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Saturday, December 30
Birmingham, Ala.
2:00 PM ET/1:00 PM CT
Liberty University
10-4,0-0CUSA
56
vs
101
Alabama
8-5,0-0SEC
1
2
F
Liberty
27
29
56
Alabama
48
53
101
Alabama Tops Liberty in 2023 C.M. Newton Classic
12/30/2023 6:08:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Alabama Crimson Tide topped the Liberty Flames 101-56 in the 2023 C.M. Newton Classic, Saturday afternoon at Legacy Arena.
Liberty falls to 10-4 on the season and sees a three-game winning streak halted. The Crimson Tide bolsters its record to 8-5 this year following its second straight win.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Kaden Metheny 14 points, 4-10 3FG, 4 rebounds; Zach Cleveland 13 points, 6-11 FG, 6 rebounds, 5 assists
Alabama Individuals: Latrell Wrightsell Jr. 19 points, 5-7 3FG; Mark Sears 16 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists; Aaron Estrada 13 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 steals; Grant Nelson 12 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks
Key Team Stats: Liberty shot 33.3 percent (21-of-63) from the field, its worst shooting performance of the season. The Flames connected on 10-of-35 from long distance (28.6 percent). Conversely, Alabama finished the game at 58.3 percent (35-of-60) from the floor and an even 50 percent (14-of-28) from three-point territory. The Crimson Tide outrebounded the Flames 46-24 and held edges in points in the paint (42-18), second chance points (17-8), fast break points (14-0) and bench points (44-17). Liberty assisted on 15 of 21 made field goals, while Alabama dished out 21 assists on 35 makes. The Flames attempted only six free throws in the game, making four (66.7 percent). The Crimson Tide connected on 17-of-20 foul shots (85 percent).
Thoughts From Head Coach Ritchie McKay
"I'm really impressed with Alabama's team. They can hurt you in a lot of ways, and we experienced that this afternoon. I'm disappointed that we didn't give them a better fight. Hats off to them. They're a very good team."
Turning Point
After a slow start (1-of-6) from the field, Alabama made 15 of its final 22 shots (68.2 percent) over the final 15:08 of the first half to build a 48-27 lead at the break. The Tide shot 60 percent from long distance (9-of-15) and 87.5 percent (7-of-8) from the foul line in the opening 20 minutes.
Liberty scored 11 of the first 17 points of the second half to get within, 54-38, at the 15:53 mark. Alabama answered with a 19-3 run of its own over the next 5:14 to build a commanding 73-41 lead. Mark Sears scored the final six points of the run for the Crimson Tide.
Key Stats & Notes
Liberty will play its first game in 2024 on New Year's Day against Boyce (4-5). Tip time between the Flames and Bulldogs (4-5) is set for 11 a.m. at Liberty Arena. The game can be seen on ESPN+.
This will be the second all-time meeting between the two squads. Liberty topped Boyce 91-60 on Dec. 31, 2021 at home.
Liberty falls to 10-4 on the season and sees a three-game winning streak halted. The Crimson Tide bolsters its record to 8-5 this year following its second straight win.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Kaden Metheny 14 points, 4-10 3FG, 4 rebounds; Zach Cleveland 13 points, 6-11 FG, 6 rebounds, 5 assists
Alabama Individuals: Latrell Wrightsell Jr. 19 points, 5-7 3FG; Mark Sears 16 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists; Aaron Estrada 13 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 steals; Grant Nelson 12 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks
Key Team Stats: Liberty shot 33.3 percent (21-of-63) from the field, its worst shooting performance of the season. The Flames connected on 10-of-35 from long distance (28.6 percent). Conversely, Alabama finished the game at 58.3 percent (35-of-60) from the floor and an even 50 percent (14-of-28) from three-point territory. The Crimson Tide outrebounded the Flames 46-24 and held edges in points in the paint (42-18), second chance points (17-8), fast break points (14-0) and bench points (44-17). Liberty assisted on 15 of 21 made field goals, while Alabama dished out 21 assists on 35 makes. The Flames attempted only six free throws in the game, making four (66.7 percent). The Crimson Tide connected on 17-of-20 foul shots (85 percent).
Thoughts From Head Coach Ritchie McKay
"I'm really impressed with Alabama's team. They can hurt you in a lot of ways, and we experienced that this afternoon. I'm disappointed that we didn't give them a better fight. Hats off to them. They're a very good team."
Turning Point
After a slow start (1-of-6) from the field, Alabama made 15 of its final 22 shots (68.2 percent) over the final 15:08 of the first half to build a 48-27 lead at the break. The Tide shot 60 percent from long distance (9-of-15) and 87.5 percent (7-of-8) from the foul line in the opening 20 minutes.
Liberty scored 11 of the first 17 points of the second half to get within, 54-38, at the 15:53 mark. Alabama answered with a 19-3 run of its own over the next 5:14 to build a commanding 73-41 lead. Mark Sears scored the final six points of the run for the Crimson Tide.
Key Stats & Notes
- Kaden Metheny paced the Flames with 14 points, knocking down a team-high four threes. Metheny has scored in double figures 11 times in the last 12 games.
- Zach Cleveland finished the game with 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting. The sophomore forward added a team-high six rebounds and team-best five assists.
- This is only the Flames' second double-digit loss of the season.
- Liberty is 4-2 in neutral site games this year.
- Alabama improves to 3-0 all-time against Liberty, including a 2-0 mark over the last two seasons.
- This is the first time in nearly 11 years that the Flames have given up over 100 points in a game. The last time came on Feb. 19, 2013, a 102-101 loss at Longwood.
- Liberty's 56 points are its fewest of the season. The last time the Flames scored less than 56 points was when they scored 52 and 55 points in back-to-back games at the 2022 Cancun Challenge against Northwestern (66-52 loss) and Bradley (55-44 win).
- The Crimson Tide entered the day third in the nation in scoring offense (92.2 ppg) and finished with its fifth 100-point game of the 2023-24 season. Liberty came into the game averaging 79.2 ppg and fell 23 points below its season average.
- The C.M. Newton Classic was created to honor C.M. Newton and the legacy he left. Newton coached at Alabama, Transylvania and Vanderbilt and was the first coach in the SEC to put forward an all-African American starting five while integrating the men's basketball team at Alabama. The game honors his commitment to diversity and inclusion and honors local organizations that are creating a similar impact in the Birmingham community.
Liberty will play its first game in 2024 on New Year's Day against Boyce (4-5). Tip time between the Flames and Bulldogs (4-5) is set for 11 a.m. at Liberty Arena. The game can be seen on ESPN+.
This will be the second all-time meeting between the two squads. Liberty topped Boyce 91-60 on Dec. 31, 2021 at home.
Team Stats
Lib
Bama
FG%
.333
.583
3FG%
.286
.500
FT%
.667
.850
RB
24
46
TO
9
8
STL
2
8
Game Leaders
Pts
14
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
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