Alabama-Auburn: Tide Rolls Over Auburn for First Conference Victory, 97-77

After a sloppy and slow start to the conference season, Alabama used a full week off from action and two-a-day practices to try and get back on track.

Safe to say that the Crimson Tide pulled it all together.

The Tide dismantled their arch-rival, the Auburn Tigers, 97-77 on Saturday in front of a rowdy sold out crowd at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama (12-8, 1-4 SEC) used all of the ingredients it used in its great non-conference season to beat up on the Tigers.

The Crimson Tide shot 53% from the field for the game, making 36 shots and racking up 19 assists. They also caused 15 turnovers while only giving the ball away four times and only once in the first half.

Alabama was also hot from outside for the first time in the short conference season. They made 48% of their three point shots, mirroring the team that used the same shot to down opponents earlier in the season.

Auburn (12-6, 2-3) could not find any rhythm on offense and was playing catch up for most of the game.

After trading baskets for the first 10 minutes, Alabama used a 17-0 run to gain a huge advantage over the short-handed Tigers. The Alabama lead reached 30 points at one point in the second half, and the closest the Tigers ever got was 15 points.

Richard Hendrix once again led the Tide with 20 points in only 23 minutes of play.

One link that was restored on Saturday was the support for Hendrix down low, as four other players were also in double figures. 

Mykal Riley and Alonzo Gee were back in early season form, scoring 16 and 17 points, respectively.

The biggest spark on Saturday for the Tide, however, was Brandon Hollinger. The junior out of Mobile was making only his third start of the year, but he made it count.

Hollinger scored 18 points, all off of his six for nine shooting from behind the arc, to help the Crimson Tide roll to an easy victory.

The Tigers were led by Rasheem Barrett and Quan Powell, who combined for 42 of the Tigers’ 75 points. The only problem for Auburn was its current lack of support, due in some part to injuries suffered early in the season. 

Alabama now looks to keep its hot streak going as the Tennessee Volunteers come to town Tuesday. 

The Tigers will look to get back on track next Wednesday against a struggling LSU team at home.