Behind a career-high 22 points from Noah Clowney, No. 11 Alabama rallied for a 78-65 win over South Dakota State in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Saturday night.
The Jackrabbits took a 51-50 lead with 11:32 left in the game behind a 16-5 run, which was capped by an Alex Arians 3-pointer.
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Alabama made nine 3-pointers in the first half but went ice cold in the second until Brandon Miller’s trey gave the Crimson Tide a 59-55 lead with 8:09 to play.
A slam dunk by Nimari Burnett extended Alabama’s lead to 63-58 and ignited the crowd with six minutes to play. A Clowney 3-pointer pushed the Crimson Tide’s lead to 67-58 with just under 4 1/2 minutes remaining.
Alabama then outscored South Dakota State 11-7 down the stretch to secure the win.
Clowney scored Alabama’s first 12 points by knocking down four 3-pointers. He finished 5 of 12 from behind the arc and added nine rebounds and four assists.
Mark Sears (19 points, three assists) and Miller (16 points, nine rebounds) also played well for Alabama (7-1). Burnett (nine points, two assists) and Charles Bediako (four points, six rebounds) were also key contributors for the Crimson Tide.
South Dakota State’s Charlie Easley finished with 17 points after scoring a team-high 11 in the opening half.
Arians (17 points, six rebounds), William Kyle III (eight points, six rebounds, five assists) and Zeke Mayo (12 points, seven rebounds) were also standouts for the Jackrabbits (3-6).
Alabama led 12-6 by the 16-minute mark of the first behind Clowney’s 3-point barrage. The Crimson Tide extended their lead to 21-8 with 12:42 left before the break when Rylan Griffen nailed a trey.
Three 3-pointers in a row by Sears pushed Alabama’s lead to 37-17 with less than seven minutes to go until halftime. But the Jackrabbits went on a 15-2 run and trimmed the Tide’s lead to 39-32 with 2:32 left.
Alabama took a 42-35 advantage into intermission.
–Field Level Media
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