Alabama
Appalachian State
Alabama Men's Basketball Edges Past Appalachian State, 60-59
12/21/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Stingy defense down the stretch helped the Alabama men's basketball team close out Appalachian State, 60-59, on Sunday evening inside Coleman Coliseum. With the win, Alabama remains unbeaten at home, moving to 7-0 inside Coleman, and 8-3 overall for the season.
"I'm certainly proud of our guys for being able to get the win," said Alabama head coach Anthony Grant. "I thought Appalachian State came in and did a great job right from the jump. They had great energy for 40 minutes. Their guys played extremely hard, and (Appalachian State) coach (Jim) Fox is doing an outstanding job. Defensively, we were able to come up with some big stops and big rebounds to close the game out."
Alabama had three players score in double-digits on the evening, with sophomore Michael Kessens leading the charge thanks to his first double-double during his time in Tuscaloosa, recording Alabama career-highs of 17 points and 10 rebounds. Senior Levi Randolph was second in scoring for the Tide with 14 points and has scored in double-figures in every game this season. Randolph also contributed a career-high tying five assists for the evening. Junior guard Ricky Tarrant rounded out the double-digit scoring for Alabama, adding 11 points.
Playing its fourth game in nine days and second in three days, Alabama struggled to find its rhythm throughout the night. Trailing 45-37 with 13:01 left in the game, the Tide found some energy and went on a 17-6 run over the next4:51 to take a 52-51 lead - its first lead since a 2-0 advantage at the 19:35 mark of the first half.
Alabama never trailed again, holding Appalachian State to only two field goals over the final five minutes of play.
Freshman Jimmie Taylor finished the night with a career-high seven blocked shots, which are the most swats in a game since Moussa Gueye had five blocks vs. Kentucky on Jan. 22, 2013. Taylor's biggest block of the night came with 41 seconds to play to keep the Alabama lead.
After the Tide turned the ball over on its ensuing possession, it was up to the defense again. This time, Alabama's defense forced a rushed shot on the Mountaineers' final possession of the game, resulting in the one-point victory.
It marked the Tide's first one-point win since a 50-49 win over Texas A&M on Jan. 19, 2013.
The Mountaineers came out on fire, hitting four of its first six shots of the game, including a pair of three-pointers. Appalachian State led by as many as nine through the first 20 minutes and went to halftime ahead, 29-27.
App State was led by Tommy Spagnola's 18 points and 10 rebounds, while Dustin Clarke and Frank Eaves had 13 points apiece.
The Crimson Tide will break for the Christmas holiday after this evening's game. Alabama will return to action a week from today, hosting UCLA on Sunday, Dec. 28. The Tide and Bruins will tip off at 5:30 p.m. CT inside Coleman Coliseum with the game airing on ESPNU.
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