Alabama
Live Updates for No. 17 Alabama Basketball’s Home Game Against Mississippi State
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — No. 17 Alabama basketball welcomes Mississippi State into Coleman Coliseum for the second to last home game of the year. The Crimson Tide enter on a six-game winning streak and beat the Bulldogs by 15 points in Starkville last month, but winning won’t be easy as Alabama will be without star guard Labaron Philon for the midweek contest after getting banged up last week against Arkansas.
Live Updates (Refresh Your Browser for Latest Updates):
Final Score
Second Half:
2:26 – Houston Mallette makes a 3-point shot to bring the Crimson Tide up to 22 makes from deep, tying a season high.
4:00 – Jalil Bethea makes a 3-pointer of his own and now Noah Williamson is the only Alabama player who hasn’t made one from deep against Mississippi State.
TIMEOUT 4:22 – Jalil Bethea calls timeout to save possession. The Crimson Tide has committed 13 turnovers without Labaron Philon in the lineup tonight.
4:45 – Nate Oats gets a technical foul after Taylor Bol Bowen’s followup dunk. Oats must have said something rude to the officials, but Josh Hubbard missed both free throws to the delight of the crowd.
5:42 – Alabama’s still a bit cold as they’ve only scored two points in the last four minutes of action, but the early 3-point shooting has the team in a comfortable spot, leading Mississippi State 84-62.
8:07 – Alabama’s gotten a little bit sloppy, allowing Mississippi State to cut the lead down to a 26 point margin. The game is still well in hand, but the Bulldogs have shaved 10 points off the lead as the Crimson Tide is 1-of-its-last-8.
TIMEOUT 9:47 – Alabama has finally cooled off and has missed their last six field goal attempts, resulting in a 2:13 scoring drought. The Crimson Tide still has a huge lead, up 82-53 with under 10 to play.
11:01 – Noah Williamson picks up his first foul as he’s played more minutes due to the Crimson Tide hammering the Bulldogs. Alabama leads 82-50 after the free throws.
TIMEOUT 12:00 – Time for the Full Moon Shoot For the Moon Challenge. Crew makes the layup easily, the free throw on two attempts, the 3-pointer on his third attempt, but comes up short on the halfcourt shot.
12:31 – Despite the large advantage for Alabama, Crimson Tide assistant Brian Adams is still screaming to get a defensive stop, imploring the team to show a killer instinct.
12:55 – Josh Hubbard finds his way to the free throw line for a three-point play the hard way. Alabama’s done a nice job limiting Hubbard to just 2-of-10 shooting and six points scored.
14:56 – Nate Oats has been on his team to start fast in the second half. The Crimson Tide opened the second frame on a 15-3 run to slam the door on the Bulldogs.
TIMEOUT 15:26 – It’s been more of the same in the second half as Alabama starts the half 4-of-5 from deep, taking the team to 20-of-32 on the game. The season high of 22 is certainly going to be reset tonight against the Bulldogs. Alabama leads 75-40.
15:44 – It is a 3-point downpour for Alabama as Aiden Sherrell makes his second from deep. He made two 3-point shots against Mississippi State in their last matchup, too.
17:36 – Amari Allen makes his sixth 3-point bucket of the game. Alabama is now 18-of-30 from deep. The season high is 22 makes and it came against Yale. The Crimson Tide leads 69-37.
18:41 – Latrell Wrightsell makes Alabama’s first 3-point shot of the second half. Alabama needs six more makes from deep to set a new season high.
19:00 – Quincy Ballard missed his second free throw, but Aiden Sherrell committed a lane violation and Ballard made his redo, robbing the students of “Goey Fries”.
Halftime:
First Half:
1:56 – The only Alabama players who haven’t made a 3-point shot and have checked into the game tonight are Jalil Bethea and Noah Williamson.
TIMEOUT 3:30 – Alabama leads Mississippi State 51-25 and the game’s been a total contrast in shot-making efficiency as the Crimson Tide is 16-of-26 from the floor (62%) and the Bulldogs are 9-of-30 (30%).
TIMEOUT 5:24 – Houston Mallette answers a Ja’Borri McGee 3-point shot with one of his own and the Crimson Tide is now 12-of-19 from deep and shooting 63% from the floor as Alabama leads 49-25. It’s been a shooting clinic by the home team so far.
6:35 – Mississippi State is called for a touch foul on Jalil Bethea and it already feels like the Crimson Tide has delivered a knockout blow as the team is up 42-22.
7:41 – It’s the Amari Allen show. The freshman just made his fifth 3-point shot and he hasn’t missed a single attempt. Allen leads all scorers with 16 points.
TIMEOUT 7:53 – The Crimson Tide is unstoppable, making 10-of-16 from deep with Amari Allen leading the way with four by himself. Alabama is leading 39-20 and staying busy on the glass outrebounding the Bulldogs 15-7.
8:55 – Amari Allen is on fire. He’s 4-of-4 from beyond the arc as Alabama has a 37-17 lead. Mississippi State is so discombobulated on defense.
10:04 – It’s contagious. Aden Holloway makes Alabama’s ninth deep shot of the half.
10:28 – More ridiculous 3-point shooting from Alabama as Amari Allen made a 3-point shot and got fouled in the process. He’s up to 10 points with the free throw and Alabama leads 29-15.
TIMEOUT 11:13 – Alabama leads 24-12 and continues to torch the Bulldogs from deep, converting 7-of-13 from beyond the arc. The Crimson Tide is dominating ont he glass with four offensive rebounds leading to five second-chance points.
11:32 – Jalil Bethea makes Alabama’s first two-point field goal with a layup off an offensive rebound. The Crimson Tide is up 24-12 and has been scorching from deep.
14:00 – Taylor Bol Bowen and Houston Mallette keep the long range shooting going for Alabama as they make the programs sixth and seventh 3-point shot of the half.
14:51 – Taylor Bol Bowen, Jalil Bethea and Houston Mallette all check into the game for their first action for Alabama.
TIMEOUT 14:51 – The first media timeout finds the Crimson Tide ahead 15-5 on five made 3-point shots. Amari Allen has two, Aden Holloway, London Jemison and Aden Sherrell all have one. The Crimson Tide is outrebounding Mississippi State 8-5 and all five made 3’s have come off assists, indicating strong ball movement early.
16:23 – Aden Holloway makes a 3-point basket on a possession that Alabama got four different three point shots. Latrell Wrightsell missed, Holloway missed, Amari Allen missed and then Holloway made his. Multiple offensive rebounds for the Crimson Tide.
17:25 – Amari Allen has started off 2-of-2 from 3-point range to start the game. The Crimson Tide is up 9-2 early with three made 3-point shots.
19:45 – London Jemison makes Alabama’s first 3-point attempt of the game to give the Crimson Tide a 3-0 lead right off the bat.
Pregame:
- Alabama basketball is wearing its white alternate uniforms tonight. The tops look identical to the Final Four uniforms, but the shorts have an alternate logo.
- There are still two minutes on the clock and the national anthem to perform, but the crowd is a bit sparse in Coleman Coliseum. Nate Oats called for a good home crowd, but the student section still has plenty of empty seating despite the team riding a six-game winning streak.
- Nate Oats indicated Jalil Bethea may be in line for more action tonight against Mississippi State. The Miami transfer is active in warmups, while Labaron Philon is in sweats as he’s out tonight.
- Officials tonight are Jeb Hartness, Keith Kimble and Kip Kissinger.
Starting Lineups:
Alabama:
G Aden Holloway
G Latrell Wrightsell Jr.
F Amari Allen
F London Jemison
F Aiden Sherrell
Mississippi State:
G Shawn Jones Jr.
G Jayden Epps
G Josh Hubbard
F Achor Achor
C Quincy Ballard
Alabama Final Availability Report (Feb. 25):
- Collins Onyejiaka — Out
- Davion Hannah — Out
- Keitenn Bristow — Out
- Labaron Philon — Out
Mississippi State Final Availability Report (Feb. 25):
- Jayden Epps — Game Time Decision
How to Watch: No. 17 Alabama vs. Mississippi State
Who: Mississippi State (13-14, 5-9 SEC) at No. 17 Alabama (20-7, 10-4 SEC)
What: Alabama’s 15th game of SEC Play (eighth at home)
When: Wednesday, Feb. 25, 8 p.m. CT
Where: Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, Ala.
TV: ESPNU
Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network (Play-By-Play: Chris Stewart, Color: Bryan Passink). The pregame show will begin one hour prior to tipoff.
SiriusXM: Channel 81 (Alabama), Channel 386 (Mississippi State)
Series: Alabama leads 138-77, with the first matchup occurring on Feb. 6, 1913. The Crimson Tide is 86-15 at home against the Bulldogs.
Last Meeting: Then-No. 18 Alabama dominated Mississippi State 97-82 on the road on Jan. 13, but that final score doesn’t frame the entire story. The Crimson Tide, which only had eight scholarship players available due to various injuries, found itself trailing 29-15 with less than eight minutes to go in the first half. However, Alabama went on a 21-5 run to close out the half and came out strong out of the break as well. The Tide tallied 82 points in the final 28 minutes, as Labaron Philon and Aiden Sherrell logged career-highs in points with 32 and 22, respectively. Additionally, freshman Amari Allen recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 13 points and 13 rebounds.
Last time out, Alabama: The then-No. 25 Crimson Tide took down LSU 90-83 on the road on Feb. 21, Feb. 18 It was Alabama’s sixth consecutive win, and gave head coach Nate Oats his fourth straight season with at least 20 victories. Aden Holloway led the way with 17 points and put up what head coach Nate Oats called the guard’s best game “on the defensive end all year.” Amari Allen and London Jemison were also big down the stretch as they finished the game with 16 and 12 points, respectively. Aiden Sherrell had 12 points and 10 rebounds before fouling out.
Last time out, Mississippi State: The Bulldogs fell to South Carolina 97-89 on the road on Feb. 21. The Gamecocks held a 7-point lead at halftime, and they were able to neutralize Mississippi State’s comeback effort by going bucket-for-bucket. MSU guard Josh Hubbard, who enters the Alabama game second in the SEC in scoring, finished with 13 points on 4 of 20 from the field. Four other Bulldogs finished in double figures, including a 15-point, 10-rebound performance by Quincy Ballard, but it wasn’t enough.
Alabama Stat Leaders
- Points: Labaron Philon Jr. (21.3 on 50.3 FG%) *THIRD IN SEC*
- Rebounds: Amari Allen (7.6, including 1.7 offensive) *FIFTH IN SEC*
- Assists: Labaron Philon Jr. (5.0 with 2.7 turnovers) *FOURTH IN SEC*
Mississippi State Stat Leaders
- Points: Josh Hubbard (22.0 on 42.1 FG%) *SECOND IN SEC*
- Rebounds: Achor Achor (6.6, including 2.3 offensive) *14th IN SEC*
- Assists: Josh Hubbard (3.6 with 2.3 turnovers) *12th IN SEC*
U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Haleyville) says Alabama is on the cusp of delivering a sixth Republican congressional seat, and with it, potentially the U.S. House majority itself.
“Getting one seat in November, this November, we don’t have to wait two years, could decide the majority for the Republicans,” Aderholt said today on “The Rightside” in partnership with Yellowhammer News, hosted by Allison Sinclair and Amie Beth Shaver.
“So that’s very appealing,” he added.
Aderholt predicted a return to the congressional map drawn and approved by the Alabama Legislature in 2023, before the federal courts stepped in and forced a redraw.
If the U.S. Supreme Court lifts the injunction barring Alabama from altering its congressional map before 2030, the state would go back to the one approved by the Legislature and signed into law by the governor that year.
The 2023 map essentially creates six Republican districts and one Democratic district.
The Alabama Legislature passed both chambers’ redistricting bills Wednesday as the special session continues in Montgomery.
Aderholt referenced the “Livingston map,” the Legislature’s 2023-approved plan in namesake of State Sen. Steve Livingston (R-Scottsboro), arguing it was consistent with the Supreme Court’s recent direction that race cannot be the predominant factor in drawing district lines.
“It would not put a second minority district, per se, but it would give opportunities for everybody in the state of Alabama to have equal opportunity to be elected to Congress, whether they’re black or whether white,” Aderholt said.
Some have called for state lawmakers to a map that would make all seven districts Republican-leaning, but Aderholt explained the issues with going down that route.
“There are some proposals out there to try to do a what is called a true 7-0 map where there’s no chance that a Democrat could be elected in any of the congressional districts…and there is some down there that are afraid that if you do away with that one, in addition to doing away with the new district that was drawn where Shomari Figures is that, that would be an overreach, and the court would put everything on hold, and we couldn’t do we couldn’t even get the additional seat until the court order, a different court order came through, and who knows when that would be.”
Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on X @Yaffee
As the Alabama Legislature convened Monday for another special session, it marks the tenth time in the past decade that a governor has called lawmakers back to Montgomery outside the regular calendar.
Here’s a look at what brought them back each time.
2015: General Fund budget crisis
Governor Robert Bentley called lawmakers back after vetoing a cut-heavy General Fund budget that would have slashed roughly $200 million from state agencies. The rainy day borrowing from the Alabama Trust Fund that had propped up state government since 2012 had finally run dry. Bentley proposed a $310 million tax increase package. Legislative leaders recessed for three weeks and then resurrected the same budget he had already vetoed. Nothing passed.
2015: Budget, take two
With the fiscal year starting October 1 and still no budget, Bentley called a second session. Lawmakers hammered out a patchwork compromise that averted a government shutdown but fell well short of the structural revenue fix Bentley had pushed for.
2016 — Medicaid funding and the lottery
Medicaid faced an $85 million shortfall. Bentley called lawmakers back and pushed a lottery bill that would have sent $100 million annually to Medicaid. The Senate passed it 21-12, but the House couldn’t get there. The fallback was a $640 million bond issue backed by Alabama’s BP Deepwater Horizon settlement, which kept Medicaid funded for two more fiscal years. The lottery died again.
2019 — Rebuild Alabama gas tax
Ivey called a special session the day after her State of the State address to pass a 10-cent gas tax increase, the state’s first in 27 years. The three-bill package passed quickly.
2021 — First Special Session: Prison construction
Facing a federal DOJ lawsuit over unconstitutional prison conditions, Ivey called lawmakers back to authorize a $1.3 billion prison construction plan funded by state bonds, General Fund dollars, and $400 million in federal COVID relief money.
2021 — Second Special Session: Post-census redistricting
Delayed census data pushed redistricting into a special session. Lawmakers drew new congressional, state legislative, and school board maps in five days. The congressional map was immediately challenged as a Voting Rights Act violation, launching the Allen v. Milligan litigation that continues today.
2022 — ARPA funds, first tranche
Ivey called lawmakers back to appropriate $772 million in remaining federal relief funds. The session produced over $276 million for broadband expansion, plus major investments in water and sewer infrastructure.
2023 — First Special Session: ARPA funds, second tranche
Another $1.06 billion in federal funds needed appropriation. Ivey used the same tactic as 2019: State of the State one day, special session the next. The money went to healthcare, broadband, infrastructure, and repaying the final $60 million owed to the Alabama Trust Fund from the Bentley-era borrowing.
2023 — Second Special Session: Court-ordered redistricting
After the Supreme Court ruled in Allen v. Milligan that Alabama’s map likely violated the Voting Rights Act, the Legislature drew new maps that a federal court rejected as non-compliant. A court-appointed special master drew the maps used in the 2024 elections instead.
2026 — Redistricting, again
Monday’s session follows the Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais. The Legislature will prepare contingency maps and special primary election procedures in case the court lifts the injunction blocking Alabama from redrawing its districts before 2030.
The pattern
Three distinct forces have driven Alabama’s special sessions over the past decade. The Bentley-era sessions were born from a structural budget collapse the Legislature couldn’t or wouldn’t fix through new revenue.
The Ivey-era spending sessions used tightly controlled special sessions to move high-dollar legislation quickly with minimal floor debate.
And the redistricting sessions have been driven by court deadlines and Supreme Court decisions, with the Legislature’s maps rejected or overridden in two or three attempts.
Sawyer Knowles is a capitol reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at [email protected].
Alabama
Marques surges past Carl in Alabama congressional race as former congressman’s comeback bid stalls — 45% still undecided
State Rep. Rhett Marques (R-Enterprise) opened a six-point lead over former U.S. Rep. Jerry Carl (R-Mobile) in the Alabama congressional race for the First District, and Carl’s comeback bid shows no signs of catching up.
The PI Polling survey, conducted May 2 through May 4 for Alabama Daily News, puts Marques at 27% and Carl at 21% among likely Republican primary voters. Joshua McKee trailed at 4%.
The trend line tells the sharper story. Marques climbed steadily across three consecutive PI Polling surveys, rising from 19% in early April to 22% later that month to 27% now. Carl posted 23%, 20%, and 21% across the same stretch. Marques is building. Carl is treading water.
Forty-five percent of likely Republican primary voters remain undecided, meaning the Alabama congressional race will be decided by which campaign breaks through in the final two weeks.
Carl pulls 46% in Mobile County, home turf for the former county commissioner and congressman.
That advantage vanishes everywhere else. Marques leads in Baldwin County, holds a 32-to-6 edge in the Dothan media market, and dominates the district’s rural and exurban counties at 38% to Carl’s 5%.
The Alabama congressional race outside Mobile belongs to Marques.
Marques also leads Carl across every ideological group the survey tracked: very conservative voters at 29% to 21%, somewhat conservative voters at 26% to 21%, and moderates at 26% to 19%.
His favorability climbed from 24% in early April to 32% now, with just 9% unfavorable. Fifty-nine percent of voters still have no opinion of him, leaving significant room to grow as the primary closes.
Alabama requires a majority to win a party primary outright. If no candidate clears 50% on May 19, the top two finishers will advance to a runoff on June 16. With nearly half the electorate still uncommitted, a runoff remains a very real possibility.
The survey was conducted May 2 through May 4, 2026 by PI Polling for Alabama Daily News. It included 531 likely Republican primary election voters and was weighted to match likely 2026 turnout demographics. The margin of error is ±4.3% at a 95% level of confidence.
Sawyer Knowles is a capitol reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at [email protected].
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