Mark Sears scored twenty two points and had ten assists and number five ranked Alabama dominated in every way for a 107-79 victory over No. 12 and previously unbeaten Oklahoma on Saturday night in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams. Grant Nelson had 12 points and 11 rebounds, Labaron Philon added 16 and Clifford Omoruyi scored 10 for Alabama (12-2, 1-0).
Jalon Moore had 20 points to lead the Sooners (13-1, 0-1). Sam Godwin scored 15 while Jeremiah Fears overcame an 0-for-8 shooting effort in the first half to finish with 16 points. Kobe Elvis and Miles Duke each added 10.
Alabama scored 25 second-chance points to Oklahoma's four. The Crimson Tide also dominated with 56 points in the paint and 38 points from the bench to the Sooners' five. The Tide’s Grant Nelson made twelve of his own. Head coach Nate Oats says having multiple players adding points was well received by the team…
“Mark (Sears) was really happy for his teammates scoring, particularly off his passes tonight, but thought it was good. So, you know, a lot, lot of positives,” said Oats. “You know, we're in the middle of sec. I shouldn't say in the middle of it. We're in we're in it now we're in SEC play. A lot of stuff to clean up, but lot of positives on our first game.
The Sooners couldn't overcome poor first-half shooting, going 12 of 34 from the floor and 1 of 8 from the 3-point line. Oklahoma shot 53% in the second half, including 4 of 15 from 3-point range.
Alabama took control in the first half with a 15-6 run, going 7 of 9 from the field while Oklahoma went 1 of 9 during that stretch as the Crimson Tide turned a five-point lead into a 14-point cushion. Alabama led 48-29 at halftime and the lead never dipped below 19 points in the second half. Coach Oats says, despite the win, the Tide is still ironing out the kinks as a team.
“I shouldn't say that well, they haven't played that much together, so we're still figuring some of our chemistry stuff out. But I think, you know, our offensive rebounding and our ability to get to the free throw line has been big for this team,” he said.
Alabama won the battle on the boards, outrebounding the Sooners 51-26. Along with Nelson's 11 rebounds, Omoruyi had seven. Alabama had 22 offensive rebounds. The Crimson Tide travel to face South Carolina on Wednesday night. The Sooners host No. 13 Texas A&M the same night.
