The battle between two heavyweights in college basketball needed an extra five minutes to determine its victor.
No. 9 Alabama improved to 5-1 on the year after defeating No. 6 Houston 85-80 in overtime. The win gave the Crimson Tide their second win of the season over a ranked opponent.
Here are a few takeaways from the game.
Too Many Turnovers
Alabama survived despite having a huge turnover problem against Houston. We knew it was going to be a problem right out of the gate, as Alabama committed four turnovers in its first five possessions. The Cougars forced 15 turnovers from the Crimson Tide, which led to 18 points off turnovers.
Sears Breaks Slump
After a scoreless game last week against Illinois, Mark Sears was determined not to make it two in a row. Sears led Alabama with 24 points shooting 50% from behind the arc. Of his four three-pointers, the most important one came with under a minute left in regulation to pull the Crimson Tide within one point and later force overtime.
Dioubate Doing the Dirty Work
Mouhamed Dioubate was the definition of blue-collar Tuesday night. It wasn’t glamorous, but it got the job done. Dioubate finished the night off with a double-double, scoring 10 points and pulling down 16 rebounds. He also added three blocks and one steal on the defensive end of the floor. If there was a loose ball with Dioubate in the game, you could count on him to be one of the players on the floor fighting for it.
Active on the Glass
Earlier this week, Nate Oats stressed that being active on the glass would be key to being successful against Houston. Alabama took the words to heart and dominated the glass. The Crimson Tide outrebounded the Cougars 48-39. Of the 48 rebounds, 20 were on the offensive glass leading to 15 second chance points.
Alabama will play its second game in Las Vegas for the Players Era Festival on Wednesday against Rutgers at 9 p.m. CT. The game will be televised on TBS.
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