Tide Shock Tar Heels To Advance To Second Elite Eight In Program History

TUSCALOOSA, AL — The No. 4 seed Alabama men's basketball team has punched its ticket to the second Elite 8 in program history following an upset 89-87 win over No. 1 seed North Carolina Thursday night in Los Angeles.

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As a historic side note, senior guard and consensus All-American Mark Sears broke Alabama's single-season scoring record when he logged 748 points — topping Reggie King's mark of 747 points during the 1978-79 campaign.

The Tide's matchup with the top-seeded Heels was a hard-scrabble back-and-forth contest with numerous lead changes and a performance for the ages, especially from one guy in particular from Devil's Lake, North Dakota.

Four players finished in double-figures: Grant Nelson (24), Aaron Estrada (19), Rylan Griffen (19) and Sears (18).

Nelson was wildly dominant in the final minutes, finishing with a double-double grabbing 12 rebounds and five blocks.

The Crimson Tide will now take on No. 6 seed Clemson on Saturday to finish out the NCAA West Regional for a chance to travel to Phoenix for the program's first-ever Final Four appearance.

The game will tentatively tip off at 7:49 p.m. local time.

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