Alabama (17-13, 10-8 in SEC) is a case of good news, bad news. The bad news: Alabama is last in the SEC in scoring offense, averaging 68.4 points per game. The good news: The Crimson Tide are first the SEC in scoring defense in the SEC, allowing 64.7 points per game.
They play lockdown defense and dictate the pace of the game, but they’re not playing their best basketball at the moment. They come into the tournament after losing three of the final four games of the regular season.
Mississippi State (16-15, 6-12 in SEC) wants to get up and down a little bit more.