Pete Thamel ESPN9:09 PM ET4 Minute Read
Louisville, Kentucky. — Alabama, the No. 1 overall who emerged as the most dominant and divisive team in a turbulent 2022-23 season, stuttered aggressively and found an exit from the NCAA tournament Friday night.
The Crimson Tide vacillated between reckless and reckless in a sloppy 71-64 loss to No. 5 San Diego State as they ended the night with 14 turnovers and just shooting 3-to-27 from 3-point range.
San Diego State secures the program’s first-ever spot in the Elite Eight, led by Darrion Trammell’s 21 points and an unwavering defensive decision that reduced Alabama’s dreams of a first-ever Final Four to a puddle of frustration and missed shots.
The Aztecs have remained a consistent NCAA tournament team through coach Brian Dutcher’s six seasons, and they’ve stifled Alabama’s offense by keeping the Crimson Tide at less than 33% of the standings. The team with the defiant “I BELIEVE THAT WE WILL WIN” chant implemented this through hard offensive at times and a nine-point deficit in the second half.
Alabama star forward Brandon Miller, a likely top-five NBA draft pick, is likely to end his college career with a dismal 3-on-19 shooter in which he took more than 12 minutes to get his first basket achieve.
Alabama was the sport’s awkward juggernaut, winning the SEC and the SEC tournament and becoming the tournament’s top team on selection Sunday. But for all of Alabama’s talent and depth, they couldn’t get past an offensive quagmire midway through the second half. The Tide’s offense relies almost entirely on shooting layups and 3-pointers, which has left them prone to bad shooting nights.
Alabama seemed to take control of the game early in the second half, closing up on a five-point halftime deficit by picking up the pace and eventually hitting a few shots. But after a 48-39 lead with 11:40 remaining, Alabama’s offense faded.
San Diego State ran 12 straight points topped by an Adam Seiko 3-pointer. And with the Aztecs back in the game, Alabama fell apart.
Perennial senior point guard Jahvon Quinerly had four shots blocked in three minutes of the second half and finished the game with three turnovers. Miller kept firing 3-pointers to finish 1-for-10 of 3. And the tide was sometimes just pushed around by the stalwart SDSU front line of Keshad Johnson, Matt Bradley and Nathan Mensah.
San Diego State managed to draw the excitement with top scorer Bradley scoring just six points on 2-for-9 shooting, including no points in the first half. This was not a game where the Aztecs shot out the lights, they simply overwhelmed the tide and turned out the lights.
Entering the game with the country’s No. 6 defense, SDSU turned the game to a slugfest to keep it within reach, leading 28-23 at the half and holding it at a considered pace. The Aztecs kept Miller uncored for the first 12:45 of the game, forcing him into early trouble and mixing in a full-court press to throw Alabama off-beat. (Nine minutes from time, Miller nearly committed his third first-half foul, but officials decided to hand it to guard Mark Sears — a phantom call on a night of generally spooky administration.)
San Diego State defeated No. 12 Charleston and No. 13 Furman en route to the Sweet 16, one of the easier paths. The Aztecs looked athletically stunning for those opponents and didn’t seem overwhelmed by Alabama’s extensive roster of athletes and future NBA picks that have overwhelmingly overwhelmed much of the SEC this season.
“It’s one of the most memorable seasons of all time,” said Alabama coach Nate Oats. “It’s not easy to win the regular season and the SEC tournament in the same year and pull off a Sweet 16 run. It’s a great group that really loves each other. They will be close for life.”
The upset ends a promising season for Alabama that will be remembered as the rare combination of the nation’s most talented and controversial team.
Alabama endured a wave of bad publicity by keeping Miller, one of the best players on one of the best teams in school history, on the court after Miller’s name surfaced in court testimony in the murder case of former Alabama player Darius Miles and another last month Man charged in the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Jamea Harris on January 15. A police officer testified that Miles, who was later fired from the team, texted Miller asking him to bring Miles’ gun in the early-morning hours of filming. Starter colleague Jaden Bradley was also there. Neither Miller nor Bradley have been charged with a crime, and the university has identified Miller as a cooperating witness rather than a suspect.