How to watch: No. 2 Alabama basketball at South Carolina

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — No. 2 Alabama basketball has little room for error as it looks to secure its second SEC regular-season title in three years.

Following No. 25 Texas A&M’s win over No. 11 Tennessee on Tuesday night, the Crimson Tide sits just a half game above the Aggies atop the conference standings. Alabama can extend that lead back to a full game Wednesday night when it travels to South Carolina. The trip to the Palmetto State begins a final four-game stretch for the Crimson Tide which will also host Arkansas and Auburn before ending its regular season at Texas A&M.

Alabama is coming off a 108-59 win against Georgia over the weekend, its third SEC victory of 40 points or more this season. Meanwhile, South Carolina has won two of its last three games after snapping a streak of eight straight losses earlier this month.

Here's everything you need to know about the matchup.

Who: No. 2 Alabama (23-4, 13-1 in the SEC) vs. South Carolina (10-17, 3-11)

When: 8 p.m. CT, Wednesday, Feb. 22

Where: Colonial Life Arena, Columbia, S.C.

Watch: ESPN2 (play-by-play: Mike Morgan; analyst: Seth Greenberg)

Listen: Crimson Tide Sports Network (play-by-play: Chris Stewart; analyst: Bryan Passink; engineer Tom Stipe)

Jaden Bradley: 6-foot-3, 185 pounds, freshman

Stats: 7.9 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 3.5 apg, 43.1% FG, 30.0% 3-pt

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

Stats: 13.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.9 apg, 43.5% FG, 39.7% 3-pt

Brandon Miller: 6-foot-9, 200 pounds, freshman

Stats: 18.7 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 1.9 apg, 45.9% FG, 42.9% 3-pt

Noah Clowney: 6-foot-10, 210 pounds, freshman

Stats: 9.8 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 0.8 apg, 48.4% FG, 27.9% 3-pt

Charles Bediako: 7-foot, 225 pounds, sophomore

Stats: 5.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 0.6 apg, 60.7% FG

Meechie Johnson: 6-foot-2, 180 pounds, junior

Stats: 12.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 3.5 apg, 36.2% FG, 33.7% 3-pt

Jacobi Wright: 6-foot-2, 188 pounds, sophomore

Stats: 6.6 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 1.8 apg, 37.2% FG, 37.1% 3-pt

Hayden Brown: 6-foot-5, 234 pounds, senior

Stats: 11.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.3 apg, 42.9% FG, 21.7% 3-pt

Gregory Jackson II: 6-foot-9, 215 pounds, freshman

Stats: 15.3 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 0.8 apg, 38.5% FG, 33.6% 3-pt

Josh Gray: 7-foot, 255 pounds, junior

Stats: 4.1 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 0.5 apg, 52.9% FG

Unlike the NBA, Alabama can’t add to its roster midseason. However, head coach Nate Oats believes his team might be about to receive a nice boost moving forward.

While Dom Welch has played in 13 games for Alabama, the St. Bonaventure transfer might seem like a new addition now that he’s finally coming into his own on the court. Welch came off the bench to score a season-high 8 points on 3 of 3 shooting against Georgia over the weekend. According to Oats, the performance could have sparked something in the senior.

“We made a trade deadline acquisition, went out and got ourselves a shooter, because Dom was back to where he wasn’t missing any shots in practice yesterday,” Oats said Tuesday. “I kind of just made the joke that we were able to make an acquisition right at the trade deadline and went out and got ourselves a veteran shooter for the stretch run.

“I think guys can step up. It’d be great if we can get Dom making shots like he has in practice in the games. We’re gonna give him a shot to do that.”

Since coming back from a calf injury that kept him out of the first 12 games of the season, Welch is shooting just 23.5% from the floor and 17.4% (4 of 23) from beyond the arc. Along with recent results, the senior’s history as a shooter suggests those numbers should improve moving forward.

Over his five-year college career, Welch has shot 40.4% from the floor and 36.8% from deep. Last season, he averaged 12.3 points while shooting 37.5% from beyond the arc for St. Bonaventure.

The trip to South Carolina will serve as a homecoming for Noah Clowney and Nick Pringle, who hail from the Palmetto State. The forwards are both in their first year at Alabama as Clowney joined the Crimson Tide as a Rivals100 recruit while Nick Pringle transferred in from the junior college ranks.

Clowney has started all 26 games he’s appeared in for Alabama this season. The 6-foot-10, 210-pound forward averages 9.8 points while shooting 48.4% from the floor and 27.9% from beyond the arc. He’s also tied for the team lead with 8.0 rebounds per game.

“The perfect big for our system,” Oats said of his thoughts when recruiting Clowney. “He can play four and five. He can kind of play them both, step out and make 3s. And his athleticism, we thought it could really help us on the defensive end which it has.”

Pringle has served as a spark off the bench, averaging 3.2 points and 2.7 rebounds over 7.9 minutes per game in 26 appearances. The 6-foot-9 220-pound forward is a force above the rim and leads the team with an 86.8 field-goal percentage thanks to several thunderous dunks.

“With Pringle, we saw a lot of athleticism, kind of a guy who can also be a rim protector,” Oats said. “He’s still figuring out the defensive system and all that. He’s not quite as good as Charles [Bediako] at protecting the rim, but he’s really athletic. He can possibly turn into a switch guy as he gets better and better.”

Alabama's last game at South Carolina — an 81-78 victory over the Gamecocks on Feb. 9 2021 — served as a homecoming for former Crimson Tide forward Juwan Gary, who transferred to Nebraska last offseason. Gary, a Columbia, South Carolina native, earned the start in his return to his hometown but was injured early in the first half.

— Alabama is the first SEC team to score 100 points versus three conference opponents since Arkansas in 1997-98.

— The Crimson Tide’s defense has prevented any conference opponent from scoring 69 points or more in any SEC game this season.

— Alabama has won 11 SEC games by double digits, tying the program record set by the 1955-56 team.

— South Carolina is 0-7 this season when scoring 59 points or less. The team is also 3-15 when trailing at the half as opposed to 6-2 when leading at the break

— South Carolina freshman Gregory “GG” Jackson II is currently one of three freshmen in the country averaging at least 15.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Alabama’s Brandon Miller (18.7 ppg, 8.2 rpg) and Duke’s Kyle Filipowski (15.1 ppg, 9.1 rpg) have also accomplished the feat.