By Kenneth Cross
NASHVILLE – Alabama’s one-two punch of Brandon Miller and 6-10 freshman Noah Clowney allowed the Crimson Tide to outlast Missouri, 72-61. However, the Crimson Tide’s 18-5 run midway through the second half saw Miller score 11 of his 20 points as Alabama held Missouri to 34 percent from the field in dismissing Missouri in Saturday’s first SEC semifinal.
The Tigers led 39-36 with 14:23 to play before the Crimson Tide delivered their knockout punch on that 18-5 run. The Tigers were just 1-of-7 with two turnovers in 10 possessions that were built around Alabama’s run.
Miller hit a pair of 3s while getting to the rim for two layups in that stretch. He finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds as he was 8 of-11 from the floor.
“It’s a game of runs,” said Alabama head coach Nate Oats. “If you are going to win three days in a row, you got to find ways to win it.”
Clowney was a tough matchup with his size and shooting ability as he was 9-of-11 from the floor with 19 points. He shoots 67.5 percent on the season from 2-point range and he and Miller equate to coach Nate Oats’ leading rebounders as Clowney leads with 8.2 per game.
Missouri rolled out of a 24-14 deficit with 5:36 left in the first half as D’Moi Hodge and Noah Carter scored seven points each in cutting the Crimson Tide lead to 31-29 at halftime. Hodge caught a cross-the-court pass as he was parallel to the basket in three-point range and lifted a nearly impossible three to put more pressure on Alabama at halftime.
Kobe Brown (15.9 ppg) and D’Moi Hodge (14.3 ppg) came in as Missouri’s top two scorers, but the Alabama defense stopped Brown, who had six points on 3-of-9 shooting in 32 minutes.
“Number one thing was getting back in transition,” explained Oats. “This team likes to run like we like to run. If you look at fast break points, they will wound up with 18.”