Alabama basketball is off to the Sweet Sixteen for the third consecutive year. The Crimson Tide beat Saint Mary’s 80-66 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, earning the right to play in the second weekend.

As the Tide begins to prep for a matchup with BYU, here’s what to know from the win.

Following the plan

The game was always going to be a clash of styles. Saint Mary’s moving slowly and deliberately, taking as much clock as it could on offense and allowing as few possessions as possible for opponents.

Alabama plays the game a bit differently. In the leadup to the game, UA head coach Nate Oats said he didn’t think the Crimson Tide could speed up the Gaels offensively and would instead need to get defensive rebounds so it could run down the court.

Early on, Alabama did just that. The Crimson Tide did a solid job of limiting Saint Mary’s to one-shot possessions, giving itself chances to move fast on the other end.

However, even with the Gaels making just 9-of-23 shots from the field in the first half, Alabama couldn’t pull away. Eight turnovers, which led to eight Saint Mary’s points, hurt the Tide.

“We gotta stop turning the f****** ball over,” Oats shouted from the sideline after the seventh giveaway.

Late in the half, the Crimson Tide did better in that department. As a result, UA finished the half up 42-29, not out of the woods, but well in control.

Ending the streak

To get the win, Alabama had to break a streak. The Gaels hadn’t given up 80 points to an opponent since 2022, 105 consecutive games according to ESPN.

Alabama ticked over that mark with just seconds left in the game, but it still counted. Jarin Stevenson scored the two points that got UA there with 35 ticks left on the clock.

The offense took a group effort for the Crimson Tide. Just like in the first round, oftentimes the most reliable play seemed to be a lob to Cliff Omoruyi, who finished with 10 points to go with his team-leading 11 rebounds.

Chris Youngblood led Alabama in scoring with 13 points. Mark Sears, Grant Nelson and Aden Holloway had 12 each.

What’s next?

Alabama won’t have to wait to find out its next opponent. The Crimson Tide will face BYU in the Sweet Sixteen, next weekend in Newark, N.J.

The Cougars advanced to the second weekend by beating No. 3-seed Wisconsin in the second round on Saturday. The sixth-seeded BYU squad began its NCAA Tournament run with a win over VCU in the first round.

The Wisconsin win was a 91-89 thriller, sealed by the UW’s John Tonje missing a potential tying shot as time expired.

BYU is led by head coach Kevin Young, in his first season with the program after Mark Pope left for Kentucky this past offseason. Young joined up after a stint on staff with the NBA’s Phoenix Suns.

Richie Saunders leads the Cougars in scoring this season, with 16.3 points per game. Keba Keita has the team lead in rebounds, at 7.9 per game.

Alabama and BYU will face off Thursday.