Alabama Basketball escapes South Carolina in OT

Alabama basketball escaped Columbia with a 78-76 overtime win over South Carolina, led by a remarkable performance from Brandon Miller. Miller came out with a chip on his shoulder and finished with 41 points, over half of Bama’s total. He hit clutch shots time after time down the stretch, almost single-handedly keeping the Crimson Tide in it.

His crunch-time buckets included a game-tying layup to send the game to overtime, and another driving layup that would prove to be the game-winner. Miller’s first half dunk over several Gamecock defenders served as an assertion that he would not be denied.

However, the rest of the Alabama basketball team failed to show up. Outside of Miller, the Tide hit just 13 shots all game, including just one three-pointer. Mark Sears, Jaden Bradley, Jahvon Quinerly, and Nimari Burnett all struggled mightily in the backcourt, combining for just 16 points.

The quartet of guards shot 6-26 from the field and 1-11 from the perimeter. Freshman guard Rylan Griffen barely played and did not even attempt a shot.

Charles Bediako continued his upward trend, playing well once again. Bediako finished with 10 points to join Miller as the only two Bama players in double figures. He did so on 4-4 from the field, adding nine rebounds and two blocks.

Noah Clowney added eight points and eight boards in the frontcourt.

Although Brandon Miller has been the Tide’s best player all year, this was the first outing in which he truly carried the team. He was everywhere on both ends of the court, registering eight rebounds, three steals, and two blocks in addition to his career-high 41 points.

While he didn’t appear to be bothered by the intense scrutiny around the program and him in particular, the rest of the team seemed out of sorts. Alabama Basketball will have to get used to playing in unfriendly environments, as that is what they will face for the remainder of the season.

Coach Nate Oats, with the help of his veteran leaders and a laser-focused freshman in Miller, will have to steer the ship through rocky waters over the next month.

Alabama Basketball returns to Tuscaloosa on Saturday to host the Arkansas Razorbacks. It will be interesting to see what Miller does for an encore performance in Tuscaloosa, as well as how much help he will get.