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A light skirmish broke out during pregame warmups Tuesday night before Alabama basketball’s game against No. 20 Ole Miss. The Crimson Tide then spent the next 40 minutes pushing the Rebels around on the court.
Following a heartbreaking loss to now top-ranked Tennessee over the weekend, Alabama made sure things were never close during a 74-53 drubbing of Ole Miss. Alabama has now won six straight games against ranked opponents inside of Coleman Coliseum.
Alabama’s pregame feistiness carried over into the game as the Crimson Tide jumped out to an early 31-24 lead. Alabama then delivered a knockout blow as it ended the half on a 13-2 run complete with a buzzer-beater by Mississippi native Galin Smith to take a commanding 42-26 lead at the break.
For a second straight game, John Petty Jr. led the way for Alabama. The five-star sophomore scored 15 points on 6 of 10 shooting, including 3 of 6 from beyond the arc. Petty nearly helped Alabama orchestrate an upset over Tennessee over the weekend, tying a career high with 30 points.
Donta Hall recorded his fourth straight double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. The senior from Luverne, Ala., leads the SEC with 10 double-doubles on the year. Hall had five double-doubles last season. Smith also reached double figures with 10 points.
Alabama (12-6, 3-3 in the SEC) dominated Ole Miss (14-4, 4-2) down low, winning the rebounding battle 44-32 and outscoring the Rebels 34-16 in the paint. Alabama also took advantage of 16 Ole Miss turnovers, turning them into 23 points the other way. After shooting a season-low 44 percent from the line against Tennessee, the Crimson Tide made 17 of 22 free throws (77 percent) against the Rebels.
Alabama led for 37:26 of the game, taking the lead for good with 16:54 left in the first half.
Next up
Alabama hits the road to take on Baylor (12-6) on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT as part of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. The Crimson Tide is 2-0 in previous SEC/Big12 Challenge games, beating Texas Tech 76-64 in 2013 before last year’s 80-73 victory over Oklahoma.
Baylor is led by senior guard Makai Mason, who averages 15.7 points per game. Forward Tristan Clark averages 14.6 points while recording a team-high 6.3 rebounds per game. The Bears are riding a three-game win streak, including an upset over No. 8 Texas Tech.
Following the game against Baylor, Alabama will return to SEC play as it takes on No. 22 Mississippi State on Jan. 22.
