Nate Oats won't be happy with Alabama basketball's performance, particularly in the second half, in the 89-75 win over South Carolina, but the Crimson Tide did what it had to do to come away with a home win over the Gamecocks.
Alabama spent far too much time playing with its food. The Tide led by 13 points at halftime and kept South Carolina at arm's length for the majority of the second half, but a big final 20 minutes by Meechie Johnson allowed the Gamecocks to keep it relatively close. They pulled as close as seven, but Alabama never allowed them to get any closer.
It's Alabama's fourth straight win, pushing them to 18-7 overall and 8-4 in SEC play.
The most important observations from Alabama's win over South Carolina
1. Turnovers and missed free throws kept it closer than it should've been
Alabama could never quite blow this game open. Every time it looked like it had a chance, an unforced error would lead to points the other way for South Carolina.
Alabama turned it over 12 times and missed eight free throws. Credit Aden Holloway for stepping up and making some down the stretch to officially put it away, but the Crimson Tide still shot just 70% from the charity stripe.
Alabama relaxed after pushing the lead up to 17 points in the second half, and never had the killer instinct to put the pedal to the floor and finish the game.
Against a better team, Alabama could have been in real trouble.
2. Alabama's guards carried the offensive load, as usual
58 of Alabama's 89 points against South Carolina came from the trio of Labaron Philon, Aden Holloway, and Latrell Wrightsell. The trio combined to hit 11-of-19 from three-point range.
Holloway led the way with 20 points while Philon and Wrightsell scored 19 each.
The three-point shooting everywhere else was more disconcerting: the rest of the team combined to shoot just 3-of-15.
3. Alabama dominated the glass
You don't see it often from this team, but Alabama dominated the glass against South Carolina, outrebounding the Gamecocks 43-29. That included an 8-4 edge on offensive boards.
It wasn't a great night for Amari Allen, but he led the way with 10 rebounds. London Jemison grabbed eight, while Houston Mallette and Aiden Sherrell grabbed six each.
Alabama's dominance on the boards is even more impressive considering how small Oats was forced to play.
4. Allen, Mallette, and Jemison brought their hard hats
Alabama came into Saturday night even thinner than usual in the frontcourt. With Collins Onyejiaka and Keitenn Bristow still out, they were joined on the bench by Taylor Bol Bowen, who was ruled out for the game yesterday.
That meant guys like Allen and Jemison were going to have to play up, and they both stepped up. Jemison spent a decent chunk of his minutes at the five behind Sherrell. The freshman only scored two points, but he grabbed eight rebounds and came up with a steal and a blocked shot.
Allen's night was frustrating, and he ultimately fouled out late, but he still scored eight points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and dished out three assists. He added a pair of steals, too.
Mallette went just 1-of-4 from three, but he corralled six rebounds and ripped two steals. One of the most impressive plays of the night came with a Mallette steal off a trap before the half that led to a runout dunk by Allen.
Philon, Holloway, and Wrightsell took care of the scoring, but Allen, Mallette, and Jemison were just as pivotal in the Tide's win.