Alabama to Host No. 13/16 LSU Wednesday Night in the First of Back-To-Back Home Games

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama will play three of its final four games in Tuscaloosa this month, beginning with a Wednesday night showdown vs. No. 13 /16 LSU on ESPN2 at 6 p.m. CT. It marks the first of two contests played between the longtime rivals, as the Crimson Tide will make the return trip to Baton Rouge for the regular season finale on March 5 (CBS 11 a.m. CT). It is also the first time the Tide has played back-to-back home games since Nov. 16 (South Alabama) and Nov. 19 (Oakland).

A year ago, the Tide won all three games over the Tigers and have now won four straight overall in the series, including an 80-79 win in the SEC Tournament championship game. With the season series sweep, UA improved to 112-74 overall in the 186 games played between the rivals. The 186 meetings are the second-most Alabama has played against any single opponent, while the 112 wins rank as third best against any foe.

The Crimson Tide enters the contest trying to snap a three-game losing streak – the longest since the 2019-20 season. Alabama's last three losses have been by a combined 12 points, falling by six at Missouri, by two vs. Auburn and most recently a four-point defeat at Mississippi State last Saturday. The Tide is now 1-2 in one possession games and 3-3 in two possession contests this season. A year ago, UA finished 3-2 in one possession games and went 4-1 in games that game down to two possessions.

The Broadcast

Wednesday's game will be available on ESPN2 with Karl Ravech (play-by-play) and Jimmy Dykes (analyst) on the call
The radio broadcast can be heard on the Crimson Tide Sports Network with Chris Stewart (play-by-play), Bryan Passink (analyst) and Roger Hoover (sideline) on the call while Tom Stipe (engineer) is turning the dials. The pregame show will begin one hour prior to tipoff.

Notes You Need To Know

For the first time all season, the Crimson Tide fell out of the top-25 rankings and are receiving votes in both the Associated Press (26 votes, No. 29) and Ferris Mowers USA Today Coaches Poll (21 votes, No. 29) according to the most recent national rankings, which were revealed Monday afternoon.
According to the other metric rankings, Alabama is ranked in the following (as of 1/17): No. 17 KenPom.com, No. 19 ESPN.com BPI, No. 19 Sagarin and No. 24 in the NCAA NET rankings. The Tide's "Best" NET wins (Quad 1) include: Gonzaga (No. 1), Houston (No. 4), Tennessee (No. 13) and at Florida (No. 46).
Alabama is the only team in the country to have two wins versus teams ranked in the top five of the NCAA NET rankings (No. 1 Gonzaga and No. 4 Houston). The Tide also owns a 3-1 record vs. teams ranked in the AP Top 25 this season, with all three victories coming against top-15 ranked squads.
The Crimson Tide is the only team in the nation to have not played a Quad 4 opponent this season. The Tide owns a record of 4-3 vs. Quad 1 teams, 3-1 vs. Quad 2 and 4-1 vs. Quad 3 foes.
According to the most recent KenPom rankings (as of 1/17), the Tide ranks No. 9 in the nation in offensive efficiency, No. 12 in average possession length and No. 24 in adjusted tempo. The site also ranks UA No. 53 in the nation and defensive efficiency.
The Tide enters the contest ranked No. 2 in the SEC and No. 14 in the nation in scoring offense at 82.1 points per game. UA also leads the league in threes attempted (500), threes made (159) and threes made per game (9.4).
The Tide's schedule ranks No. 1 in the nation in average opponent NET ranking. In addition, Alabama's schedule strength is rated No. 1 by KenPom.com No. 1 by RealTimeRPI, No. 2 in the Sagarin rankings and No. 2 by ESPN BPI.
NET RANKING FACTS: Alabama has a NET Ranking of No. 24 in the nation as of 1/17 which is fifth-best in the SEC... of the 14 games remaining, six are Q1 opponents and five are Q2 ... UA is tied for second in the nation in Quad 1 wins (4) and ranks in a tie for fourth in combined Q1 and Q2 wins (7)... The Tide is the only team in the nation that owns two NCAA NET top-5 (No. 1 Gonzaga, No. 3 Houston)... UA has six games left against teams ranked in the NCAA NET top 11... Alabama is the one team in the nation to have not played a Q4 opponent.
UP NEXT: The Crimson Tide will welcome the Missouri Tigers to Coleman Coliseum on Saturday, Jan. 22 at 5 p.m. CT on SEC Network. UA will look to split the season series as just two weeks ago, then-No. 19/20 Alabama was upset in Columbia, Mo., falling to Mizzou 92-86 on Jan. 8.

About Alabama

The Crimson Tide is led by three players who average double figures in Jaden Shackelford (16.2 ppg), Jahvon Quinerly (14.8 ppg) and Keon Ellis (12.2 ppg). The trio combines to account for 53 percent (43.2 of the 81.8 points per game average), 69 percent of the three-pointers made (109 of 159), 52 percent field goals made (252 of 495) and 50 percent of the total free throws made (120 of 241).
The Tide youth has also shined this season. A pair of freshmen have also made their mark through the early portion of the schedule in guard JD Davison and center Charles Bediako. Davison, a consensus five star and McDonald's All-American, ranks second on the team in assists (4.2 apg) while also ranking among the team leaders at 8.1 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest. Bediako has been a force on the inside, collecting 7.0 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocks a game. Meanwhile, sophomore Juwan Gary has also been a force, averaging 8.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game.
As a team, Alabama is averaging 81.8 points per contest, which ranks second the SEC and is 14th nationally, and is ranked No. 9 in the nation in offensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com (1/17). The Tide is outscoring the competition by an average of 7.1 points per game (81.8-74.6) and own a +3.1 (39.9-36.8) advantage on the boards. The Tide is averaging 9.4 threes made per game, while shooting 45.5 percent from the field, 31.8 percent from beyond the arc and 71.3 percent from the charity stripe.
Defensively, the Crimson Tide is ranked 53rd nationally in defensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com. For the year, Alabama is allowing opponents to average 74.6 points per game while limiting foes to 42.9 percent shooting from the field and 29.4 percent from beyond the arc.
Alabama was picked to finish second in the league in voting by a select panel of both SEC and national media members. Kentucky was the preseason favorite to win this year's regular season title, followed by the Tide, Arkansas, Tennessee and Auburn to round out the top five. Both Quinerly and Shackelford were named to the SEC Preseason First Team.
The Tide holds an all-time record of 1,728-1,073-1 (.616), which includes an 817-631 (.565) record in SEC play. By capturing its 800th SEC win, Alabama joined Kentucky as the only two teams in conference history to reach the milestone. UA also became the third team in the SEC and 34th team in NCAA history to reach 1,700 program wins. Only Kentucky and Arkansas have more wins than the Crimson Tide.

About LSU

LSU enters the game owning a 15-2 overall mark and a 3-2 record in league play and is ranked No. 13 in the Associated Press Top 25 and No. 16 in the Ferris Mowers USA Today Coaches Poll, both of which were announced Monday. Most recently, dropped a narrow 65-58 decision at home to Arkansas last Saturday. The Tigers were leading by eight points, 56-48, late in the second half but allowed the Razorbacks to end the contest on a 17-2 run to result in their second league defeat.
Sophomore transfer Tari Eason (Cincinnati) has established himself as one of the top incoming transfers in the SEC this season. He leads his team in scoring average (15.4 ppg), field goal percentage (52.9 percent), field goals made (91) and blocks per game (1.2) while ranking second in rebounding (7.0 rpg).
Joining Eason in double figures are seniors Darius Days (14.0 ppg) and Xavier Pinson (10.9 ppg). Days also tops LSU in rebounding (7.6 rpg) and threes made (38) and attempted (110), while Pinson, a transfer from Missouri, is the team leader in assists (4.6 apg) and free throw percentage (81.9 percent).
As a team, LSU comes into the contest ranked No. 1 in the nation in defensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com. The Tigers lead the country in field goal percentage defense (35.4 percent) and steals per game (12.2). LSU also ranks fourth nationally in three-point field goal percentage defense (26.4 percent), fifth in scoring defense (57.0) and sixth in turnovers forced (18.7).
Offensively, the Tigers average 75.1 points per game and rank second in the conference in second in the conference in scoring margin (+18.1). LSU is shooting 44.7 percent from the field, 32.0 percent from beyond the arc and 72.0 percent from the charity stripe.
LSU head coach Will Wade is in his fifth year at the helm of the LSU program. During his time in Baton Rouge, Wade owns a record of 98-42 (.700) and has a career record of 187-87 (.682).

Alabama-LSU Series Notes

Alabama and LSU will meet for the 187th time in a series history that began during the 1915-16 season. The Tide owns a 112-74 lead in the all-time series. The 186 meetings are the second-most Alabama has played against any single opponent, while the 112 wins rank as third best against any foe.
The Crimson Tide captured three victories over the Tigers last season, the first time that's been accomplished since the 1986-87 season. In its last trip to the PMAC on Jan. 19, 2021, Alabama toppled LSU 105-75 while setting an SEC record by knocking down 23 three-pointers (23-of-43) en route to the 30-point win. That was folloed by a 78-60 win in Tuscaloosa to complete the regular season series sweep. The two teams once again squared off in the 2021 SEC Tournament championship game a year ago, with the Tide captured a thrilling 80-79 victory in Nashville, Tenn., at Bridgeston Arena.
UA enters the matchup having won four-straight games over the Tigers and nine of the last 12 contests. Alabama's last loss to LSU came on Jan. 29, 2020 in a 90-76 defeat to the Tigers in Baton Rouga.
Alabama and LSU have played in 10 overtime games in series history, including two triple overtime contests (2/10/90 & 2/23/13) and a quadruple overtime contest (2/12/72) – one of only two four-overtime game in school history. Alabama has an impressive 8-2 record when it has played LSU in overtime.
With last season's win, the Tide has won four of the last six games at LSU in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center (PMAC). It was the first time since 1974-77 that UA had won three-straight in Baton Rouge. In the 78 total games played at LSU, Alabama owns a record of 30-48.
The series began in 1915-16.

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