LEXINGTON, Ky. — It wasn’t a mile a minute for the whole race, but No. 4 Alabama basketball found itself in a photo finish in the final stretch of its 102-97 win over No. 8 Kentucky. The Crimson Tide had a much better showing than its lethargic loss to Ole Miss and picked up its second road win against a top-10 team on the road.

Alabama fared much better in the blue-collar department, responding after a game against the Rebels that lacked energy. A strong early start allowed the Tide to stay in the game early to avoid having to make a comeback on the road against one of college basketball’s best offenses. For a second road game, Alabama was able to make vital plays in crunch time to seal a dramatic and massive bounceback win.

Here are three takeaways from Alabama’s win over Kentucky.

Nate Oats made his money in the game’s final minutes. The Alabama coach had a nine-man rotation available to him with Derrion Reid and Houston Mallette both still out with injuries, but Alabama’s depth became vital.

Alabama Forward Grant Nelson had an outstanding first half with 19 points and four rebounds but struggled for much of the second half committing four turnovers and picking up four fouls. To counter, Oats finished the game with a three-guard lineup that featured Mark Sears, Labaron Philon and Chris Youngblood and rotated through his forwards, playing Nelson, Clifford Omouryi and Mouhamed Dioubate in the final minutes.

The move paid off for Alabama. Youngblood and Philon both drilled 3s on back-to-back possessions, which gave Alabama a nine-point advantage with under three minutes left as part of a 9-0 run. Alabama finished the game shooting 38% from 3, finding its groove in a game that required it to match the tempo and scoring ability of an elite Kentucky offense. Sears finished the game with 24 points and nine assists taking over when needed and connecting on 4 of 12 attempts from beyond the arc. Youngblood also continued his return to form with 10 points on 2 of 3 from deep off the bench.

Alabama's late-game lineup also hit critical shots at the free-throw line. The Tide went 12 of 13 from the charity stripe in the final two minutes and shot 83.3% for the game after shooting under 70% this season.

Oats said he felt a different Alabama team would show up Saturday. His players proved him right with their effort in the blue-collar department. Alabama never stopped battling, bouncing back from Kentucky scoring bursts to stay in the game.

Alabama flipped the script from the Ole Miss game in the rebounding department. After just four offensive boards against the Rebels, Alabama had 10 in the first half.

Omoruyi was extremely active on both ends. He led Alabama with five rebounds at halftime and finished with seven, along with 12 points. Nelson bounced back after a lackluster last two performances to finish with an Alabama career-high of 25 points and wound up leading Alabama with 11 boards. Overall, Alabama bested Kentucky 42-28 and turned 15 offensive rebounds into 15 second-chance points.

Diobuate also continued to be a critical piece of Alabama’s success, embracing his blue-collar mentality and finishing with eight points, eight rebounds and a steal. After Alabama committed a pair of ugly turnovers, Kentucky seemed ready to rip the momentum back on its home floor. Instead, Dioubate snatched a defensive rebound over a few Kentucky defenders and went coast to coast, finding Omoruyi above the rim to tap it home to make it a 69-65 advantage for Alabama. Dioubate drew a block on the Tide’s next offensive possession.

In a state known for its horseracing, Alabama came out like a champion stallion and played outstanding offense at a quick pace to start Saturday’s matchup. It was a refreshing sight for Oats after its lackluster outing against Ole Miss

Alabama went from seven turnovers in its first possessions against the Rebels, to turning a 7-2 deficit into a 16-2 run against the Wildcats. Nelson started the game with a lob to Omoryi and Alabama connected on 10 of its first 17 field goal attempts and went 9 of 10 at the line to start the contest, which was crucial in matching Kentucky’s offensive tempo and ability to score.

That explosive run proved critical to keep Alabama in the game as the pace slowed down after both teams shot the lights out to start. Alabama’s offense went from sustained to streaky, but it was a recipe that worked for the Tide against Kentucky’s defense. Driving lanes opened up with the Wildcats having to respect the 3 and Alabama finished with 34 points in the paint.

Alabama continued to create disciplined offense against the Wildcats and re-discovered its groove from 3 in the second half to create balanced scoring and match whatever Kentucky offered. The Tide only coughed the ball up 10 times after a season-high 21 turnovers. Alabama had five double-digit scorers and broke the century mark.

Alabama returns home for a matchup against Vanderbilt. The Commodores face No. 6 Tennessee at 2:30 p.m. CT Saturday before their trip to Tuscaloosa. Alabama and Vanderbilt will face off at 7 p.m. CT Tuesday. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network.