TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — A game removed from blowing a 21-point lead on the road to Florida, Alabama found the consistency that was seemingly absent during its SEC opener over the weekend. Hosting Mississippi State in its SEC home opener Wednesday night, the Crimson Tide jumped out to an early lead before burying the Bulldogs in the second half for a 90-69 victory.

Alabama guards Kira Lewis Jr. and John Petty Jr. combined for 35 points as Alabama (8-6, 1-1 in the SEC) shot 49 percent, including 42 percent from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, Mississippi State (9-5, 0-2) failed to maintain a rhythm, often going cold while ending the night shooting 38 percent from the floor and making just 4 of 15 (27 percent) of its 3-point shots.

The victory marks Nate Oats first conference win with the Crimson Tide.

"Shoot, I didn't even think about that," Oats said of his personal achievement. "I guess that's nice. It's a lot better than being 0-2, I can assure you that. I mean this was huge. We're telling our guys we just got to take it one at a time and go 1-0, one possession at a time."

After watching his first two 3-point attempts rattle off the rim, Petty finished the night with 18 points while shooting 4 of 7 from beyond the arc. The Huntsville, Ala., native is now just one 3 away from becoming the fifth Crimson Tide player to have 200 or more threes in his career.

Lewis rebounded from a disappointing 7 of 25 performance against Florida, recording 17 points and a team-high eight rebounds and four assists while shooting 5 of 10 from the floor. In total, Alabama had five players in double-figures as Mississippi native Galin Smith and James "Beetle" Bolden both scored 11 points while Jaden Shackelford had 10.

Boasting a roster with eight players listed at 6-foot-8 or taller, Mississippi State entered Coleman Coliseum looking to bully an undersized Alabama basketball. The visiting Bulldogs came into the game ranked second in the SEC and No. 16 nationally averaging 13.46 offensive rebounds, a stat Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats harped on leading into the matchup.

While the Bulldogs came away with 15 offensive boards on the night, Alabama held its own under the basket, winning the rebounding battle 42-38. Mississippi State forward entered the game as the only SEC player averaging a double-double with 15.9 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. Alabama was able to hold the preseason All-SEC first-teamer to 14 points and five rebounds while forcing him to foul out with 6:56 remaining.

"I take (my job) very seriously, especially since Coach gave me the assignment of guarding someone like Reggie Perry," said Smith, who earned his second straight start. "So I just had to make sure that I really got them guys out of there, and even if I didn't get the board, as long as we got the board we were OK."

For a second straight game, Bolden provided a strong dose of energy off the bench for Alabama. Taking the floor roughly four minutes into the game, Bolden helped fuel an early run for the Crimson Tide. The pesky point guard drew a charge in the lane from Mississippi State’s Nick Weatherspoon which led to a 3 from Jaylen Forbes on Alabama’s ensuing possession. Bolden later provided an and-one layup to cap off an 11-0 spurt which gave the Crimson Tide a 13-5 lead.

The drawn foul was Bolden’s 11th in 12 games this season. Last week, Oats referred to the graduate transfer as a “kamikaze” due to his all-out approach on the floor. Bolden got into foul trouble, picking up his fourth foul with 15:58 remaining. However, he was able to stay in the game contributing 19 spirited minutes.

"Beetle was big," Oats said. "He came in and gave us a spark. He plays so hard. He's just got to learn how to play hard without fouling."

After taking a 42-34 lead into the break, Alabama started the second half on a 9-2 run capped off by a 3 from Petty to give the Crimson Tide a commanding 51-36 lead with 17:14 to play. Mississippi State battled back to cut the lead to 58-52 with 13:06 remaining. However, unlike its loss to Florida over the weekend, Alabama was able to respond in order to finish out the game and net a much-needed win.

"We just started talking to each other and made sure we put out the fire," Smith said. "They started going on a run, so we had to make sure we started going on our own run also."

Alabama will hit the road as it travels to take on No. 14 Kentucky on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT inside Rupp Arena. The Wildcats (13-3, 2-0) are coming off a road win at Georgia on Tuesday.

Alabama and Kentucky split their two meetings last year with the Crimson Tide winning 77-75 inside Coleman Coliseum before the Wildcats returned the favor with a 73-55 victory in the SEC Tournament. Kentucky is led by freshman Tyrese Maxey. Projected as a lottery pick in this year’s NBA Draft, the 6-foot-3, 198-pound guard is averaging 14.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.

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