Alabama men’s basketball won somewhat comfortably against South Carolina.

Plenty went right in the 88-68 victory over the Gamecocks on Wednesday in Columbia, South Carolina. Alabama shot 55%, outrebounded the Gamecocks, saw the bench outscore South Carolina 39-4 while scoring more points in the paint, fast break points and 3-pointers.

But there was something with which Crimson Tide coach Nate Oats was displeased.

Free throws.

“Would have been better if we made some free throws tonight,” Oats said. “That was a disaster for us. But everything else … It was good enough to win tonight.”

Alabama finished 10-for-20 (50%) from the charity stripe, which was the lowest total of the season so far. The previous low was 51.4% against Kent State late in December.

Not a mark Oats wants, but it didn’t make a difference in the game. All the other ways Alabama scored, particularly in the first half, made free throws a non-factor. As a result, No. 5 Alabama (13-2, 2-0 SEC) beat South Carolina (10-5, 0-2).

“First road game for us in the SEC,” Oats said. “I thought our guys answered the bell pretty well.”

The free throws might have been a disaster, but there was plenty else that Oats liked. That includes the defense, which limited South Carolina to .971 points per possession.

“I thought our defense was significantly better for the whole 40,” Oats said.

Oats specifically praised the efforts of Mo Dioubate. He finished plus-19 while matched up mainly against Collin Murray-Boyles, South Carolina’s leading scorer and a likely first-round NBA Draft pick.

“I thought Dioubate did a great job guarding him,” Oats said. “He really impacts the game in a big way,” Oats said.

Boyles-Murray tallied six points, four of which came from free throws, while finishing 1-for-6 from the field. He also had two turnovers.

“We got a lot of good efforts from a lot of people,” Oats said. “Good road win for us.”

Next up, Alabama will face No. 10 Texas A&M on the road on Saturday (7 p.m., ESPN)

Nick Kelly is an Alabama beat writer for AL.com and the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X and Instagram.

No. 5 Alabama men’s basketball won its first SEC road test over South Carolina 88-68 on Wednesday evening in relatively easy fashion.

One big reason for this being a must-see matchup was due to the reunion with former Alabama and current South Carolina forward Nick Pringle, who was a part of the Crimson Tide’s Final Four run last season. Alabama head coach Nate Oats said during Tuesday’s press conference that like most players facing their former team, Pringle will likely tell the Gamecocks about the Tide’s play style to try and gain an advantage well ahead of tipoff.

However, this was not the case early as Alabama cruised to a commanding 45-28 halftime lead. Crimson Tide Preseason All-American guard Mark Sears quickly lived up to that status as he started the game 6-of-7, with 16 points including 4-of-4 on attempts from behind the arc.

Sears’ effort certainly rubbed off on the rest of the team in the first half as Alabama’s 60 percent from the field (18-of-30), including a 6-of-11 clip from downtown. In addition to 13 assists, the Tide also grabbed six offensive rebounds, which led to seven second-chance points, scored 22 points in the paint and recorded five steals and three blocks.

Crimson Tide center Clifford Omoruyi and conference-leading three-time SEC Freshman of the Week Labaron Philon also had a very solid first half on both ends of the floor to help contribute to the massive lead.

The start to the second half was a bit slower for Alabama, as after a poor play, Oats took out the entire starting five. One of the replacements was guard Aden Holloway who scored seven straight points for Alabama to regain the Tide’s momentum and build a more comfortable 56-39 lead with 15 minutes to go in the second half.

The importance of depth played a role in this one as Holloway led Alabama to 36 bench points while the Gamecocks had four. Furthermore, South Carolina’s secondary group didn’t score a bench point until there were less than two minutes remaining in regulation.

From there on, both teams traded buckets, but Alabama’s tremendous start kept the Tide composed and Gamecocks unable to make a massive comeback. Even when Alabama had scoring droughts, its defense prevailed in making sure South Carolina didn’t chip away. Forward Grant Nelson played a key role here as Gamecocks forward Collin Murray-Boyles, SC’s leading scorer coming into the game, finished 1-of-6 from the field.

In short, Alabama’s first half was significantly better than the second, but the Crimson Tide’s defense in the latter portion of the night made the offensive performance not matter as much. Of course, consistency in both halves will be important for the rest of the gauntlet of an SEC slate.

Alabama improves to 13-2 (2-0 SEC) while South Carolina slides down to 10-5 (0-2 SEC).