The No.1 seed Alabama Crimson Tide earned their trip to the SEC Tournament Championship game with a 73-68 win over No. 4 seed Tennessee Saturday in Nashville.
Key word in the prior paragraph being “earned.” The Crimson Tide would enter the semi-final round of the tournament without Josh Primo, who was removed from Friday’s win over No. 9 seed Mississippi State after suffering a left MCL sprain.
Effects of Primo’s absence were felt early on. After Jaden Shackelford’s game-opening layup, Tennessee went on a run that saw them lead by as many as 12 in the first half, and take a 40-31 lead into halftime. The Volunteers would continue to lead the Tide, until the 5:26 mark in the 2nd half when Jahvon Quinerly sunk a layup to give Alabama the 60-59 lead, their first since 19:44 in the 1st half.
Both teams would trade leads, and even tied twice, over the next 1:24 of game time. Keon Ellis nailed a three-pointer with 4:02 remaining to give Alabama the lead for good.
Alabama awaits the winner of No. 2 Arkansas/No. 3 LSU in the championship game of the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Tip-off is scheduled for 12 p.m. CT. on ESPN, and the Crimson Tide Sports Network.