TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Chris Youngblood scored a career-high 27 points, and No. 6 Alabama torched the net with nearly half of its 45 three-point attempts, cruising to a dominant 111-73 victory over No. 24 Mississippi State on Tuesday night.
Mark Sears contributed 21 points and 10 assists for the Crimson Tide (23-5, 12-3 SEC), who set a season record by hitting 22 of 45 three-pointers (49%).
Youngblood was 7-for-11 from deep, while Sears connected on 5 of 12. Off the bench, Jarin Stevenson was perfect with three made three-pointers.
Aden Holloway also nailed three 3-pointers, finishing with 13 points and five assists, while Mouhamed Dioubate posted a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Labaron Philon chipped in with 10 points and five assists.
Mississippi State (19-9, 7-8) was led by Josh Hubbard, who scored 21 points on 8-of-22 shooting. KeShawn Murphy added 18 points and 11 rebounds in a strong bench performance.
The Bulldogs struggled to defend the three-point line, allowing Oklahoma to hit 11 of 26 from beyond the arc before Alabama’s barrage. Before these two games, Mississippi State hadn’t allowed an opponent to shoot over 40% from three since February 1.
Alabama’s defense bounced back from recent struggles in losses to No. 1 Auburn and No. 15 Missouri, where they allowed a combined 53% shooting. Mississippi State’s coach, Chris Jans, called a timeout late in the first half to halt a 10-4 run by Alabama, but Youngblood responded with back-to-back three-pointers, extending the lead to 20. The Crimson Tide went into halftime with a 26-point advantage.
Alabama outshot Mississippi State from three-point range, making 22 of 45 attempts, compared to the Bulldogs’ 28-of-73 shooting from the field (38%).
Next, Alabama travels to No. 5 Tennessee on Saturday, while Mississippi State will return home to face LSU.
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