TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama men’s basketball team earned its first conference win of the season with a dominating 90-69 victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the SEC home opener at Coleman Coliseum. With the win, the Crimson Tide has now reached 90 or more points in five consecutive games which marks the first time in school history a UA team has achieved the feat.
Alabama (8-6, 1-1 SEC) collected its sixth win over the last eight contests as four players reached double-digits led by junior John Petty Jr. who scored a team-leading 18 points on the strength of 4-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc. The SEC leader in three-point percentage recorded double figures for the fifth-straight game and 10th time in UA’s last 11 contests.
Sophomore Kira Lewis Jr. finished with 17 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists, while junior Galin Smith added 11 points, matching the best single-game scoring output of his career, to go along with four rebounds and a pair of assists. Graduate senior Beetle Bolden added 11 points off the bench in the winning effort.
Mississippi State (9-5, 0-2) was led by Nick Weatherspoon’s 20 points on the night.
