Mark Sears scored 26 points, Aaron Estrada had a triple-double and No. 14 Alabama overcame a 14-point first-half deficit to defeat Ole Miss 103-88 on Wednesday night in Oxford, Miss.
Estrada had 18 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the Crimson Tide (20-8, 12-3 Southeastern Conference). Davin Cosby Jr. scored 15 points, Rylan Griffen scored 14 before fouling out and Grant Nelson — who also fouled out — and Nick Pringle added 10 apiece.
Allen Flanigan scored 28 points, Jaemyn Brakefield had 21 and Matthew Murrell added 12 to lead the Rebels (19-9, 6-9), who lost for the sixth time in their past seven games.
Alabama, which never led in the first half, scored the first four points of the second to take its first lead at 43-42.
The lead changed hands two times and the score was tied twice before three points from Sears and a 3-pointer by Griffen helped the Tide build a 57-49 advantage with 15:21 remaining.
Jamarion Sharp answered with a putback, and the Rebels added five free throws to get within 60-56.
Alabama rebuilt the lead to eight, but Ole Miss went on an 8-0 run to tie things at 65 with 9:39 left.
The Tide scored the next five points, and two 3-pointers by Cosby later helped them expand the lead to 87-74 with 4:47 left. The Rebels got no closer than seven the rest of the way.
Ole Miss’ Moussa Cisse threw down a dunk for the game’s first points. Jarin Stevenson made it 2-2 at the 19:38 mark of the first half, but Brandon Murray broke the tie with a layup 30 seconds later, and the Rebels led for the rest of the period.
Flanigan and TJ Caldwell each made a 3-pointer during a 10-0 run that extended Ole Miss’ lead to 25-13.
A dunk from Flanigan gave the Rebels their biggest lead of the first half, 37-23, with 5:07 to go.
Sears, Nelson and Estrada made consecutive 3-pointers during an 11-0 run that got the Tide within 37-34.
Ole Miss increased the lead to six points before Sears’ 3-pointer with two seconds remaining left the Rebels with a 42-39 halftime lead.
–Field Level Media