Alabama Basketball Falls to No. 8 Creighton 85-82

Mark Sears' big-game isn't enough as foul trouble stymies the Crimson Tide late in Omaha.

Fouls, fouls, and more fouls.

On Saturday, Alabama basketball fell to No. 6 Creighton 85-82 in a game that saw two members of the Crimson Tide frontcourt foul out.

While Alabama controlled the boards for most of the game, winning the rebound battle, 37-32, it wasn't without a toll — as the Crimson Tide racked up 25 total fouls compared to the Blue Jays' 16.

The loss wasn't without a few valiant performances, though, as senior guard Mark Sears tallied 19 points on 9-for-16 shooting while grabbing four rebounds and dishing out an assist.

With the game standing at 83-80 with under 10 seconds to go, Sears converted a layup on a freely-given blow-by from Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner, who successfully avoided a foul — all but sealing the game in the final moments. 

For center Nick Pringle, it was his best performance of the year, as the 6-foot-11 junior finished the night with 15 points on 6-for-9 shooting while tallying seven rebounds.

This story will be updated with quotes from Alabama head coach Nate Oats.

Live Updates

(latest updates at the top)

Second Half

• FINAL - Creighton 85, Alabama 82.
• 0:03 - Creighton 83, Alabama 82 | Mark Sears converts the layup but isn't fouled after the basket. Creighton will in-bound.
• 4:22 - Creighton 74, Alabama 69 | Blue Jays extend their lead to five after the layup from Trey Alexander. 
• 6:54 - Creighton 68, Alabama 66 | Back-to-back dunks from Ryan Kalkbrenner put the Blue Jays back in front. 
• 8:27 - Alabama 66, Creighton 63 | Sears and Griffen go back-to-back for quick Crimson Tide run of layups.
• 12:55 - Alabama 58, Creighton 57 | A couple baskets from Mark Sears and Sam Walters keep the Crimson Tide in front.
• 15:32 - Alabama 53, Creighton 52 | Nick Pringle to the line shooting two. Rylan Griffen's up to five early points in the half after a step-back three and a quick jumper.

• 18:19- Alabama 48, Creighton 46 | First bucket of the half goes to Grant Nelson on a tip-in shortly after he picks up his third foul of the game. 

Halftime

StatBroadcast / StatBroadcast

First Half

• HALFTIME: Alabama 44, Creighton 44 | 24 points from the Crimson Tide frontcourt so far, and only two of them come from star forward Grant Nelson.
  
• 1:26 - Alabama 42, Creighton 42 | Scheierman and Alexander continue to get theirs, but Nick Pringle continues to control this game. He's up to 12 points and 5 rebounds on 5-for-7 shooting. 
• 3:23- Alabama 35, Creighton 34 | Crimson Tide take the lead thanks to a couple baskets from Pringle and Estrada. 
• 7:39- Creighton 25, Alabama 23 | Nick Pringle leads the way for Alabama with 7 points on 3-for-4 shooting from the field. Personal foul on Miller for Creighton.
• 8:18- Creighton 25, Alabama 21 | Frontcourt continues to shine for Alabama, but Trey Alexander and the Blue Jays have an answer for every haymaker so far. 
• 11:56- Creighton 14, Alabama 14 | Blue Jays going to the line to shoot two, but Crimson Tide have tied this one up in Omaha.
• 12:55- Creighton 14, Alabama 12 | Crimson Tide are getting some big-time production from the frountcourt after a three from Stevenson, and a pair of alley-oops to Wague and Pringle.

• 16:55- Alabama finally makes its first field goal on a layup from Mark Sears, Creighton still leads 8-3

• 18:07- Alabama has missed its first four shots from the floor. Meanwhile, the Bluejays have made their first 3-point shots for a 6-1 lead. 

• Creighton scores the first basket of the game with a 3-pointer to take the early 3-0 lead. 

• Alabama wins the opening tip, and this game is underway. 

Pregame

Starting lineups:

Alabama vs. Creighton starting lineups  / StatBroadcast

• Nate Oats says on the CTSN pregame show that Omaha native Latrell Wrightsell will start in place of Rylan Griffen. First start of the season for Wrightsell.

• Both Alabama and Creighton shoot 3-pointers at a high rate and percentage. 

Alabama and Creighton season stats / Statbroadcast

How to Watch: Alabama at Creighton

Who: Alabama (6-3) at No. 10 Creighton (8-2)

When: Saturday, Dec. 16, 7 p.m. CT

Where: CHI Health Center, Omaha, Neb.

TV: FOX

Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network (Play-By-Play: Chris Stewart, Analyst: Bryan Passink)

Series: Creighton leads, 2-0

Last Meeting: On March 15, 2016, Alabama and Creighton met in the opening round of the NIT. The Bluejays won 72-54, ending Avery Johnson's first season as head coach. Justin Coleman led the Crimson Tide with 18 points — Retin Obasohan added 13.

The two programs also met in the NCAA tournament in 2012. Creighton won that matchup as well — a 58-57 victory in the Round of 64.

Last Time Out, Alabama: The Crimson Tide lost to No. 4 Purdue, 92-86, in Toronto on Saturday. Guard Mark Sears scored 35, but it wasn't enough to overcome 35 points from Zach Edey and 27 points from Braden Smith.

Last Time Out, Creighton: The Bluejays defeated Central Michigan, 109-64, on Saturday. Six different players scored in double figures, led by 18 from Isaac Traudt.

Alabama Leaders:

• Scoring: Mark Sears (21.4 PPG)

• Rebounding: Grant Nelson (6.3 RPG)

• Assists: Mark Sears (3.9 APG)

Creighton Leaders:

• Scoring: Baylor Scheierman (18.6 PPG)

• Rebounding: Baylor Scheierman (7.3 RPG)

• Assists: Trey Alexander (4.9 APG)

Oats, Alabama Basketball Tired of Moral Victories Leading Up to Another Test at No. 8 Creighton