Mark Sears leads No. 9 Alabama to victory in overtime thriller over No. 6 Houston

Coming off the first scoreless game of his Alabama career, Mark Sears made sure it wouldn’t happen again on Tuesday night.

The senior guard led the Crimson Tide with 24 points, including a crucial 3-pointer in the final minute of the game and the opening minutes of overtime, as No. 9 Alabama defeated No. 6 Houston 85 in the opening round of the Players Era Festival: 80 defeated in Las Vegas.

Alabama saw an eight-point lead quickly disappear in the second half as Houston went on a 10-0 run, but the Crimson Tide fought back in the final four minutes to force overtime. Sears scored first in overtime, giving the Crimson Tide a lead they never relinquished in overtime.

The defense finished in overtime and only allowed two points after regular time. The game fully embodied Nate Oats’ blue-collar mentality, and no one embodied it more than Mouhamed Dioubate.

The second-year forward was phenomenal on both sides of the Crimson Tide with his first career double-double (10 points and 16 rebounds). Five of Dioubate’s career-best 16 rebounds came on offense.

Auburn transfer Aden Holloway also had some key hits for the Crimson Tide, scoring 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting. Grant Nelson and Latrell Wrightsell Jr. also scored in double figures for Alabama.

It was a tough night for Alabama freshman Labaron Philon, who entered the game as the Tide’s third-leading scorer with 12.8 points per game but finished the night with just one point on 0-of-9 shooting from the floor.

Overall, the first half was a back and forth affair. Both teams made attempts and seemed to break away, but then the other team responded. The game began with a defensive struggle, with Alabama struggling to even get shots up and turning the game around on four of its first five possessions. But the offense calmed down as the game progressed.

Houston and Alabama have now met in three consecutive seasons, with all three games being close and the Crimson Tide claiming victories. The Cougars had the ball with 22 seconds left and the game was tied 78-78. LJ Cryer, who led Houston with 30 points, fired a shot with two seconds left but couldn’t get it to fall.

Alabama gets its second win of the season and improves to 5-1 on the season. The Crimson Tide will return to the Vegas court for another game in the Players Era Tournament against Rutgers on Wednesday night at 9 p.m

This story will be updated.