Central Plains FFA Chapter

12/17 22:07 CST Labaron Philon, Aden Holloway power No. 16 Alabama past South Florida 104-93 Labaron Philon, Aden Holloway power No. 16 Alabama past South Florida 104-93 KENNINGTON SMITH III Associated Press TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) --- Labaron Philon tied a career-high 29 points, Aden Holloway added 24 and No. 16 Alabama handled South Florida 104-93 on Wednesday night. The Crimson Tide (8-3) went on a 17-4 run early in the second half that made it 69-53 with 12:44 left in the game and Alabama led by double figures the rest of the way. Philon made two 3-pointers and had eight points, and Holloway scored seven, during the decisive stretch. Alabama scored at least 100 points for the fourth time this season. The Crimson Tide went into the game No. 8 nationally in scoring at 93.1 per game. South Florida (6-5) was led by trio of 20-point scorers: Izaiyah Nelson (25), Wes Enis (20) and Josh Omojafo (20). Enis scored 17 points to help the Bulls to a one-point lead with 2:43 left in the first half. Philon answered 12 seconds later with a layup that gave Alabama the lead for good and sparked an 11-3 run that made it 46-39 at the intermission. Alabama shot 37.5% from the field and 28% from 3-point range, but scored 13 second-chance points off 16 offensive rebounds before halftime. Nelson made a layup and then threw down back-to-back dunks 19 seconds apart to make it a one-possession game early in the second half. Alabama scored 12 of the next 14 points and led by double figures for the final 14-plus minutes. The Crimson Tide made 16 of 29 (55%) from the field, 8 of 15 from behind the arc, in the second half as Holloway and Philon combined to score 38 points.

Up next South Florida hosts UMBC on Sunday. Alabama plays Kennesaw State on Sunday at the Rocket City Classic in Huntsville, Alabama. ____ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball