The No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide survived an upset bid by No. 15 Robert Morris on Friday, winning 90-81 after a close game.
The Crimson Tide held a slim 40-36 lead after the first half, but the Colonials were not deterred even after Alabama extended the lead in the second. With a little under 13 minutes to go, a 3-pointer by Derrion Reid gave Alabama a 56-46 lead.
That’s when Robert Morris went on a big run.
Over the next five-plus minutes of action, the Colonials outscored the Crimson Tide 19-8 to take a 65-64 lead with seven minutes and 10 seconds to go.
Alabama immediately answered with a sizable run of its own, however, pulling off an 11-2 stretch to go back ahead 75-66 with a little over three minutes to go. The Crimson Tide would ultimately hold on for the victory.
Robert Morris was led by guard Amarion Dickerson, who scored 25 points on 11-of-22 shooting. Dickerson struggled from deep, however, hitting only one of his eight shots from beyond the arc. He also fouled out with a little more than one minute left in the game.
Alabama was led by senior star guard Mark Sears, who finished with 22 points, 5 rebounds and 10 assists. Sophomore forward Mouhamed Dioubate added 18 points and 10 rebounds off the bench.
The Crimson Tide will now await the winner of St. Mary’s and Vanderbilt in the second round.
