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Sears scores 22 points, Alabama scores last 8 to beat Mississippi State 82-74 for 5th straight win

AP
Jan 13, 2024

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) Mark Sears scored 22 points and Alabama scored the last eight points to beat Mississippi State 82-74 on Saturday night for its fifth straight win.

Mississippi State trailed by as many as 10 points and for most of the second half, but took a 70-69 lead on Tolu Smith's layup with 4:32 to play. Rylan Griffen answered with a layup and Sears hit a 3 and Alabama lead 74-70.

Shakeel Moore and Cameron Matthews each made a layup to tie the game 74-all with 2:42 remaining before Sears scored next the six points on a jumper and four free throws to help seal it.

Sears was 6 of 12 from the floor, made two 3-pointers and all eight of his free throws. Latrell Wrightsell Jr. hit five from distance and scored 19 points for Alabama (11-5, 3-0 Southeastern Conference). Griffen finished with 17 points.

Smith scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead Mississippi State (12-4, 1-2). Josh Hubbard added 14 points, Moore had 13 and Matthews 12.

Sears scored eight points during a 22-9 run to give Alabama a 62-52 with 12 minutes left. Wrightsell's 3 made it 65-57, but then Alabama went nearly four minutes without scoring before Griffen’s layup ended the drought, and the Crimson Tide led 67-62 with 7:05 remaining.

Smith scored six points during an 8-2 spurt that gave the Bulldogs their one-point lead late.

Wrightsell scored 11 points and Griffen had 10 as Alabama took a 40-38 advantage into the break. Smith and D.J. Jeffries scored seven points apiece for the Bulldogs.

Alabama hosts Missouri on Tuesday.

Mississippi State is on the road against sixth-ranked Kentucky on Wednesday.

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1st Half
ALA
Crimson Tide
40
MSST
Bulldogs
38

Time		Play	Score
20:00		(Bulldogs gains possession)
19:39	+2	Cameron Matthews makes two point dunk (Tolu Smith III assists)	0-2
19:17		Rylan Griffen misses three point jump shot
19:15		Bulldogs defensive rebound
18:55	+2	Cameron Matthews makes two point dunk	0-4
18:47	+3	Aaron Estrada makes three point jump shot	3-4
18:25	+2	Tolu Smith III makes two point layup	3-6
18:13		Nick Pringle offensive foul
18:13		Nick Pringle turnover (offensive foul)
18:01		Tolu Smith III misses two point layup
17:59		Grant Nelson defensive rebound
17:54		Rylan Griffen misses three point jump shot
17:52		Bulldogs defensive rebound
17:26	+2	Shakeel Moore makes two point jump shot (Tolu Smith III assists)	3-8
17:05	+2	Aaron Estrada makes two point jump shot	5-8
16:50		Nick Pringle shooting foul (Tolu Smith III draws the foul)
16:50		Tolu Smith III misses regular free throw 1 of 2
16:50		Tolu Smith III misses regular free throw 2 of 2
16:50		Shakeel Moore offensive rebound
16:33		Shakeel Moore misses two point layup
16:31		Tolu Smith III offensive rebound
16:29	+2	Tolu Smith III makes two point layup	5-10
16:17		Josh Hubbard shooting foul (Grant Nelson draws the foul)
16:17	+1	Grant Nelson makes regular free throw 1 of 2	6-10
16:17		Grant Nelson misses regular free throw 2 of 2
16:17		Josh Hubbard defensive rebound
15:55		Jimmy Bell Jr. misses two point layup
15:53		Aaron Estrada defensive rebound
15:44		Cameron Matthews shooting foul (Mouhamed Dioubate draws the foul)
15:44		TV timeout
15:44		Mouhamed Dioubate misses regular free throw 1 of 2
15:44		Mouhamed Dioubate misses regular free throw 2 of 2
15:44		Cameron Matthews defensive rebound
15:18		Mark Sears shooting foul (Josh Hubbard draws the foul)
15:18	+1	Josh Hubbard makes regular free throw 1 of 3	6-11
15:18	+1	Josh Hubbard makes regular free throw 2 of 3	6-12
15:18	+1	Josh Hubbard makes regular free throw 3 of 3	6-13
15:10		D.J. Jeffries blocks Mouhamed Dioubate's two point layup
15:08		Jimmy Bell Jr. defensive rebound
15:00		Josh Hubbard misses two point jump shot
14:58		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. defensive rebound
14:49		Aaron Estrada misses two point layup
14:47		D.J. Jeffries defensive rebound
14:24	+2	Josh Hubbard makes two point layup	6-15
14:07		Mark Sears misses three point jump shot
14:05		Mouhamed Dioubate offensive rebound
14:03		D.J. Jeffries shooting foul (Mouhamed Dioubate draws the foul)
14:03	+1	Mouhamed Dioubate makes regular free throw 1 of 2	7-15
14:03	+1	Mouhamed Dioubate makes regular free throw 2 of 2	8-15
13:39		D.J. Jeffries misses two point jump shot
13:37		Grant Nelson defensive rebound
13:26		Mark Sears turnover (bad pass) (Josh Hubbard steals)
13:23		Josh Hubbard turnover (bad pass)
13:11		Cameron Matthews personal foul
13:06	+2	Mark Sears makes two point layup	10-15
13:06		Dashawn Davis shooting foul (Mark Sears draws the foul)
13:06	+1	Mark Sears makes regular free throw 1 of 1	11-15
12:51		Tolu Smith III turnover (traveling)
12:39	+2	Rylan Griffen makes two point jump shot	13-15
12:18		Mohamed Wague personal foul
12:05		Tolu Smith III offensive foul
12:05		Tolu Smith III turnover (offensive foul)
11:45		Jaquan Scott blocks Mark Sears's two point layup
11:43		Jaquan Scott defensive rebound
11:38		Mark Sears shooting foul (Josh Hubbard draws the foul)
11:38		TV timeout
11:38		Josh Hubbard misses regular free throw 1 of 2
11:38		Josh Hubbard misses regular free throw 2 of 2
11:38		Sam Walters defensive rebound
11:29		Aaron Estrada misses three point jump shot
11:27		Rylan Griffen offensive rebound
11:26		Josh Hubbard personal foul
11:26	+1	Rylan Griffen makes regular free throw 1 of 2	14-15
11:26	+1	Rylan Griffen makes regular free throw 2 of 2	15-15
10:59	+3	Shawn Jones Jr. makes three point jump shot (Dashawn Davis assists)	15-18
10:45		Rylan Griffen turnover (bad pass) (Shakeel Moore steals)
10:34		Sam Walters blocks Tolu Smith III's two point layup
10:32		Mohamed Wague defensive rebound
10:25	+2	Mohamed Wague makes two point layup	17-18
9:56		Mohamed Wague shooting foul (Tolu Smith III draws the foul)
9:56		Tolu Smith III misses regular free throw 1 of 2
9:56	+1	Tolu Smith III makes regular free throw 2 of 2	17-19
9:50		Sam Walters misses three point jump shot
9:48		Jarin Stevenson offensive rebound
9:47		Jarin Stevenson turnover (lost ball) (D.J. Jeffries steals)
9:31		Tolu Smith III misses two point layup
9:29		D.J. Jeffries offensive rebound
9:28	+2	D.J. Jeffries makes two point layup	17-21
9:17		Grant Nelson turnover (bad pass) (Shakeel Moore steals)
9:00		Dashawn Davis misses three point jump shot
8:58		Aaron Estrada defensive rebound
8:44	+3	Latrell Wrightsell Jr. makes three point jump shot (Sam Walters assists)	20-21
8:20		Dashawn Davis turnover (bad pass) (Jarin Stevenson steals)
8:13	+3	Latrell Wrightsell Jr. makes three point jump shot (Aaron Estrada assists)	23-21
8:09		Bulldogs 30 second timeout
8:09		TV timeout
7:55		Shakeel Moore turnover (bad pass)
7:44	+2	Latrell Wrightsell Jr. makes two point layup	25-21
7:25	+3	Trey Fort makes three point jump shot (Jimmy Bell Jr. assists)	25-24
7:10		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. turnover (bad pass) (Jaquan Scott steals)
7:07		Trey Fort misses two point dunk
6:54		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. misses three point jump shot
6:52		D.J. Jeffries defensive rebound
6:49		Aaron Estrada personal foul
6:49		Trey Fort misses regular free throw 1 of 1
6:49		Rylan Griffen defensive rebound
6:37	+2	Rylan Griffen makes two point layup	27-24
6:19		Trey Fort misses three point jump shot
6:17		Rylan Griffen defensive rebound
6:12		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. misses two point layup
6:10		Jimmy Bell Jr. defensive rebound
6:03		Jimmy Bell Jr. turnover (lost ball) (Latrell Wrightsell Jr. steals)
5:55		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. misses three point jump shot
5:53		Shakeel Moore defensive rebound
5:44	+2	D.J. Jeffries makes two point layup	27-26
5:31	+2	Rylan Griffen makes two point layup	29-26
5:03	+2	Jimmy Bell Jr. makes two point layup	29-28
4:44		Trey Fort personal foul
4:44	+1	Mark Sears makes regular free throw 1 of 2	30-28
4:44	+1	Mark Sears makes regular free throw 2 of 2	31-28
4:30	+2	Tolu Smith III makes two point dunk (Shawn Jones Jr. assists)	31-30
4:19		Aaron Estrada misses two point jump shot
4:17		Mouhamed Dioubate offensive rebound
4:09		Sam Walters misses three point jump shot
4:07		Tolu Smith III defensive rebound
4:03		Tolu Smith III turnover (lost ball) (Grant Nelson steals)
3:54		Grant Nelson misses two point layup
3:52		Shawn Jones Jr. defensive rebound
3:45	+3	D.J. Jeffries makes three point jump shot	31-33
3:20		Rylan Griffen turnover (bad pass) (D.J. Jeffries steals)
3:08		Tolu Smith III misses two point jump shot
3:06		Rylan Griffen defensive rebound
2:46	+3	Grant Nelson makes three point jump shot (Mark Sears assists)	34-33
2:27	+3	Trey Fort makes three point jump shot (Dashawn Davis assists)	34-36
2:12		Trey Fort blocks Mark Sears's two point layup
2:10		Rylan Griffen offensive rebound
2:10		Shawn Jones Jr. shooting foul (Rylan Griffen draws the foul)
2:10		TV timeout
2:10	+1	Rylan Griffen makes regular free throw 1 of 2	35-36
2:10	+1	Rylan Griffen makes regular free throw 2 of 2	36-36
1:58		Trey Fort turnover (bad pass) (Grant Nelson steals)
1:41		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. misses three point jump shot
1:39		Mouhamed Dioubate offensive rebound
1:35	+3	Latrell Wrightsell Jr. makes three point jump shot (Mouhamed Dioubate assists)	39-36
1:02		Tolu Smith III misses two point jump shot
0:50		Tolu Smith III shooting foul (Grant Nelson draws the foul)
0:50		Grant Nelson misses regular free throw 1 of 2
0:50	+1	Grant Nelson makes regular free throw 2 of 2	40-36
0:32		Dashawn Davis misses two point jump shot
0:30		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. defensive rebound
0:23		Crimson Tide 30 second timeout
0:23		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. turnover (bad pass) (Dashawn Davis steals)
0:02	+2	Shakeel Moore makes two point jump shot (Dashawn Davis assists)	40-38
0:00		End of period

2nd Half
ALA
Crimson Tide
42
MSST
Bulldogs
36

Time		Play	Score
19:42	+3	Shakeel Moore makes three point jump shot (Tolu Smith III assists)	40-41
19:34		Aaron Estrada offensive foul
19:34		Aaron Estrada turnover (offensive foul)
19:10		D.J. Jeffries misses three point jump shot
19:08		Aaron Estrada defensive rebound
19:02		Grant Nelson misses three point jump shot
19:00		D.J. Jeffries defensive rebound
19:00		Nick Pringle personal foul
18:47	+2	Shakeel Moore makes two point layup	40-43
18:23		Dashawn Davis blocks Aaron Estrada's two point layup
18:21		Mohamed Wague offensive rebound
18:18	+2	Mohamed Wague makes two point dunk	42-43
17:58		Shakeel Moore turnover (lost ball) (Aaron Estrada steals)
17:52	+3	Rylan Griffen makes three point jump shot (Mark Sears assists)	45-43
17:26		Tolu Smith III misses two point layup
17:24		Grant Nelson defensive rebound
17:18		Dashawn Davis shooting foul (Aaron Estrada draws the foul)
17:18	+1	Aaron Estrada makes regular free throw 1 of 2	46-43
17:18	+1	Aaron Estrada makes regular free throw 2 of 2	47-43
17:07		Cameron Matthews turnover (lost ball) (Grant Nelson steals)
17:02	+2	Aaron Estrada makes two point layup (Grant Nelson assists)	49-43
16:38		Mohamed Wague shooting foul (Cameron Matthews draws the foul)
16:38	+1	Cameron Matthews makes regular free throw 1 of 2	49-44
16:38	+1	Cameron Matthews makes regular free throw 2 of 2	49-45
16:27		Aaron Estrada misses three point jump shot
16:25		Grant Nelson offensive rebound
16:22	+2	Grant Nelson makes two point layup	51-45
16:03		Jarin Stevenson personal foul
15:54		Tolu Smith III turnover (lost ball)
15:52		Aaron Estrada turnover (lost ball)
15:52		TV timeout
15:44		Shakeel Moore misses two point jump shot
15:42		Tolu Smith III offensive rebound
15:39	+2	Tolu Smith III makes two point layup	51-47
15:15		Grant Nelson offensive foul
15:15		Grant Nelson turnover (offensive foul)
15:02		Josh Hubbard misses three point jump shot
15:00		Mark Sears defensive rebound
14:46		Rylan Griffen misses two point jump shot
14:44		Tolu Smith III defensive rebound
14:33		Grant Nelson blocks Josh Hubbard's two point layup
14:31		Grant Nelson defensive rebound
14:25	+3	Mark Sears makes three point jump shot (Rylan Griffen assists)	54-47
13:56		Grant Nelson blocks Cameron Matthews's two point layup
13:54		Jarin Stevenson defensive rebound
13:44	+2	Mark Sears makes two point layup	56-47
13:41		Bulldogs 30 second timeout
13:41		TV timeout
13:29	+2	Shakeel Moore makes two point jump shot	56-49
13:07		Aaron Estrada turnover (out of bounds)
12:52		Nick Pringle blocks Jimmy Bell Jr.'s two point layup
12:50		Crimson Tide defensive rebound
12:40	+2	Mark Sears makes two point layup	58-49
12:40		Shawn Jones Jr. shooting foul (Mark Sears draws the foul)
12:40	+1	Mark Sears makes regular free throw 1 of 1	59-49
12:28		Shakeel Moore misses three point jump shot
12:26		Jimmy Bell Jr. offensive rebound
12:26		Nick Pringle personal foul
12:24	+3	Josh Hubbard makes three point jump shot (Shakeel Moore assists)	59-52
12:02	+3	Latrell Wrightsell Jr. makes three point jump shot (Mouhamed Dioubate assists)	62-52
11:36		Mouhamed Dioubate shooting foul
11:36		TV timeout
11:36	+1	Josh Hubbard makes regular free throw 1 of 3	62-53
11:36	+1	Josh Hubbard makes regular free throw 2 of 3	62-54
11:36	+1	Josh Hubbard makes regular free throw 3 of 3	62-55
11:17		Mark Sears turnover (traveling)
11:05	+2	Cameron Matthews makes two point dunk (Trey Fort assists)	62-57
10:49	+3	Latrell Wrightsell Jr. makes three point jump shot (Rylan Griffen assists)	65-57
10:35	+3	Josh Hubbard makes three point jump shot (D.J. Jeffries assists)	65-60
10:20		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. misses three point jump shot
10:18		Trey Fort defensive rebound
10:10		Josh Hubbard misses three point jump shot
10:08		Cameron Matthews offensive rebound
10:03		D.J. Jeffries misses two point layup
9:43		Mark Sears misses three point jump shot
9:41		D.J. Jeffries defensive rebound
9:21		Josh Hubbard misses two point layup
9:19		Cameron Matthews offensive rebound
9:13		Trey Fort misses three point jump shot
9:11		Tolu Smith III offensive rebound
9:09		Josh Hubbard misses three point jump shot
9:07		Grant Nelson defensive rebound
8:54		Aaron Estrada misses two point layup
8:52		D.J. Jeffries defensive rebound
8:31		D.J. Jeffries misses two point layup
8:29		Tolu Smith III offensive rebound
8:27		Tolu Smith III misses two point layup
8:25		Grant Nelson defensive rebound
8:16		D.J. Jeffries blocks Rylan Griffen's two point layup
8:14		Trey Fort defensive rebound
7:57		Grant Nelson blocks Tolu Smith III's two point layup
7:55		Grant Nelson defensive rebound
7:48		Rylan Griffen misses three point jump shot
7:46		Grant Nelson offensive rebound
7:43		Grant Nelson misses two point layup
7:41		D.J. Jeffries defensive rebound
7:39		TV timeout
7:28	+2	Cameron Matthews makes two point layup	65-62
7:06	+2	Rylan Griffen makes two point layup	67-62
6:50		Josh Hubbard misses three point jump shot
6:48		Tolu Smith III offensive rebound
6:45		Nick Pringle shooting foul (Tolu Smith III draws the foul)
6:45	+1	Tolu Smith III makes regular free throw 1 of 2	67-63
6:45	+1	Tolu Smith III makes regular free throw 2 of 2	67-64
6:23		Cameron Matthews personal foul
6:11		Aaron Estrada misses three point jump shot
6:09		Tolu Smith III defensive rebound
5:43		Rylan Griffen shooting foul (Tolu Smith III draws the foul)
5:43	+1	Tolu Smith III makes regular free throw 1 of 2	67-65
5:43	+1	Tolu Smith III makes regular free throw 2 of 2	67-66
5:15		Cameron Matthews shooting foul (Grant Nelson draws the foul)
5:15	+1	Grant Nelson makes regular free throw 1 of 2	68-66
5:15	+1	Grant Nelson makes regular free throw 2 of 2	69-66
5:07		Mouhamed Dioubate personal foul
5:07	+1	D.J. Jeffries makes regular free throw 1 of 2	69-67
5:07	+1	D.J. Jeffries makes regular free throw 2 of 2	69-68
4:51		Shakeel Moore personal foul
4:50		Shawn Jones Jr. blocks Grant Nelson's two point layup
4:48		Crimson Tide offensive rebound
4:46		Rylan Griffen misses three point jump shot
4:44		Shakeel Moore defensive rebound
4:33	+2	Tolu Smith III makes two point layup (Josh Hubbard assists)	69-70
4:11	+2	Rylan Griffen makes two point layup	71-70
4:03		Shakeel Moore misses two point layup
4:01		Tolu Smith III offensive rebound
4:01		Tolu Smith III misses two point layup
3:59		Crimson Tide defensive rebound
3:50	+3	Mark Sears makes three point jump shot	74-70
3:34	+2	Shakeel Moore makes two point layup	74-72
3:11		TV timeout
3:02		Mark Sears misses three point jump shot
3:00		Aaron Estrada offensive rebound
2:58		Aaron Estrada misses two point layup
2:56		Tolu Smith III defensive rebound
2:47		Tolu Smith III misses two point layup
2:43		Cameron Matthews offensive rebound
2:39	+2	Cameron Matthews makes two point layup	74-74
2:22	+2	Mark Sears makes two point jump shot	76-74
2:05		Grant Nelson shooting foul (Tolu Smith III draws the foul)
2:05		Tolu Smith III misses regular free throw 1 of 2
2:05		Tolu Smith III misses regular free throw 2 of 2
2:05		Rylan Griffen defensive rebound
1:46		Grant Nelson misses three point jump shot
1:44		Josh Hubbard defensive rebound
1:18		Tolu Smith III turnover (lost ball) (Aaron Estrada steals)
0:49		Tolu Smith III blocks Mark Sears's two point layup
0:47		Bulldogs defensive rebound
0:34		Grant Nelson shooting foul (Cameron Matthews draws the foul)
0:34		Cameron Matthews misses regular free throw 1 of 2
0:34		Cameron Matthews misses regular free throw 2 of 2
0:34		Aaron Estrada defensive rebound
0:26		D.J. Jeffries personal foul
0:26		Crimson Tide 30 second timeout
0:26		Shakeel Moore personal foul
0:26	+1	Mark Sears makes regular free throw 1 of 2	77-74
0:26	+1	Mark Sears makes regular free throw 2 of 2	78-74
0:26		Bulldogs 30 second timeout
0:18		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. shooting foul (Shakeel Moore draws the foul)
0:18		Shakeel Moore misses regular free throw 1 of 2
0:18		Shakeel Moore misses regular free throw 2 of 2
0:17		Crimson Tide defensive rebound
0:14		D.J. Jeffries personal foul
0:14	+1	Mark Sears makes regular free throw 1 of 2	79-74
0:14	+1	Mark Sears makes regular free throw 2 of 2	80-74
0:09		Josh Hubbard misses three point jump shot
0:07		Shawn Jones Jr. offensive rebound
0:06		Shawn Jones Jr. misses two point layup
0:04		Latrell Wrightsell Jr. defensive rebound
0:03		Shawn Jones Jr. personal foul
0:03	+1	Latrell Wrightsell Jr. makes regular free throw 1 of 2	81-74
0:03	+1	Latrell Wrightsell Jr. makes regular free throw 2 of 2	82-74
0:00		End of period

+ 1

Latrell Wrightsell Jr. makes regular free throw 2 of 2