TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama basketball is beginning to look like a different team than the side that dropped 5 of 7 non-conference games during a disappointing stretch from late November into December.

Following a victory at Mississippi State over the weekend, Alabama (11-5, 3-0 in the SEC) has now reeled off five straight wins and joins No. 13 Auburn (14-2, 3-0) as the only two unbeaten teams in SEC play.

Alabama will look to keep its perfect conference record intact when it hosts Missouri on Tuesday night. The Tigers (8-8, 0-3) are still looking for their first conference win following an overtime defeat to South Carolina over the weekend.

Here’s a look at everything you need to know for Tuesday's matchup.

Who: Alabama (11-5, 3-0) vs. Missouri (8-8, 0-3)

When: 6 p.m. CT, Tuesday, Jan. 16

Where: Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Watch: SEC Network

Listen: Crimson Tide Sports Network | SIRIUS/XM 134/201 (Play-By-Play: Chris Stewart, Analyst: Bryan Passink, Engineer: Tom Stipe)

Mark Sears: 6-foot-1, 185 pounds, junior

Stats: 20.3 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 3.6 apg, 54.5% FG, 48.8% 3-pt

Aaron Estrada: 6-foot-3, 190 pounds, graduate

Stats: 13.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 3.9 apg, 44.7% FG, 38.6% 3-pt

Rylan Griffen: 6-foot-6, 190 pounds, sophomore

Stats: 9.8 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 1.9 apg, 48.6% FG, 34.4% 3-pt

Grant Nelson: 6-foot-11, 230 pounds, senior

Stats: 12.6 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 2.2 apg, 43.6% FG, 26.5% 3-pt

Mohamed Wague: 6-foot-10, 225 pounds, junior

Stats: 5.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 0.7 apg, 65.2% FG, 100% 3-pt

Nick Honor: 6-foot-10, 200 pounds, senior

Stats: 10.3 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 2.1 apg, 36.9% FG, 38.6% 3-pt

Sean East II: 6-foot-3, 189 pounds, senior

Stats: 17.1 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 3.8 apg, 54.1% FG, 51.1% 3-pt

Tamar Bates: 6-foot-5, 195 pounds, junior

Stats: 10.8 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 1.1 apg, 53.1% FG, 48.7% 3-pt

Noah Carter: 6-foot-6, 235 pounds, senior

Stats: 12.8 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.4 apg, 40.8% FG, 28.7% 3-pt

Aidan Shaw: 6-foot-8, 205 pounds, sophomore

Stats: 3.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 0.4 apg, 69.0% FG

Five of the SEC’s top 3-point shooters will take the court inside Coleman Coliseum on Tuesday night.

Missouri features two of the top long-range shooters in the conference in guards Sean East II (51.1% from 3) and Tamar Bates (48.7%). Meanwhile, no one in the conference has made more shots from beyond the arc than Alabama, who is led by starting guard Mark Sears (48.8%) as well as backup forward Sam Walters (48.8%) and backup guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (44.8%).

Alabama leads the SEC with 29.62 attempted 3s per game, while Missouri ranks third, averaging 25.81 per outing. It’s a safe bet neither side will be shy to spot up from deep Tuesday night.

Following Monday’s practice, Alabama head coach Nate Oats said his team will have to be extra vigilant on defense to prevent the Tigers from getting nice looks from beyond the arc. However, that’s easier said than done.

Along with its ability to knock down 3s, Missouri also features an athletic frontcourt in starting forwards Noah Carter and Aidan Shaw. The Tigers also bring 7-foot-5 center Connor Vanover off the bench, who can create mismatches down low. That puts extra pressure on Alabama’s struggling frontcourt as the Tide will likely be punished if it drops two players down to double the post.

“We’re going to try to find ways to guard the post and ball screens without getting in rotations,” Oats said. “Sometimes you’ve just got to do a good job guarding your man because if you get beat by a blow-by, you end up in a rotation. So that’s kind of more of the issue.”

Alabama's lack of interior presence has been its Achilles' heel this season. That isn’t helped by Mo Wague’s lingering foot injury and Nick Pringle’s inability to stay on the floor due to foul trouble.

Still, the Crimson Tide has some reason for optimism following Saturday night’s 82-74 victory at Mississippi State. With Wague limited and Pringle dealing with foul trouble, Alabama turned to North Dakota State transfer Grant Nelson at the center position for most of the game. The 6-foot-11, 230-pound forward only mustered up 9 points on 2 of 7 shooting but showed improved defensive presence down low while coming away with a team-high nine rebounds.

“I think defensively he’s gotten good guarding the post,” Oats said “We can play him at the 5 a little more. He’s a good defensive player. He doesn’t foul as much as our other post players in the interior. I thought he fought [Mississippi State forward Tolu Smith] really tough. He’s certainly not soft.”

Oats said he still needs to get Nelson to attack the rim more offensively instead of settling for 3s. So far this season, the starting forward is averaging 12.6 points per game while shooting 43.6% from the floor and a career-low 26.5% from deep. Still, if Nelson can continue to provide more of a presence in the paint, he could end up being the answer to Alabama’s struggles down low.

That could be the plan, at least for the time being. However, if Nelson moves down to center, Alabama will need a capable option to step into his spot at the forward position.

“It’s timely that Mo Dioubate is starting to play well,” Oats said. “He gets to the O-boards, he creates stuff, he brings some toughness. We need Mo, Jarin [Stevenson], Sam [Walters]. Sam needs to get better on defense. Jarin needs to get better on defense. Dioubate needs to get a bit more comfortable on offense and stick to the plan on defense. … You get those three guys playing a little bit better, you can probably play Grant a little more at the 5.”

Oats might have a few extra film sessions to study over the next 24 hours. During his post-practice press conference Monday, the Alabama head coach was reminded that Nelson has faced off against Vanover three times when Nelson was at North Dakota State and Vanover was at Oral Roberts last season.

“I kind of forgot about that to be honest with you because my only encounters with him have been Arkansas,” Oats said of Vanover, who played for the Razorbacks during the 2o21 and 2022 seasons. “... We should go look at that.”

Vanover and Oral Roberts won all three meetings against Nelson and North Dakota State. However, Nelson put up better stats in two of the three games.

— Jan. 19, 2022 (Oral Roberts 92, NDSU 69): Vanover: 15 points; 4 rebounds, 6 of 11 shooting, 2 of 7 from 3 | Nelson: 21 points, 6 rebounds, 8 of 17 shooting, 3 of 6 from 3

— Feb. 18, 2022 (Oral Roberts 74, NDSU 66): Vanover: 5 points, 9 rebounds, 2 of 7 shooting, 0 of 4 from 3 | Nelson 24 points, 12 rebounds, 11 of 19 shooting, 0 of 3 from 3

— March 7, 2022 (Oral Roberts 92, NDSU 58): Vanover: 10 points, 10 rebounds, 3 of 8 shooting, 0 of 4 from 3 | Nelson: 9 points, 5 rebounds, 3 of 8 shooting, o of 1 from 3

As Oats pointed out, he’s already familiar with Vanover’s game. The towering center faced Alabama twice while with Arkansas in the 2020-21 season. Over the two meetings, the Crimson Tide limited him to 2 points and one rebound in 12 combined minutes on the court.

“Listen, 7-5 and can shoot 3s, he's kind of an anomaly,” Oats said of Vanover. “Every time I see him, he’s getting bigger and stronger. He’s obviously getting older. You’ve got to move him a little bit to get him to guard on the perimeter. But if you let him just camp out in the lane, he’s 7-5, you’re not going to be able to shoot over him. He protects the rim pretty well, but hopefully, our athleticism will bother him some.”