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The Tuscaloosa News
Alabama basketball wakes up just in time to edge Arkansas in OT in SEC finale
- Story byThe Tuscaloosa News
- Alabama basketball wakes up just in time to edge Arkansas in OT in SEC finale
Coach Nate Oats called the matchup against Arkansas for Alabama basketball a character game.
"We're going to see what our guys are made of Saturday," Oats said Friday.
Grit. That's what. Even on a day that didn't go all that well for Alabama much of the time and on a day when the offense often didn't click, the Crimson Tide still found a way.
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Alabama, not holding the lead for most of the game, found a way to force overtime in the final minute. Then, the Crimson Tide defeated the Razorbacks in overtime 92-88 at Coleman Coliseum.
With the victory, Alabama locked up a double-bye in the SEC Tournament.
Here are observations and takeaways from the game between No. 17 Alabama (21-10, 13-5 SEC) and Arkansas (15-16, 6-12).
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Turnovers plague Alabama basketball early
The Crimson Tide looked like it had just rolled out of bed. Frankly it maybe needed to pass around cups of coffee. Alabama looked sluggish from the jump.
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The offense particularly looked discombobulated. It played out of sync and often felt disorganized. That led to missed baskets, bad shots and plenty of turnovers. By the first timeout of the game, Alabama already had three.
That put extra pressure on a defense that doesn't need any. And as a result, Arkansas jumped out to a quick lead. Eventually it grew the lead to 15, up 36-21 in the first half.
Then Alabama started cutting down on turnovers and started making baskets. Mark Sears hit a couple triples, and next thing Alabama knew, it drew within six.
Better offense also improved the defensive play. Alabama got more stops, and Arkansas struggled to make field goals. The Razorbacks ended the first half 1-for-8 with no field goals over the final 2:46. As a result, Arkansas led 42-36 at the break, a score Alabama should have been happy to have considering how poorly things went to start.
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Defensive battle in the second half
Neither offense could get going on a consistent basis after the break.
Both defenses made plays and both prevented double-digit runs that allowed a team to take over. Both teams averaged below one point per possession for much of the second half.
Alabama stayed right with Arkansas, but it couldn't get quite enough to push ahead. The Razorbacks couldn't either, though. And because the Crimson Tide mustered defensive stops, it set up Latrell Wrightsell Jr. to hit a game-tying triple with 21 seconds left to send the game to overtime.
Overtime
Sam Walters couldn't get much anything going in regulation. Then he started to cook in overtime.
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In the back-and-forth game, Walters not only knocked down a crucial triple, he also grabbed a rebound and scored another two shortly after. That got the Crimson Tide offense rolling.
Then Alabama kept chipping away, doing just enough to escape with the victory. Walters provided the finishing touches with a colossal dunk. Walters had seven points in overtime.
What's next?
Alabama will await its SEC Tournament seeding to be announced later Saturday.
The SEC Tournament will be held in Nashville from Wednesday through Sunday. Then, Selection Sunday will determine where the Crimson Tide plays the following week for the NCAA Tournament.
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Nick Kelly is the Alabama beat writer for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network, and he covers Alabama football and men's basketball. Reach him at nkelly@gannett.com or follow him @_NickKelly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter .
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Alabama basketball wakes up just in time in OT to beat Arkansas
