How to watch: No. 2 Alabama basketball vs. Auburn

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The magic number is down to one. No. 2 Alabama basketball needs just one win this week to secure its second SEC regular-season title in three years.

The Crimson Tide’s first opportunity to clinch comes Wednesday as it hosts Auburn for its final home game of the season. Alabama could still win the title with a loss to the Tigers and a victory at No. 24 Texas A&M on Saturday. However, after earning the conference crown on the road two years ago, Nate Oats and his players are hoping to cut down the nets in front of their fans inside Coleman Coliseum.

“It would be a lot sweeter than it was at Mississippi State,” Oats said, referencing the 2021 season. “It was great two years ago, but the last home game of the season in front of a raucous crowd — I mean, it’s Auburn. It’d be much better to do it.”

Alabama beat Auburn 77-69 on the road earlier this month. If the Crimson Tide wins Wednesday, it will mark the third straight year a team completed a regular-season sweep in the rivalry. Auburn won both games played last year while Alabama won the two matchups in 2021.

Here's everything you need to know about Wednesday’s matchup.

Who: No. 2 Alabama (25-4, 15-1 in the SEC) vs. Auburn (19-10, 9-7)

When: 6 p.m. CT, Wednesday, March 1

Where: Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Watch: ESPN2 (play-by-play: Tom Hart; analyst: Jimmy Dykes)

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: 7.5 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 3.4 apg, 41.2% FG, 28.6% 3-pt

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

Stats: 13.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.8 apg, 43.1% FG, 38.3% 3-pt

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

Stats: 19.7 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 1.8 apg, 46.8% FG, 42.4% 3-pt

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

Stats: 9.8 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 0.9 apg, 47.7% FG, 26.7% 3-pt

Charles Bediako: 7-foot, 225 pounds, sophomore

Stats: 5.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 0.6 apg, 62.5% FG

Wendell Green Jr.: 5-foot-11, 175 pounds, junior

Stats: 13.8 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 4.2 apg, 36.2% FG, 28.1% 3-pt

Zep Jasper: 6-foot-1, 190 pounds, senior

Stats: 3.1 ppg, 0.9 rpg, 0.4 apg, 33.0% FG, 30.2% 3-pt

Allen Flanigan: 6-foot-6, 220 pounds, senior

Stats: 9.4 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 1.4 apg, 43.7% FG, 32.2% 3-pt

Jaylin Williams: 6-foot-8, 230 pounds, senior

Stats: 11.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.2 apg, 47.1% FG, 37.2% 3-pt

Johni Broome: 6-foot-10, 235 pounds, sophomore

Stats: 14.1 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 1.4 apg, 52.4% FG, 25.0% 3-pt

More often than not, Alabama has blown past its competition this year. However, the Crimson Tide has also shown its ability to come up clutch when things get tight.

Alabama recorded a pair of narrow wins last week as Brandon Miller’s game-winning layup in overtime secured a 78-76 victory at South Carolina before the Crimson Tide held off Arkansas 86-83 inside Coleman Coliseum over the weekend. Alabama is now 5-0 in one-possession games this season, a significant improvement from last season when it finished 4-5 in such contests.

Alabama saw a similar turnaround from Oats’ first season in 2019-20 to his SEC title-winning campaign the following year. In 2019-20, the Crimson Tide was 3-5 in one-possession games compared to 5-2 in 2020-21.

“I think if you’re going to win championships, you’re going to have to be able to close games late,” Oats said. “Go back early in the year against North Carolina, we had a four-overtime game. We had to get that thing to overtime. Our guys made some big plays.”

Alabama has struck out in its three previous attempts to contain Wendell Green Jr. The Auburn guard is averaging 22 points per game against the Crimson Tide and has recorded 19 or more points in each matchup. That includes a season-high 24 points during Alabama’s 77-69 victory at Auburn last month.

Green led the Tigers during last month’s loss to Alabama, hitting 4 of 9 shots from beyond the arc. One of those 3s resulted in a four-point play as he made the shot while drawing a foul before sinking the ensuing free-throw attempt. He later drew another foul from beyond the arc which resulted in him making all three free throws.

“He’s great at drawing fouls when he takes threes,” Oats said. “He kind of kicks the leg out. He’s got everything going. We fouled him taking threes too much. We let him get threes off. He’s quick. He’s great at getting his shot off.”

Tuesday, Oats said he challenged his smaller guards to do a better job staying in front of Green on the court. Alabama has also discussed putting a taller defender on him to better contend with his shooting ability.

“Teams have great game plans to stop really good players and they still get buckets,” Oats said. “I said this before: shoot, I spent 11 years in Detroit. Wendell’s from Detroit. I saw some really good guards like him, and he’s one of the best. I’ve got a ton of respect for him.”

— Alabama has the chance to end the regular season 15-0 at home for the third time in program history and first since the 2010-11 season

— The Crimson Tide has the opportunity to win its second SEC regular season championship in the last three years for the first time since winning three straight from 1974-76.

— Alabama joins Houston as one of two schools to rank in the top 17 in both defense-adjusted efficiency (No. 5) and in offense-adjusted efficiency (No. 17) according to KenPom.

— Brandon Miller is 61 points away from tying Collin Sexton’s record for most points (632 points) scored by a freshman in a single season in Alabama history.

— Auburn head coach Bruce Pearls has coached the Tigers to 20 wins in four of the last five years.Auburn is one win away from the milestone which would mark the 14th time the Tigers have achieved the feat in program history.

— Auburn ranks No. 7 nationally and tops in the SEC in blocks per game with 5.6 blocks per game thanks in large part to forwards Johni Broome (2.5 bpg) and Dylan Cardwell (1.5 bpg).

— Auburn is 76-221 all-time against teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll. The last time the Tigers beat a top-five team came during their 2019 Final Four run when they downed No. 7 Kentucky, 77-71 in overtime in an Elite Eight matchup.