Tuesday night delivered yet another thrilling upset in college basketball as No.9 Alabama pulled off a victory over the No.6 Houston Cougars, winning 85-80 in a hard-fought overtime battle. The game was tightly contested from start to finish, with both teams showing impressive resilience. While Alabama’s entire squad contributed to the victory, one name stood out above the rest—Mark Sears, who achieved a historic milestone for the program in the 21st century.

At halftime, the sixth-ranked Houston held a narrow lead over Alabama. But Alabama came out strong in the second half, dominating the game and securing an overtime victory. Mark Sears was the star of the night, delivering an impressive 24-point performance. The senior guard reached 20+ points for the 32nd time, the most by any Crimson Tide player in the past 25 years.

ESPN analyst and SEC Network journalist Cole Cubelic highlighted the milestone and tweeted on X: “Mark Sears now has 32 20-point games… the most by any @AlabamaMBB player over the last 25 seasons.”

Currently valued at $2 million by On3, Sears was on fire from beyond the arc, hitting four of his eight three-point attempts. His free throw accuracy was equally impressive, converting 12 of 14 attempts. Additionally, he contributed four rebounds and three assists to his all-around performance.

This marked Alabama’s fifth victory of the season, while Houston’s coach Kelvin Sampson saw his team’s hopes of extending their winning streak to three come to an end. It was a tightly contested game, with players from both teams putting up a tough fight.

Alabama triumphs in overtime thriller, seizing momentum ahead of Rutgers clash

The first half saw Houston hold a narrow two-point lead, but the game was anything but predictable, with both teams swapping the lead multiple times. As the second half unfolded, Alabama closed the gap. Alabama seemed to be in control with an eight-point lead and just 8:53 left in regulation. But Houston wasn’t done yet; they clawed their way back to force overtime.

 In the extra period, Alabama turned up the heat, outscoring the Cougars 7-2 to secure the win. Despite Houston’s LJ Cryer pouring in a career-high 30 points, including a clutch attempt to win the game in the final seconds, his mid-range baseline jumper missed the mark.

For Alabama, along with Mark Sears, Grant Nelson contributed a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Mouhamed Dioubate dominated the boards, adding 16 rebounds to his 10 points. This matchup marked Alabama’s third consecutive game against a Top 25 team. After a tough loss to No. 13 Purdue, where they fell 87-78, the Crimson Tide bounced back with a thrilling 100-87 victory over No. 25 Illinois on a neutral court in Birmingham.

It’ll be exciting to see how Nate Oats leads his team moving forward, especially after their big win over a higher-ranked opponent. With the momentum on their side, Alabama is gearing up to face the Rutgers Scarlet Knights tonight!