TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Brandon Miller scored 17 points and Marc Sears had 16 to lead No. 7 Alabama to an 84-62 victory over Mississippi on Tuesday night.
The Crimson Tide (12-2, 2-0 Southeastern Conference) raced to a 21-point halftime lead, shot 9 of 20 on 3-pointers and placed five scorers in double figures. The Rebels (8-5, 0-2) finished just 2 of 24 on 3s (8.3%) in their third straight loss.
Jaden Bradley added 14 points for Alabama, hitting 10 of 12 free throws. Jahvon Quinerly had 11 points while Noah Clowney scored 10 to go with eight rebounds.
Miller’s biggest highlight wasn’t one of his dunks, but a 3-pointer from near midcourt to beat the shot clock in the final minutes for the SEC’s leading scorer.
Jaemyn Brakefield led Ole Miss with 14 points. Daeshun Ruffin scored 13 but missed all seven 3-point attempts. Matthew Murrell had nine points on 4-of-13 shooting. The Rebels’ leading scorer was 1 of 11 for five points against Tennessee.
Alabama scored the final nine points of the first half for a 44-23 lead. Quinerly capped it with a 3 from the right corner off a pass from Miller to follow up the freshman’s back-to-back dunks.
Miller was coming off his third SEC freshman of the week honor.
THE TAKEAWAY
Mississippi: Lost for the second consecutive game to a team ranked No. 7, but this was a lot less competitive than the Tennessee game (63-59). … Ole Miss made just 24 of 69 shots (35%).
Alabama: Won its sixth straight against the Rebels and third in a row overall since losing to Gonzaga. Committed only seven turnovers.
UP NEXT
Mississippi visits Mississippi State on Saturday night.
Alabama hosts Kentucky on Saturday.
___
AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top2