Bama earns largest win over Georgia in series history

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – No. 1/1 Alabama men’s basketball team dominated from start to finish en route to a 108-59 victory over Georgia on Friday night at Coleman Coliseum. The Crimson Tide’s point total marked a school record-tying fifth game of 100 points or more, while the 49-point margin of victory was UA’s largest-ever win over the Bulldogs.

The Crimson Tide (23-4, 13-1 SEC) shot a season-best 61.9 percent (39-of-63) from the field on attempts, while holding the Bulldogs to just 37.5 percent (21-of-56). In addition, Alabama connected on 16 three-pointers (16-of-34) compared to only four makes from beyond the arc for Georgia, and outrebounded the Bulldogs, 49-26.

Alabama jumped out to a fast start on both ends of the court in the opening stanza and never looked back, opening up a 54-25 lead at halftime. The Tide would go on to lead as much as 50 points late in the game before collecting their third SEC win of another 40 points this season.

Brandon Miller led five UA players in double figures, scoring 21 points to record his 10th 20-point game of the year. In the first half, Miller became the fastest player to 500 points in program history, joining Collin Sexton and James “Hollywood” Robinson as the only three freshmen to reach that goal.

Nick Pringle recorded his second college double-double with 19 points and 12 boards while also winning the Hard Hat Award in the victory. Mark Sears (17), Rylan Griffen (13) and Noah Clowney (12) also scored in double figures to lead the Tide in the win.

Justin Hill led Georgia (16-11, 6-8 SEC) with 17 points while Braelen Bridges added 10 points and eight rebounds.

HEAD COACH NATE OATS POSTGAME COMMENTS

“It was a really good game after the loss that I think our guys came from, and I hope we don’t get too many (losses). Tennessee. We came out of the gate and our starters got off to a good start and extended the lead. I was just told that Brandon (Miller) is the first person in Alabama history to hit 500 points and he’s faster than James. Robinson and Collin Sexton, both of them are pretty good players. We made some history tonight, but I thought, overall, we had a problem with turnovers in Tennessee. I liked the way we moved the ball and took care of It. Obviously, it helped to make shots and get assists. 14 of our 20 field goals in the first half were assisted. Our defense is good and getting better for rebounds. The second chance point margin was 20-6 and we did a better job in that area. It was a good win after losing to Tenness ee.”

TEAM STATISTICS

• The 49-point margin of victory gave UA its third 40-or-more conference victory this season (106-66 vs. LSU, 101-44 vs. Vanderbilt), making Alabama the first SEC team since Kentucky in 1955-56 to accomplish the feat
• The win was Alabama’s first as a No. 1 ranked team. 1 in the country since UA beat the Xavier Musketeers on Jan. 4, 2003, 65-58 (2-2).
• Alabama has won 11 SEC games by double digits, tying the program record from 1955-56
• The 49-point victory was the largest in UA program history against the Bulldogs since the 1953-54 season (112-76)
• The Tide’s defense has kept conference opponents from scoring 69 or more points in an SEC game this season.
• Alabama is 13-0 at Coleman Coliseum, with two home games remaining
• The Tide’s margin of victory after a loss this season is +32.0
• Brandon Miller surpassed the 500-point mark in the first half, making him the third freshman in program history to accomplish the feat (Collin Sexton 2017-18 and James “Hollywood” Robinson 1990-91)
• UA dominated the glass, outrebounding the Bulldogs 49-26
• The Tide produced 26 assists, led by Jaden Bradley’s career-best seven, marking the sixth time this season he has had more than 20 assists in a game.
• Alabama’s bench outscored Georgia 52-15

FIRST HALF

• Mark Sears and Brandon Miller combined for Alabama’s first 18 points, opening up an 18-6 lead in just under five minutes.
• Alabama then went on a 12-1 run to extend the lead to 30-9 with 12:58 remaining
• The Tide continued to dominate on both ends of the court, opening up a 50-19 lead with 5:02 left in the stanza.
• With the Tide defense holding the Bulldogs to just 25 points at the half, UA has held its last three opponents at Coleman Coliseum to a combined 63 points in the opening stanza (21 points average)
• Alabama’s defense limited Georgia to 30 percent (9-30) from the field, while UA shot 65 percent (20-31), including 10-17 (59 percent) from beyond the arc.
• Miller led all scorers with 18, followed by Sears with 15
• Alabama’s 54 points in the first half marks the fourth time this season that the tide has scored over 50 in the opening stanza (January 14 against LSU), (November 18 against Jacksonville State), (February 8 against Florida)

HALF TIME

• Alabama picked up the lead in the second half, outscoring Georgia 21-8 over 7:29 to extend its lead to 42, 75-33.
• Nick Pringle and Rylan Griffen scored in double figures with 13 and 10 points, respectively
• Alabama’s bench outscored UGA 38-9 in the second half
• Alabama had 12 assists in the second half, led by four from Griffen
• The Tide outscored the Bulldogs 25-10 in the second stanza, led by Pringle with seven.
• Alabama shot 59 percent (19-32) from the field in the second twenty minutes of play

UP NEXT

• Alabama will travel to Columbia, SC, to face the South Carolina Gamecocks on Feb. 22 at Colonial Life Arena
• The contest will tip off at 8 pm CT and air live on ESPN2