3 takeaways as Alabama basketball dominates North Carolina on the road

The SEC's dominance in the SEC/ACC challenge continued on Wednesday night as Alabama basketball rolled over North Carolina in Chapel Hill with a 94-79 victory in a rematch of last season's Sweet 16 in the West Regional.

In a game that was never competitive in the second half, the Crimson Tide took a nine-point lead at halftime and rolled in the second half.

Alabama bounced back from Saturday night's loss to Oregon with what was probably their best overall performance of the season. And this team can still reach a level beyond this as the Tide only shot 35% from three as Mark Sears continues to struggle with his shot.

Despite going 2/7 from deep, Sears attacked the rim relentlessly and finished with 20 points and 7 assists.

Labaron Philon, Aden Holloway, Cliff Omoruyi, Derrion Reid, and Grant Nelson joined Sears in double figures.

3 takeaways from Alabama's win over North Carolina

3. Houston Mallette played well in his debut

It was rumored this week that Houston Mallette might burn his redshirt to play for the Tide following Latrell Wrightsell's Achilles tear. Mallette played in small spurts in his regular season debut as Alabama works him into the rotation.

Mallette played well in those spurts, showing the value he can bring to this team. He connected on both of his three-point attempts to finish with six points. He was active defensively and came up with two steals.

Mallette shot 41.5% from three last season at Pepperdine and Alabama desperately needs another shooter to emerge following Wrightsell's injury. He and Holloway combined for 7/11 from deep against the Tar Heels. The rest of the team went 5/22.

Look for Mallette's role to continue to grow if he's going to provide minutes like he did tonight.

2. That was Cliff Omoruyi's best game and showed what he brings to the table

Rutgers transfer Cliff Omoruyi has struggled with foul trouble through the first eight games of his Alabama career. Against North Carolina, he avoided foul trouble and showed what he brings to the table for Alabama.

Omoruyi had 11 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocked shots. Whenever he got his hands on the ball, he was going up for a dunk. His aggressiveness and ability to defend without fouling was huge in a matchup the Crimson Tide had a distinct size advantage they had to take advantage of.

If the Tide is going to compete for a national championship, that's the version of Omoruyi Alabama has to have.

1. Alabama's guards were terrific

All three of Alabama's on-ball guards - Mark Sears, Labaron Philon, and Aden Holloway - were terrific in Chapel Hill.

It was far from a vintage Sears performance as he hit just 2/7 from three, but he still managed 20 points and 7 assists as he attacked the rim all night long.

Philon had zero fear in the second true road game of his collegiate career, bouncing back from a difficult performance in Las Vegas. He was his usual stat-stuffing self with 15 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and a blocked shot. He was 7/8 on shots inside the three-point line and got to the rim at will.

Holloway's shot-making was huge as others struggled from deep. He connected on 5/9 from downtown on his way to 15 points as he continues to look comfortable with the Crimson Tide.

Alabama's guards should be a big strength for this team. If they play like they did tonight then the Crimson Tide is tough to beat.