Tide Wins Findlay Toyota Las Vegas Classic
12/24/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
LAS VEGAS (AP) -Alonzo Gee had 23 points and 11 rebounds Sunday night to lead Alabama to a runaway 83-68 victory against Iowa State in the championship game of the Las Vegas Classic.
Gee, who made 7-of-11 field goals, was one of three players from Alabama (9-3) on the all-tournament team.
He teamed with Richard Hendrix to dominate in the second half.
Hendrix, also on the all-tournament team, was limited to six minutes in the first half with foul trouble, scored 12 of his 18 points in the second half and had seven rebounds.
With the game tied at halftime, the Crimson Tide limited Iowa State to 26 percent shooting in the second and led by as many as 17.
Tournament MVP Mykal Riley added 18 points for the Tide and Rico Pickett had 13.
The last of Riley's four 3-pointers gave Alabama an 81-64 lead with 3:44 to play.
The Crimson Tide shot 56 percent in the first half and made its first five 3-pointers to open a 26-19 advantage with 8:59. But Hendrix went to the bench with two fouls and Iowa State (7-5) went on a 21-12 run to lead 40-38 with 2.8 seconds left in the half.
Hendrix out-jumped a pair of Iowa State defenders for a long inbound pass and converted an easy layup to even the score at halftime.
Iowa State was led by Wesley Johnson with 20 points. He was the lone Cyclone in double figures.
After a very brief break for Christmas Day, the Tide will re-convene on the practice floor Wednesday to prepare for it next game, George Washington, whom Alabama hosts at 5 p.m. CT on December 29. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased on the internet at Alabama's official website, www.rolltide.com or by calling 1-877-tidetix. Alabama is offering a holiday package where fans can purchase four tickets to that game or the January 1 Clemson game or the January 4 Chicago State game for a total of $20 (for those 4 tickets per game) and only $5 for each additional ticket beyond the four for that game. Single game non-conference tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for kids 18 and under.
Cyclones Rahshon Clark and Jiri Hubalek were named to the all-tournament team.
