum on its feet. Aden Holloway followed with a clutch shot that all but guaranteed the victory with 22 seconds remaining. Holloway was fouled on the play but missed the free throw that would have made it a four-point game.
Texas A&M immediately responded to cut the lead to 99–97 with 15 seconds left on the clock, but Alabama was able to pull out the win in the final moments.
Notable players for the Crimson Tide included Philon, Holloway and Latrell Wrightsell Jr., all of whom scored in double figures.
Head coach Nate Oats credited his guards for their performance after the game.
“I thought my guards did a really good job of taking care of the ball,” Oats said. “You kind of go down the list, Amari with six assists and one turnover. Labaron, coming off the bad game in Florida with his turnovers, had zero turnovers while handling pressure. He played 36 minutes with zero turnovers and three assists, which is pretty big. Holloway had a career high in rebounds tonight.”
Alabama’s ability to respond after a slow start and close out the game late proved to be the difference as the Tide secured another hard-fought SEC win.
