Undefeated Oregon looks to upset No. 9 Alabama | National

Ninth-seeded Alabama and undefeated Oregon meet Saturday in Las Vegas for the Players Era Festival championship. Alabama (6-1) advanced to Saturday’s title round with two narrow wins, defeating No. 6 Houston 85-80 in a big game that went into overtime on Tuesday; and Rutgers 95-90 on Wednesday. All-American guard Mark Sears led the Crimson Tide with 24 points in both wins, rebounding from a scoreless performance in just 21 minutes on Nov. 20 against Illinois. After starting 0-for-5 shooting, Sears did not play the final 11 minutes of the 100-87 win over the Illini at his own request, Alabama coach Nate Oats revealed afterward. Sears, who Oats said that night believed the Tide would do better without him, returned to form in Las Vegas. Grant Nelson had 17 points and nine rebounds in the win over Rutgers, and a reserve trio – Mouhamed Dioubate, Derrion Reid and Jarin Stevenson – each scored 10 points. Dioubate also grabbed nine rebounds. “So to speak, the second game in a row that we won because of our toughness and our rebounding,” Oats said in the postgame press conference. “We’re going to sort out our offense.” Although Alabama enters Saturday’s contest averaging 89.7 points per game, ranking 11th nationally, Oats was critical of the Crimson Tide’s efficiency. Alabama is shooting just 32.8 percent from 3-point range, a significant drop from the 37.3 percent the Tide shot in 2023-24 en route to the program’s first-ever Final Four appearance. Oregon (7-0), meanwhile, held its opponents to 29.5 percent shooting from distance after limiting San Diego State to 6 of 19 on 3-point attempts in the Ducks’ 78-68 semifinal win on Wednesday. With 22 points, TJ Bamba led five Oregon scorers in double figures. “TJ is doing things right now that we saw over the summer,” Ducks assistant coach Mike Mennenga said in a postgame radio interview. “He’s finding his rhythm and his comfort level, and most importantly, his teammates are behind him. They trust TJ and want him to be aggressive, they want him to be physical.” Bamba is averaging 13.1 points per game, making him one of four Ducks to score in double figures per game. Jackson Shelstad is scoring 10.3 points per game despite a slow opening of 9 of 35 from 3-point range. Brandon Angel averages 11 points per game. Oregon’s previous scoring leader is Nate Bittle with 14 points per contest. Against San Diego State, Bittle had 11 points, two blocked shots and nine rebounds, helping the Ducks to a 41-24 edge on the glass. Oregon has been solid on the boards through the first seven games, particularly on offense, where the Ducks have a 35 percent offensive rebounding rate, according to KenPom.com metrics. The Ducks opened the Players Era Festival on Tuesday with an 80-70 win over Alabama’s Southeastern Conference counterpart, Texas A&M. The two wins in Las Vegas extend a streak that included a road win over Oregon State on Nov. 21 and give Oregon its best start since the 2013-14 season, when it opened the season 13-13. 0. –Field level media