Alabama men’s basketball knocked off the Auburn Tigers 96-92 on Saturday at Neville Arena in the first edition of this year’s Iron Bowl of Basketball.
The win lifted Alabama to 6-4 in SEC play and was its second straight at Neville Arena. Alabama previously had not won back-to-back games at Auburn since 2012. Star guards Labaron Philon Jr. and Aden Holloway starred in the effort, combining for 40 points.
Holloway — who was once an Auburn Tiger — scored 9 points in the final 2:32, including a 4-point play that stretched the Crimson Tide’s lead to 6 points, silencing the rowdy Neville crowd. The win was his second over his former school.
“They were pretty quiet when we left today,” head coach Nate Oats said of the Auburn crowd. “[The] best way to make them quiet is win on the scoreboard. They were quiet last year. They were quiet this year. He’s 2-0 coming back here.”
Alabama began the game slowly on offense, knocking down just 4/11 from the field. It also averaged a dismal 0.667 points per possession in the opening eight minutes of play. Season-long rebounding struggles appeared once again, as the team failed to match the physicality of Auburn guard Kevin Overton and forward KeShawn Murphy.
Overton dropped 11 points in the opening stanza and snatched three rebounds. Murphy tallied eight first-half rebounds, including six offensive boards. He also dished out two assists.
Alabama settled in on offense as the half progressed, finishing 15/29 from the field and 5/11 from 3-point range. It trailed by 10 with 2:33 left in the opening period, but mustered an 11-5 run to cut the deficit to 4 points at halftime.
Two Crimson Tide players who have dealt with injuries this season — forward Taylor Bol Bowen and guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. — exited the game in the first half. Bol Bowen returned to action, but Wrightsell remained sidelined on the Alabama bench and did not re-enter the game.
Oats said that Wrightsell suffered a right knee injury and would be examined tomorrow.
Auburn opened the half strongly and held a 7-point lead with 15:31 to go. Alabama forward London Jemison had other plans, though, and mustered a 7-0 run on his own that brought the contest level.
“That was huge that London stepped up the way he did,” Oats said.
The Crimson Tide led by 6 points with 9:10 to play but surrendered a 5-0 Auburn run that trimmed the lead to 1 with under eight minutes to go. The lead remained at 1 with 3:49 left, as Philon and Auburn star guard Tahaad Pettiford traded free throws.
Alabama forward Amari Allen knocked down a clutch triple that lifted the Crimson Tide’s advantage to 4 points with 3:01 to go, but two made free throws from Tigers star forward Keyshawn Hall cut the lead down to 2 points.
Then Holloway got in rhythm.
Holloway scored 9 of Alabama’s final 13 points and nailed four key free throws down the stretch. He also notched his 1,000th career point and led the team in second-half assists with three.
Allen and Philon knocked down four free throws to close out a pivotal win, which sent the Auburn faithful packing with under 30 seconds to go.
Alabama will return to the hardwood on Tuesday in Oxford, Mississippi, when it faces the Ole Miss Rebels. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT, and the game can be streamed on SEC Network.
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