Crimson Tide Survives Against Chattanooga, 76-72
12/16/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Tuscaloosa, Ala.-Kennedy Winston scored 14 of his 20 points in the second half including eight of Alabama's final 10 points over the last 4:15 as the University of Alabama men's basketball team was able to hold off a late second half charge from Chattanooga to take a 76-72 victory Tuesday night at Coleman Coliseum. The win improves the Crimson Tide to 5-2 for the season, while Chattanooga falls to 5-3.
After holding a 36-33 halftime advantage, Alabama went on a 11-2 run capped by a three pointer from Earnest Shelton to take a 60-50 lead with 10:17 remaining in the contest. However the Mocs came back, outscoring the Tide 18-6 over the next five minutes, taking a 68-66 lead.
From there Winston took over for Bama, hitting a three to give the Tide a 69-68 advantage. Chattanooga took a 72-71 lead on a lay-up from Ashley Champion, who led all scorers with 22 points. Winston however converted two free throws with 1:11 remaining and made a tip in with just 24 seconds left to give Alabama a three point lead. Winston then iced the game by hitting a free throw with six seconds left following a Chattanooga turnover to seal the four point victory.
Alabama head coach Mark Gottfried was pleased with the victory.
"I am proud of our guys," Gottfried said. "I thought they played very, very hard. We guarded them when we needed to. They did beat us in transition a few times. They really got the ball down the floor. We needed to execute our offense and we did. We got some shutouts when we had to and got some big plays. We end up getting out of here with the win and we feel good about it."
Shelton added 19 points for Alabama and Emmett Thomas added 13 points off the bench. Chuck Davis scored 12 points on five of six shooting. Antoine Pettway only scored two points but dished out a career high nine assists.
Chattanooga had five players score in double figures. In addition to Champion, the Mocs were led by Chris Brown who scored 16 points, 14 of which came in the second half. Also contributing for Chattanooga were Jason Rogan with 14 points, Alphonso Pugh and Ray Trowell who scored 10 points apiece.
Alabama returns to action Saturday as the Tide travels to Las Vegas, Nevada to take on the Oregon Ducks in the Las Vegas Showdown. Tip-off for the game is set for 9:00 p.m. C.S.T. The game can be seen on ESPN2 and can be heard on the Crimson Tide Sports Network.
