Alabama
No. 14/13 Alabama Falls to No. 4/4 Tennessee, 81-74 – University of Alabama Athletics
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The No. 14/13 Alabama men’s basketball team fell to No. 4/4 Tennessee, 81-74, Saturday night inside Coleman Coliseum. The Crimson Tide held a seven-point lead midway through the second half, however, the Volunteers would use a 14-4 run to regain the lead and go on to the road win.
Alabama (20-9, 12-4 SEC) used a 29-12 run that spanned halftime that turned a 39-29 UA deficit into a 58-51 lead with 13:42 remaining. However, Tennessee’s Jonas Aidoo would score six points during the game-changing run that gave the Vols a 65-62 lead with just under six minutes remaining. The Tide cut the lead to one point, 70-69, at the 2:48 mark but would not be able to regain the lead down the stretch.
UA’s Mark Sears led all scoring with 22 points to go along with a team-best six assists. Aaron Estrada collected 16 points and eight boards, with Nick Pringle chipping in with 13 and a team-high nine rebounds.
Tennessee (23-6, 13-3 SEC) was led by Zakai Zeigler’s 18 points, while Josiah-Jordan James had a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds.
Head Coach Nate Oats Postgame Comments
“It was not the outcome that we were looking for. I have to thank the fans for the amazing atmosphere today. It was great to have College GameDay here to show where our program is going and what we are doing over here. We would’ve loved to have the regular season SEC Championship. But it is out of our hands now, we still get a shot at it, but we are fighting for a share of it now.
It was disappointing. They (Tennessee) are a tough veteran team. They cut it down to seven midway through the second half when (Dalton) Knecht was in foul trouble, and it carried down and other guys stepped up and made big shots. We did a fairly good job on Knecht, but the other guys stepped up and had some big nights.
We have to get our guys back together. Florida was an overtime game here and it is not going to be easy playing down there. But we will try to win two and go out on a good note this week.”
TEAM STATS
- The loss snapped the Crimson Tide’s 16-game home winning streak vs. SEC teams
- Alabama’s two lowest point totals in SEC play have come against the Volunteers (71 at Tennessee and 74 tonight)
- The Tide had scored at least 80 points in nine straight contests entering tonight
- Alabama’s 41 first-half points is the most points scored in the first half against Tennessee in the Nate Oats Era
- The statistics were fairly even, however, the Tide had 12 turnovers compared to six for the Vols which resulted in Tennessee owning a 17-9 lead in points off turnovers
- Alabama shot just 38 percent (23-60) from the floor, 24 percent (9-37) from range and 76 percent (19-25) from the charity stripe
- In comparison, Tennessee shot 36 percent (24-66) from the field, 30 percent (12-40) from deep and 72 percent (21-29) from the line
FIRST HALF
- Tennessee led for a majority of the opening stanza, taking its biggest lead of the contest, 23-12, at the 10:53 mark
- The Crimson Tide scored 12 straight points over the final 2:50 of the half, turning a 10-point deficit into a two-point lead as the teams headed into the break (41-39)
- Both Mark Sears (12 pts) and Aaron Estrada (11 pts) led Alabama at the Half with double figures
- UA held Tennessee’s Knecht to just seven points in the first half
SECOND HALF
- The Tide would continue to grow the lead to its largest of the game at seven, 58-51, with just over 13 minutes remaining
- Alabama would go on to miss 16 of the next 17 shots from the field as Tennessee slowly extended its lead
- After UA cut the lead to one, 70-69, UT would score nine of the game’s next 12 points to seal the victory and the series sweep
UP NEXT
- Alabama heads to Gainesville, Fla., next Tuesday to take on the Florida Gators inside the Exactech Arena at Stephen C. O’Connell Center
- The Tide’s final regular season road game is slated for a 6 p.m. CT tipoff and will air live on ESPN
- In its first matchup of the season, the Crimson Tide outlasted the Gators 98-93 in an overtime thriller inside Coleman Coliseum
For all the latest information on the team, follow AlabamaMBB on X, Instagram and Facebook. General athletic news can be found @UA_Athletics on X and Instagram and Alabama Athletics on Facebook.
Tennessee softball coach Karen Weekly ran up to Sage Mardjetko and sneaked in a kiss on her cheek as the junior pitcher’s postgame interview on ESPN2 began.
Mardjetko only got through the beginning of her first answer before her teammates ran up with fake money and gloves, stuffing the fake bills in her belt with the glove on top of her head.
At one point, there were six teammates dressing up Mardjetko after her fantastic performance against No. 3 Alabama, including fellow pitcher Karlyn Pickens and outfielder Gabby Leach, who hit the game-winning home run. Other players joined in to throw bills in the air around Mardjetko.
The moment on April 26 belonged to Mardjetko, who delivered the Crimson Tide their first shutout loss of the season as No. 8 Tennessee won 2-0 at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.
By the time Mardjetko’s interview was over, there were three gloves sitting precariously on her head, bills stuffed in her collar, too, and bats leaning against her legs, with one stuck in the crook of her elbow.
“Usually this is our home run celebration,” Mardjetko said on ESPN2. “My teammates are just super fired-up, they know how big this game is and how big this series is.”
The Lady Vols’ famous mommy hat also got stacked on top of the gloves before falling off. Leach said they love getting the chance to have some fun with postgame interviews.
“That was just such a big moment for her and just being able to celebrate and make her look goofy, giving her the money and the mommy hat, she never gets to wear that,” Leach said. “So that was the perfect moment for her to have that hat on.”
Tennessee (39-8, 13-7 SEC) relied on solo home runs from Leach and Emma Clarke to back up Mardjetko’s one-hitter and force a rubber match on April 27 (7 p.m. ET, SEC Network).
“Sage is a competitor. She’s going to give you everything she has,” Weekly said. “She’s going to compete freely, she’s going to stay one pitch at a time, and she’s got the stuff to beat anybody. So, I had complete trust in Sage all day long, and the most important number today is a zero on the scoreboard.”
Mardjetko (11-1) had a no-hitter through 6⅓ innings. She struck out six, walked three, hit a batter and allowed one hit in her fifth shutout of the season. After Tennessee got run-ruled in the series opener, Mardjetko said her mentality was to go out and compete and do whatever it took to give them a chance.
Weekly didn’t witness most of the postgame interview chaos; she only saw players running toward Mardjetko with the money, gloves and bats. But she wants them to celebrate, and not just the turnaround from a 12-0 loss in Game 1. Weekly wants them to celebrate everything.
“I think that’s one of the things that we got away from, is focusing on celebrating all the little wins in a game,” she said. “I think that’s what you saw, is the ultimate celebration there. And just so happy for Sage. But also Sage really inspired her team today with the way she competed out there.”
Cora Hall is the University of Tennessee women’s athletics reporter for Knox News. Email: cora.hall@knoxnews.com; X: @corahalll; Bluesky: @corahall.bsky.social. Support strong local journalism and unlock premium perks:knoxnews.com/subscribe
Governor Kay Ivey:
“God bless our President, First Lady and the men and women in law enforcement. Let us pray for our leaders each and every day.”
Representative Barry Moore:
“They’ve told countless lies about him.
They’ve tried to bankrupt him.
They’ve come after his family.
They’ve tried to put him in prison.
They’ve tried to assasinate him – three times.
And yet, President Trump continues to fight for the American people.
We need to get on our knees and pray for him and our country.”
Senator Tommy Tuberville:
“A lunatic just tried to take out President Trump AGAIN.
The demonization of the President and Republicans needs to end.
Praying for our President and our country.”
Congressman Gary Palmer:
“I’m very thankful for the swift action of the Secret Service and that the President and no one at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was injured.
Considering this is the third attempt on the President’s life, last year’s assassination of Charlie Kirk, and the 2017 Congressional baseball shooting, it’s clear that our nation is in a cultural and political crisis.
We should all be praying for the healing of our nation and for the return of civil discourse.”
Senator Katie Britt:
“Wesley and I are praying for the safety of the President, the First Lady, and all those attending the White House Correspondents dinner. Grateful for the brave men and women in uniform working to keep everyone safe.”
Well that’s a wrap! Despite all of the hand-wringing, Alabama finished with 10 total players drafted, behind only Ohio State (11) for the most in college football. On top of that, the Tide was the only SEC school with multiple first round draft picks. If you missed any of them, here is the recap:
Round 1, pick 12 – OT Kadyn Proctor – Miami Dolphins
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Round 1, pick 13 – QB Ty Simpson – L.A. Rams
Round 2, pick 47 – WR Germie Bernard – Pittsburgh Steelers
Round 4, pick 137 – DL LT Overton – Dallas Cowboys
Round 5, pick 146 – C Parker Brailsford – Cleveland Browns
Round 5, pick 149 – LB Justin Jefferson – Cleveland Browns
Round 5, pick 173 – TE Josh Cuevas – Baltimore Ravens
Round 6, pick 201 – CB Domani Jackson – Green Bay Packers
Round 7, pick 232 – DT Tim Keenan – L.A. Rams
Round 7, pick 245 – RB Jam Miller – New England Patriots
All in all, it was a big day three for Alabama after a slow day two.
With the draft over, the undrafted free agent frenzy begins (seriously, if you think the draft is crazy, some the stories I’ve heard from NFL GMs about what happens right after it trying to convince all of the UDFAs to go places are pure chaos). Thus far, here’s the Alabama players who went out for the draft and didn’t get drafted, but have signed on with NFL squads:
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OL Jaeden Roberts – Philadelphia Eagles
LB Deontae Lawson – Philadelphia Eagles
LB Nikhai Hill-Green – L.A. Rams
OL Kam Dewberry – Atlanta Falcons
DB DaShawn Jones – New Orleans Saints
So far, OL Geno VanDeMark, punter Blake Doud, running back Dre Washington, and tight end Brody Dalton are still looking for teams. I think VanDeMark will likely find his way onto a team, but the other three probably will not.
It was also a decent day for some former Tide players. who transferred elsewhere in their careers:
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S – Caleb Downs (Ohio State) – 1st round, pick 11 – Dallas Cowboys
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WR- Kendrick Law (Kentucky) – 5th round, pick 168 – Detroit Lions
And that’s pretty much it for this year! Hopefully we will see many of these names popping up across the NFL for years to come. Roll Tide to all!
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