Never count out the Tide

It's a slightly shorter Daily today, but don't hold it against us. We're busy prepping for everything else coming this month.

Let's get to the news.

1. Alabama wins SEC title in dramatic fashion

To say Alabama's 90-85 overtime win on Wednesday night was wild would be an understatement. Dramatic, suspenseful, unpredictable — those words do it more justice.

The No. 2 Crimson Tide overcame a 17-point deficit with 10:49 remaining in the second half, making it their biggest comeback in 12 seasons. The cherry on top was they clinched the regular-season SEC title over their in-state rival.

“It was a big night tonight for us," coach Nate Oats said afterward. "To be down 17 with just over 10 minutes to go in the game and come back to win, I couldn't be prouder of our guys."

It wasn't a game with one run, either. Both teams looked terrific at times. Auburn (19-11, 9-8 in SEC) was ready from the jump, leading by 12 points in the first half. But Bama (26-4, 16-1) hit the gas right away in the second half, tying the game, only for Auburn to push it back to a double-digit advantage minutes later.

Bama again clawed its way back, survived some late mistakes in regulation, and pulled off a thrilling win.

For Auburn, Wednesday must have been a gut punch. Despite good offensive games from Allen Flanigan (18 points) and KD Johnson (21 points), it couldn't close out the Tide. And some calls didn't sit well with coach Bruce Pearl, particularly on center Johni Broome: “There was a pass over the top, three guys tackled him, that play? We’re at Alabama, they play football over there at the football stadium. We threw the ball, couple defensive backs climb on his back. Then the ball went out of bounds.”

As for Alabama, it's never out of any game. The Oats era in Tuscaloosa is recognized for up-tempo basketball with a ton of perimeter jumpers, but the 3-point shot wasn't what brought Alabama back on Wednesday night. It was the driving ability from Jahvon Quinerly, getting past Auburn defenders on nearly every possession, scoring 24 points on a night when Brandon Miller (3-of-12 from the field) struggled.

Speaking faux pas aside, Oats has been brilliant for Alabama basketball. That's now two regular-season titles in the past three seasons, the best stretch for the Tide since 1974-76 when it won three in a row. They may be the popular pick to win it all when the brackets are announced in less than two weeks.

2. Xavier puts on offensive clinic

Xavier can't win the Big East, but it did something Wednesday night no other Big East has done in more than a year: Win at Providence.

The Musketeers (22-8, 14-5 in Big East) showed off their elite offense, connecting on 34-of-61 shots (55 percent), including 10-of-20 shots beyond the arc. That kind of night will win you most games, even at the AMP. Guards Colby Jones and Souley Boum combined for 62 points on 21-of-30 shooting.

Sean Miller spoke glowingly about the star duo postgame: “You add them up, they're 21-of-30 from the field, 7-of-12 from 3, 13-of-14 from the foul line. They had 16 rebounds and eight assists and 62 points. Souley Boum was as good as any guard in the country tonight and Colby was right there with him."

Xavier was a 4-seed in Fielding the 68's most recent bracket, but with a run in the Big East Tournament, it might end up as a 3-seed — and position itself for its best March run since 2017, especially once forward Zach Freemantle returns.

3. Pitt's ACC crown on hold, plus other results

Notre Dame 88, Pittsburgh 81It seems poetic that in Mike Brey’s final home game as Notre Dame's coach, he leads the Irish to the upset win over No. 25 Pittsburgh (21-9, 14-5 in ACC.) All five Notre Dame starters scored in double figures, led by 20-a-piece from Marcus Hammond and Cormac Ryan.

Miami and Virginia are now tied with the Panthers atop the ACC. The Canes host Pitt on Saturday, while Virginia hosts Louisville.

TCU 75, Texas 73In other games featuring team-derailing title hopes, No. 22 TCU held off No. 9 Texas, giving Kansas the outright Big 12 title. The Horned Frogs (20-10, 9-8 in Big 12) can be one of the best teams in college basketball when they're healthy. Despite 22 turnovers and just one point from star guard Mike Miles, TCU still found a way to beat Texas (22-8, 11-6).

Ohio State 73, Maryland 62Maryland (20-10, 11-8 in Big Ten) falls to 2-8 on the road with a wire-to-wire loss in Columbus. Six Buckeyes (13-17, 5-14) scored in double figures, including freshman Felix Okpara, who secured the first double-double of his career with 12 points and 12 boards.

Penn State 68, Northwestern 65Cam in the clutch! A late rebound from Evan Mahaffey led to a Cam Wynter game-winner for Penn State (18-12, 9-10 in Big Ten.) Northwestern (20-10, 11-8) is now in a logjam of teams fighting for second place in the Big Ten, with a Sunday game at Rutgers looming.

Creighton 99, Georgetown 59Creighton (19-11, 13-6 in Big East) scored 19 points before Georgetown (7-24, 2-18) scored a single point.

Kansas State 85, Oklahoma 69Kansas State (23-7, 11-6 in Big 12) cruised to its 11th conference victory by handling Oklahoma (14-16, 4-13). K-State’s top two players in the win were Desi Sills (15 points, nine rebounds, eight assists) and Nae’Qwan Tomlin (19 points, 8-9 shooting.)

Vanderbilt 68, Kentucky 66So much for Kentucky figuring things out. Jordan Wright's game-winner stunned No. 23 Kentucky as a double-digit underdog. In Rupp. We'll let the AFTER DARK crew handle the analysis for this one.

Utah State 91, UNLV 66The Aggies (23-7, 12-5 in MWC) dropped 91 points on UNLV (17-12, 6-11) to keep its NCAA Tournament hopes alive. Steven Ashworth scored 27 points and dished seven dimes in the dominant Utah State win.

SIUE 68, Southern Indiana 54The Cougars got a win in the Ohio Valley Tournament despite all-league guard Ray'Sean Taylor suffering a knee injury. They'll face UT-Martin tonight.

Other conference tournament results:

• Big South: Charleston Southern 72, High Point 70; Campbell 68, Presbyterian 63

• Northeast: Fairleigh Dickinson 83, St Francis (NY) 75; Merrimack 91, Long Island 76; St Francis (PA) 83, Central Connecticut 69; Sacred Heart 67, Wagner 55.

• Ohio Valley: SEMO 84, Lindenwood 65

4. Two teams, two major roster hits

March is the worst time to adjust to injuries or other roster changes. But you deal with everything when it happens.

The first bit of news wasn't a surprise to anyone who watched Tennessee on Tuesday night.

It's a monumental loss for a Tennessee team that relies on Zeigler's ability to make plays out of nothing. The Vols' offense can already fall into funks. Without Zeigler's offensive creation, there is significant concern about how they'll run the offense. Time for that elite defense to be better than ever.

Meanwhile, Iowa State had a different kind of roster adjustment. It announced Wednesday that guard Caleb Grill is no longer with the program for a failure to meet team standards. Grill started 22 games this season, averaging 9.6 points and shooting 37 percent from deep.

5. We need to talk about the WCC awards

We'll put aside the 10 players on the West Coast Conference's first-team selections. Plenty of leagues do odd things when it comes to segmenting players.

But the Player of the Year? C'mon.

Drew Timme from Gonzaga and Brandon Podziemski from Santa Clara shared the award. Timme is a three-time All-WCC player and the reigning conference player of the year, and arguably had a better season than a year ago.

Voter fatigue is real.

• Podziemski: 19.9 points and 8.8 rebounds per game

• Timme: 21.4 points, 7.4 rebounds per game

Gonzaga beat Santa Clara twice (Timme outplayed Podziemski both times) and finished three games ahead in the conference standings. This isn't a dig at Podziemski, who's a terrific player. But if we can't be honest about Timme being better, what are we doing?

Champaign problems?

Michigan (17-12, 11-7 in Big Ten) is in sole possession of second place in the Big Ten — and isn’t a lock to make the NCAA Tournament. That could change if the Wolverines come out of Champaign tonight with a Quad 1 victory over Illinois (19-10, 10-8). Does that happen? No clue. But it's going to be entertaining! (7 pm ET, ESPN)

Other games to watch (all times ET):

• Arizona (24-5, 13-5 in Pac-12) at USC (21-8, 13-5), 11 pm, ESPN

• Arizona State (20-9, 11-7 in Pac-12) at UCLA (25-4 16-2), 9 pm, ESPN

• Milwaukee (20-10, 14-6) at Wright State (18-14, 10-10), 8 pm, ESPN+ (Horizon Tournament)

• Detroit Mercy (14-18, 9-11) at Youngstown State (23-8, 15-5), 8 pm, ESPN+ (Horizon Tournament)

• Lipscomb (20-12, 11-7) at Kennesaw State (24-8, 15-3), 7 pm, ESPN+ (ASUN Tournament)

• Eastern Kentucky (20-12, 12-6) at Liberty (25-7, 15-3), 7 pm, ESPN+ (ASUN Tournament)

A Penny for your thoughts

Is Penny Hardaway the right coach for Memphis? Jeff Goodman made his case, but the rest of the AFTER DARK crew sounded more than a little skeptical about his points. What's your take?

Subscribe to The Field of 68 AFTER DARK on YouTube and click here subscribe to the AFTER DARK podcast.

Links as you check on rent for Frogmore Cottage.

• Illinois guard Jayden Epps was released from the hospital yesterday after suffering a concussion.

• Meanwhile, his teammate, Matthew Mayer, was back at practice after caffeine poisoning. Here's what happened there.

• New NCAA President Charlie Baker outlined his priorities to The Athletic.

• From Extra Points, there's a fair amount of chatter about mid-major conference realignment.

• Fans attendance is up for the Big East this season.

Thanks for reading The Field of 68 Daily! If you have a news tip or feedback, email us at [email protected].

Sign up for The Field of 68 Premium. | Join our Bracket Challenge.

And don't forget to listen to The Field of 68 AFTER DARK every night at 11 pm ET on Sirius XM radio, or watch it on YouTube and Twitter.