Alabama beats Clemson 89-82 to reach Final Four for the first time
The Crimson Tide will face defending national champion UConn in Glendale, Arizona, in the Final Four next Saturday.
The Crimson Tide will face defending national champion UConn in Glendale, Arizona, in the Final Four next Saturday.
Alabama now heads to the Elite Eight to face Clemson, hoping to advance to the Final Four for the first time ever.
Mark Sears carried Alabama long enough for the Crimson Tide to get an unexpected contribution and reach the Sweet 16.
With losses by regular season champ Tennessee, No. 2 seed Kentucky and No. 3 seed Alabama, this marked the first time the SEC’s top three seeds all lost their tournament openers since 1983.
Alabama got within 14 in the second half with 16:45 left, but Kentucky shut down any hopes of a rally with 12 unanswered points in less than 90 seconds,
With the outright SEC lead in jeopardy, Alabama dug out of a double-digit hole before finally taking control in overtime to beat Florida 98-93.
Mark Sears had 23 points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals and hot-shooting No. 15 Alabama beat Texas A&M 100-75 on Saturday.
Alabama will find it hard to duplicate last season’s run to the No. 1 overall NCAA Tournament seed. The Crimson Tide returns only one starter and three scholarship players from a team that won the Southeastern Conference championship.
Alabama point guard Jahvon Quinerly is planning to transfer for his final season, adding to the players leaving the turmoil-filled program.
A judge has granted a former Alabama basketball player accused of capital murder a hearing to decide whether charges will be dismissed.