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The 3-pointer: Takeaways from No. 10 Alabama's win over No. 20 UNC

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The 3-pointer: Takeaways from No. 10 Alabama's win over No. 20 UNC


The 3-pointer: Takeaways from No. 10 Alabama’s win over No. 20 UNC

Alabama basketball faced its most challenging road environment since its loss to Purdue inside Mackey Arena last month. The Crimson Tide went into a rowdy Dean E. Smith Center and this time didn’t let a rowdy road environment get to them in a 94-79 win over No. 20 North Carolina on Wednesday.

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The Tide’s blowout road win was fueled by establishing a favorable tempo to take the UNC crowd out of the game and establish a strong offensive presence in the paint for the Crimson Tide. No. 10 Alabama had contributors across the board, including a player making his debut and another returning to his hometown. After falling to Oregon in the championship game of the Players Era Festival on Saturday the Tide’s defense stepped up on the road to seal its first true road win of the season.

Here are three takeaways from Alabama’s win over North Carolina.

Free-flowing first half

Only nine free throws were attempted in the opening period between two of college basketball’s elite programs. That led to an open-ended first half that favored Alabama despite some struggles on the glass and defensively.

Alabama didn’t start the game as sloppy as it did against Oregon and Rutgers in the Players Era Festival, which helped it set the tempo and get a foothold in the game on the road. The Tide only had two turnovers before the under-8-minute timeout, building its lead to 13 points.

The Tide did struggle with a few giveaways in the middle position of the half, coughing the ball up five more times as North Carolina went on a 10-2 run. The Tar Heels kept themselves in the game by taking advantage of some lackluster Alabama transition defense. UNC had 14 fastbreak points in the opening period and grabbed eight offensive rebounds. The Tar Heels bested Alabama on the glass for the game 41-39.

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Still, the pace continued working to the Tide’s advantage. Alabama was able to get open looks in transition and went 8 of 15 on layup attempts, getting easy looks against a North Carolina defensive interior that was desperately missing former star center Armando Bacot. Alabama continued to get easy looks at the rim and 14 of 23 on layups along with six dunks. Clifford Omoruyi had 11 points and five rebounds. Grant Nelson didn’t have the same impact against UNC that he did when the two teams met in the Sweet 16 of last year’s NCAA Tournament, but still had a near-double-double performance with 10 points and nine boards.

The Tide’s easy access to the paint also allowed it to hit shooters on the perimeter after getting a paint touch. Aden Holloway was the main beneficiary of the quick tempo, leading all scores at halftime with 12 points on four made 3s. He finished with 15 after drilling another triple in the second half. Mark Sears was also back to his usual sharpshooting self, finishing 20 points and seven assists.

Defense travels

Aside from the Tar Heels’ 10-2 run in the first half, they were largely stifled by a strong defensive performance by Alabama on the road.

Alabama turned North Carolina over 13 times, including a pair of giveaways in the opening minutes of the second half that helped the Tide go on a quick 9-0 run that it never looked back from. The Tar Heels struggled in half-court sets when Alabama set up its defense. UNC shot 40.5% from the field and made just four 3-pointers.

After giving up 14 fastbreak points in the second half, Alabama played better transition defense surrendering just four while continuing to limit the Tar Heels scoring. Outside of star guard RJ Davis’ 18 points and freshman Ian Jackson’s 20, no player scored more than 12, including Elliot Cadeau, who was averaging 14.4 points per game but had just a solitary point Saturday.

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Though turnovers remained an issue on Alabama’s own offensive end, the Crimson Tide’s hounding of North Carolina defensively allowed it to cruise to a road win. Freshman guard Labaron Philon was an engine on defense, finishing with three steals along with a strong offensive stat line of 15 points, four assists and three steals. Sears also chipped in defensively with a pair of steals.

Houston Hoops & home cooking

With one veteran guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. out for the season, Alabama went to its bullpen, burning Pepperdine transfer Houston Mallette’s redshirt against North Carolina. Oats told reporters Tuesday that the prospect was being considered, but made it official when Mallette checked into the game

Mallette didn’t take long to prove why Alabama recruited him in the first place, and why Oats felt comfortable burning his redshirt. In four first-half minutes, Mallette drilled a 3 and grabbed two steals and a rebound.

Though Mallette didn’t play the same amount of minutes as Wrightsell would on a typical night — which makes sense for Mallette who is a month behind his teammates in terms of game time — the veteran guard had a strong first performance. He was active on both ends of the floor and played with great energy, finishing the night with six points, three rebounds and two steals. Mallette showed that he can be leaned on against the best competition and in harsh road environments, something that bodes well for the Tide being able to fill the void left by Wrightsell.

Along with Mallette and Holloway’s contributions off the bench, Jarin Stevenson also chipped in with six points on two made 3s. Stevenson seemed comfortable inside the Dean E. Smith Center, which is fitting given the sophomore grew up in Chapel Hill and his mother played for the Tar Heels. Stevenson didn’t wilt in a familiar environment and has found his shooting stroke. In the last three games, Stevenson is 7 of 11 from 3-point range.

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Final stats

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Alabama will return to Coleman Coliseum for the first time in over a month. The Tide has one more Power Five non-conference test when it faces No. 21 Creighton at 7:30 p.m. CT on December 14. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network.



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Alabama

How to watch Tennessee Volunteers: Live stream info, TV channel, game time | Feb. 28

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How to watch Tennessee Volunteers: Live stream info, TV channel, game time | Feb. 28


Labaron Philon’s No. 18 Alabama Crimson Tide (21-7, 11-4 SEC) hit the road to match up with Ja’Kobi Gillespie and the No. 22 Tennessee Volunteers (20-8, 10-5 SEC) at Thompson-Boling Arena on Saturday, Feb. 28. The game starts at 6 p.m. ET.

We have more details below, including how to watch this matchup on ESPN.

Prepare for this matchup with everything you need to know ahead of Saturday’s college hoops action.

Tennessee vs. Alabama: How to watch on TV or live stream

  • Game day: Saturday, February 28, 2026
  • Game time: 6 p.m. ET
  • Location: Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Arena: Thompson-Boling Arena
  • TV Channel: ESPN
  • Live stream: Fubo – Watch NOW (Regional restrictions may apply)

Check out: USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

Watch college basketball on Fubo!

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Tennessee vs. Alabama stats and trends

  • Tennessee ranks 78th in the nation with 80.5 points per game so far this year. At the other end, it ranks 62nd with 69.1 points allowed per contest.
  • The Volunteers are thriving when it comes to rebounding, as they rank third-best in college basketball in boards (39.9 per game) and second-best in rebounds allowed (25.9 per contest).
  • So far this season, Tennessee ranks 30th in college basketball in assists, averaging 17.1 per game.
  • With 11.8 turnovers per game, the Volunteers are 257th in the country. They force 10.7 turnovers per contest, which ranks 224th in college basketball.
  • This season, Tennessee is making 6.9 threes per game (271st-ranked in college basketball) and is shooting 34.7% (139th-ranked) from three-point land.
  • With a 30.2% three-point percentage allowed this season, the Volunteers are 22nd-best in the country. They rank 182nd in college basketball by giving up 7.8 three-pointers per contest.
  • Tennessee has taken 67.3% two-pointers and 32.7% three-pointers this year. Of the team’s buckets, 75.8% are two-pointers and 24.2% are three-pointers.

Tennessee vs. Alabama Odds and Spread

  • Spread Favorite: Volunteers (-4.5)
  • Moneyline: Tennessee (-222), Alabama (+179)
  • Total: 164.5 points

NCAA Basketball odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Saturday at 4:11 a.m. ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub.

Watch college basketball on Fubo!

Follow the latest college sports coverage at College Sports Wire.



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Alabama ‘Fully Aware’ of Losing Streak to Tennessee Ahead of Road Rematch

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Alabama ‘Fully Aware’ of Losing Streak to Tennessee Ahead of Road Rematch


TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Losing to a rival almost always hurts more than falling to another opponent during the regular season. Years of hatred, unforgettable moments and tradition boiled up into one game, and the delivery is nowhere to be found for one team.

No. 17 Alabama has won seven straight games and is eyeing an eighth on Saturday on the road against No. 22 Tennessee. This is the second time that Crimson Tide will face the Volunteers, as Alabama lost in Tuscaloosa in January.

The loss a month ago to head coach Rick Barnes and company brought UA’s losing streak against Tennessee to five games. It’s the first time that the Tide has dropped this many games to the Vols since 1968-72 — a streak that came two years before Alabama head coach Nate Oats was born (Oct. 13, 1974). It’s why Oats is not treating Tennessee as a faceless opponent or like any other team the Tide has faced.

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“Every year we’ve been here they’ve caused us issues,” Oats said during Friday’s press conference. “Our players, are fully aware that we’ve lost five in a row. They’re fully aware of what happened out there last year. I’ve taken ownership for my share of what happened up there last year.

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“We’re fully aware that they beat us at home. We haven’t lost very many home games in conference, period, really since we’ve been here, and they handed us one this year.”

After falling to Florida on Feb. 1, Alabama moved down to the ninth spot in the conference standings, and the college basketball world started to question whether or not the Crimson Tide would be a threat in the postseason.

But a switch flipped after that loss, and the current winning streak has Alabama tied for the No. 2 spot in the SEC standings. Everything seems to be trending in the Tide’s direction, as there are only three games remaining on the schedule.

Oats is in his sixth year as Alabama’s head coach. Following the retirement of former Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl during the offseason, Oats became the second-longest tenured coach for one team in the conference. The coach in front of him: Tennessee’s Rick Barnes, who has held his position since the 2015-16 season.

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Both Alabama and Tennessee have finished conference play in the top-4 of the standings since the 2022-23 season. The Crimson Tide was the regular-season and SEC Tournament champions in both the 2020-21 and 2022-23 seasons, while the Vols won the 2022 SEC Tournament and were the conference’s regular-season champions in 2023-24.

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“So our guys know, but at the same time, we’ve got a lot of respect for how they play and what they do. We’ve got to come in with a healthy amount of respect for them, but we got to try to win this game.

“There’s a lot riding on this game. What happens in Arkansas-Florida, you’re either going to be all alone in second place if we could get a win, or you’re going to be one game out first. If you take a loss, now you’re in danger of losing a top-4 seed. They’ll be tied with us if we take a loss.”

“So there’s a lot riding on the SEC standings in this game here. They know that. They know what our struggles against Tennessee have Been as well.”

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Selmont seeks incorporation to become independent Alabama city

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Selmont seeks incorporation to become independent Alabama city


SELMONT, Ala. (WSFA) – An unincorporated community in Dallas County is seeking to establish itself as an independent city, hoping to gain control over local government services and community priorities that have long been managed at the county level.

Selmont, located across the Edmund Pettus Bridge from Selma, is home to approximately 2,700 registered voters and carries a significant place in civil rights history.

The community was the site of a pivotal moment during the Bloody Sunday march in 1965, when roughly 600 civil rights marchers were tear-gassed by Alabama state troopers, including 13-year-old Mae Richmond.

“People ask us ‘Were we afraid?’ No. We were not afraid. We were not afraid, first of all, even as a 13-year-old child, we knew that we were doing what God was permitting us to do,” Richmond, a 60-plus year resident of Selmont, said of the historic event.

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As an unincorporated community, Selmont lacks its own municipal government. Residents must contact the Dallas County Commissioner for public works services. It’s a situation that community leaders say limits responsiveness to local needs.

Erice Williams, a community activist leading the incorporation effort, said the change would fundamentally alter how the community operates.

“It would give us decision power and allow us to get funding that we can allocate to our own community that we can make our own priorities be clear and resolved at the same time,” Williams said.

Williams also highlighted the strain on current county services. “Connel Towns (county commissioner) is the only person we have to call, and the resources and time that he would have to serve our community is very limited,” he said.

Operation Selmont, the group spearheading the incorporation effort, is currently gathering signatures on a petition to present to the local probate judge. The organization needs approximately 500 signatures to move forward with the incorporation process and has already collected 40 percent of its goal.

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The next meeting for Operation Selmont is scheduled for March 6 at 6 p.m.

For longtime residents like Richmond, incorporation represents an opportunity to ensure Selmont’s future and maintain its identity for generations to come.

“That we will be able to teach and train our children to give them the strength that our foreparents had that they will be able to stand up for justice and for equality,” Richmond said of her hopes for the community’s future.

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