No. 5 Alabama defeated Oklahoma 107-79 in their SEC opener, capitalizing on the Sooners' lack of size and forcing turnovers.
TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— No. 5 Alabama basketball defeated previously undefeated No. 12 Oklahoma 107-79 at home in the SEC opener on Saturday evening. This was the Sooners' first-ever SEC game as a member of the conference and the Crimson Tide handed them their first loss. Through non-conference play, Oklahoma was led by three scorers who are all under 6-foot-7 but consistently draw fouls inside.
Jeremiah Fears leads the team in points per game, but Jalon Moore and Duke Miles' ability to be efficient from downtown has been pivotal when spacing the floor through 13 games. In other words, the Sooners play small-ball, meaning they have some weaknesses down low due to a lack of size. Alabama took advantage of this early on Saturday, whether it was contested or uncontested layups, emphatic dunks, swift floaters or the 10-4 offensive rebound edge that created 14 second chance points, the Tide was all over Oklahoma down low as it tallied 24 points in the paint in the first half. Alabama went 13-of-25 from two-point range during the period with guard Labaron Philon leading the way with 10 total points followed by center Clifford Omoruyi with eight. The Sooners ended up scoring a respectable 20 points in the paint in the first half, as they finished the opening period shooting 12-of-26 from two-point range. The Tide's pressure forced some bad shots from all over the floor, numerous turnovers and blocks, but there certainly were some open holes down low that the Sooners took notice of. That said, Alabama made sure to put a defensive emphasis on Fears both in the paint and up top in the first half as he scored just one point (free throw) missing all seven of his shot attempts. While the points in the paint ended up being relatively similar in the first, the same couldn't be said for the makes behind the arc, as Alabama went 5-of-15 while the Sooners converted just 1-of-
ALABAMA BASKETBALL OKLAHOMA SEC COLLEGE BASKETBALL BASKETBALL GAME
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