With two of the four No. 1 seeds already falling victim to the upset, Alabama was able to avoid the upset and defeat No. 8 seed Maryland 73-50, putting themselves in the Sweet 16. Alabama got down early to Maryland but rebounded quickly to a 28-23 halftime lead that only grew larger from there.
Alabama’s most dominant scorer of the season, Brandon Miller, had a rough start to March Madness, going scoreless in his first game of the NCAA Tournament, but finally got going in the Crimson Tide’s second round matchup against Maryland, leading all first half scorers with nine points. Miller, still battling a groin injury, looked more like himself Saturday night, finishing the game right on his season average with 19 points, as well as contributing seven rebounds.
Jahvon Quinerly, who spent nearly the entire season as a bench player, has been promoted to the starting lineup during the postseason and has taken advantage by providing the Crimson Tide with quality production. Quinerly led all scorers with 22 points, leading the way for Alabama hitting four of six from behind the arc.
Charles Bediako put together another great performance in the paint for Alabama, recording a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, his second double-double in three games. Bediako’s performance helped the Crimson Tide dominate inside, winning the rebound battle 44-32. On top of the big offensive performance from the Crimson Tide’s big man, Bediako also contained Maryland’s big man, Julian Reese, to just 14 points on the night.
Next up for Alabama will be the No. 5 seed San Diego State in the Sweet 16 matchup Friday, March 24 in Louisville.
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