The No. 2 seed Alabama Crimson Tide and No. 6 seed BYU will kick off the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 in the East Region at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ., on Thursday, March 27, starting at 7:09 p.m. ET
Odds
After pulling off the upset in the Round of 32 vs Wisconsin, the No. 6 seed BYU Cougars enter Thursday’s Sweet 16 matchup as +5.5 Underdogs, as the Crimson Tide look to march on to the Elite Eight. BYU +5.5 has been such a popular pick that the line has even shifted an entire point down to -4.5 on some Sportsbooks. I think Alabama comes out hot, has a great shooting night from beyond the arc, and covers the 5.5 point spread. The over/under set at 175.5, which feels high, but also feels like a very fun over to sweat.
ESPN’s matchup predictor gives Alabama a 64.8% chance to beat BYU and move on to the Elite Eight.
How to Watch, Stream Alabama vs BYU NCAA Tournament
Alabama vs Duke will be televised on CBS, which can be accessed on most TV providers starting at 7:09 p.m. ET on Thursday, March 27.
You can stream CBS directly on CBSSports.com and The CBS Sports apps, but a TV provider login may be required. Various other streaming platforms carry CBS, including Paramount+, Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, fuboTV, and DirecTV Stream. Some free trials, like on fuboTV, may be available.
Alabama Game Notes vs BYU
Head coach Nate Oats’ 117 wins in his first five seasons at Alabama stands as the most wins in a five-year span in program history.
Alabama is the only team in Division I that has three players on its roster that has started 100 career games or more throughout their collegiate careers in Chris Youngblood (118 starts), Mark Sears (114 starts) and Clifford Omoruyi (104 starts).
The Crimson Tide’s roster is the only roster in the country that has six players that have scored 1,000 career points throughout their Division I careers: Mark Sears (2,151 points), Chris Youngblood (1,732 points), Grant Nelson (1,483 points), Houston Mallette (1,295 points), Clifford Omoruyi (1,251 points) and Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (1,074 points).
Alabama is ranked No. 2 in the Associated Press Top-25 poll, the highest preseason ranking in program history, breaking the No. 7 ranking set in the 1990-91 season.
The Crimson Tide was picked to finish first in the league as voted on by a select panel of both SEC and national media members, the third time in program history (1991 and 2003) Alabama has been picked first in the SEC preseason poll.
Sears joins Erwin Dudley (2003) as the only players in program history to be named as the SEC Preseason Player of the Year.
Sears was named the Preseason National Player of the Year by Blue Ribbon Magazine along with being an Associated Press Preseason All-America selection and an NABC Player of the Year candidate.
Last season, Sears was a Sporting News All-America Second Team selection, becoming the third UA player under Oats to earn Sporting News All-America honors, joining Brandon Miller (Second Team, 2023) and Herbert Jones (Third Team, 2021).
Sears was the only Division I player last season that had 795 points, 150 rebounds, 145 assists and 95 threepointers this season and the only player the last 31 years to reach the milestone.
Alabama is one of two teams in the country (Indiana) that has a player named to the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Watch List (Clifford Omoruyi), Bob Cousy Watch List (Sears) and Karl Malone Watch List (Grant Nelson).
BYU Cougars Games Notes vs Alabama
Thursday’s matchup will be the third all-time meeting between the two schools and first since 2017. The Cougars are 0-2 against the Crimson Tide including a 71-59 setback on November 24, 2017 just across the Hudson River in the Barclays Center Classic. Yoeli Childs was the only Cougar to score in double figures in the loss finishing with a 21-point, 11-rebound double-double while current Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton had 10 points, seven rebounds and three assists for Alabama.
BYU is 1-3 all-time against sitting members of the Southeastern Conference in the NCAA Tournament since 1980 including a 83-74 overtime setback to Florida in the Cougars last Sweet 16 appearance in 2011.
In just his first season at BYU, Kevin Young became the sixth different coach in program history to win multiple NCAA Tournament games. His 26 wins are the most by a first-year head coach in program history, two more than current Kentucky head coach Mark Pope won in his first season in Provo (2019-20) before the season was canceled due to COVID-19.
BYU held off Wisconsin on Saturday giving the Cougars their 54th consecutive win when leading with five minutes left in regulation. They have won 68 of their last 70 when holding a late lead with the last loss coming on Jan. 8, 2022 against Saint Mary’s.
It was also the Cougars’ 29th consecutive win when scoring between 90-99 points. They are 105-5 since 2000-01 with the last loss in regulation coming against Ole Miss in the First Four of the 2015 NCAA Tournament.
Statistically speaking, Trevin Knell and Richie Saunders are having two of the best 3-point shooting performances in a single season in program history among players that have 70 or more makes from behind the arc.
Saunders is two 3-pointers away from becoming the eighth player in program history with 80 or more triples in a single season in program history as the junior’s 78 3-pointers are 16 more than he had combined in his first two seasons in Provo.
Knell is also making more 3-pointers than ever as the seniors knocked down 73 3-pointers, six more than he hit last season.
