No. 16 Alabama men’s basketball closed out the regular season with a 96-84 wire-to-wire victory over the Auburn Tigers at Coleman Coliseum on Saturday.
The Crimson Tide honored its three seniors pregame: guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr., guard Houston Mallette and center Noah Williamson. All received standing ovations from the crowd during the ceremony.
“It’s great to get a win on Senior Night with three of the best seniors as far as culture-wise [goes],” head coach Nate Oats said postgame.
While star guard Labaron Philon Jr. is not a senior, Saturday’s win was likely his final at Coleman Coliseum, as the SEC player of the year candidate has surged up draft boards.
“I haven’t really thought about it,” Philon said of his upcoming draft decision. “[I am] just keeping my head on with Alabama basketball and really just trying to be in the moment.”
The win also clinched the 2-seed in the SEC tournament and a season sweep over the Tigers, who will likely need to make a run in Nashville to earn a spot in the NCAA tournament. Alabama was led in scoring by Philon and Aden Holloway, who combined for 42 points and five made 3-pointers.
Despite leading Division 1 in 3-point attempts per game, 58 of Alabama’s 96 points came in the paint on Saturday. The team snagged 42 rebounds, including 19 offensive rebounds, which resulted in 24 second-chance points.
Alabama began the game strongly in front of an energized Coleman crowd, blitzing Auburn with an 8-0 run powered by Philon, who was responsible for 6 of the opening 8 points. He continued his strong start with five more points, bringing his first-half tally to 11 on 5/8 shooting. The Crimson Tide expanded its advantage to 10 with under 12 minutes to play.
Alabama forced an astounding nine turnovers from Auburn in the opening period, including a wild pass from guard Tahaad Pettiford that Philon converted into points on the other end. The lead remained at double digits for the remainder of the half and ballooned to 22 points with 4:12 to go, as Alabama mustered a 12-0 run while Auburn entered a scoring drought of over five minutes.
“We got pushed around,” Auburn head coach Steven Pearl said postgame. “They punked us.”
The Tigers cut the lead down to 14 points, but surrendered a 5-0 run capped off by a Philon triple just before the horn, which furthered Alabama’s lead to 19 at the break.
Alabama picked up where it left off after halftime, opening its lead out to 28 points with 14:55 remaining after a slam from center Aiden Sherrell. Auburn showed resolve and cut the deficit to 16 with 9:40 to go as guard Kevin Overton caught fire with 22 second-half points.
Forward Amari Allen helped push the advantage to 23 points as he knocked down shots on four straight possessions. The Crimson Tide eased off the gas to end the game as Overton continued to give Alabama’s defense problems, but held on for a 12-point victory on Senior Night ahead of postseason play.
“We needed him playing like this,” Oats said of Allen.
Alabama will return to action in the SEC tournament quarterfinals on Friday night in Nashville, playing either Georgia or the winner of the first-round game between Texas and Ole Miss. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT, and the game can be streamed on SEC Network.
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