Sears Shoots the Crimson Tide into the Final Four

Huge Test Coming for Sears and the Crimson Tide Versus Reigning Champ UConn

Is it possible that Alabama’s most impressive male athlete is not on the football team? When looking at Mark Sears’ stats, the senior guard is on a postseason tear. Alabama has advanced to its first Final Four thanks to his exploits.

Next up for Alabama is a matchup with reigning national champion Connecticut (UConn) on Saturday in the national semifinal. Alabama is tied with North Carolina State at +1600 for the longest odds to win the national title among the four remaining teams.

When the season began, teammate Grant Nelson was the player with the best National Player of the Year odds. Four teams were ahead of Alabama in the odds to win the SEC title at the start of the season and none of them are still playing. Looking at the NCAAB stats, Sears is 11th among Division I men’s players with 21.5 points per game.

Alabama was tied for 13th in the national title odds in early January and was 17th in the odds to reach the Final Four so these are special times for Sears and his teammates.

Alabama is listed by the college basketball lines as the 12-point underdog in Saturday’s national semifinal at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The winner will face either Purdue or North Carolina State in Monday’s national title game.

Quite the Homecoming

After averaging 19.6 points, 6 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 1.7 steals as a sophomore at Ohio, the 6-foot-1 Sears decided to head home.

The Alabama native transferred to play for the Crimson Tide. After a solid junior season when he averaged 12.5 points per game, Sears has taken things up a notch.

He went from shooting 40.6% to 50.4% and his 3-point percentage jumped from 34.5 to 43.4. Send Sears to the foul line at your own risk as he has a career free-throw percentage of 86.4.

While a 21.1 points per game when looking at Mark Sears’ stats is pretty impressive, he is at 24.3 points in the NCAA tournament on 51% shooting. He is 17-for-38 on 3-pointers in wins over the College of Charleston, Grand Canyon, North Carolina, and Clemson. It is no wonder that he has been named the Player of the Week.

Counting his two seasons at Ohio, Sears has 2,125 career points, 233 3-pointers, 556 rebounds, and 464 assists. Those are pretty impressive numbers for a player mostly ignored by major college programs when he came out of high school.

Rising to the Occasion

Mark Sears’ impressive stats should not be surprising considering he averaged 21.6 points in games against ranked teams in the regular season. Sears dropped 35 points on fellow Final Four team Purdue back in December.

As a sophomore at Ohio, Sears averaged 21 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists in the 2022 Mid-American Conference tournament. His final game for the Bobcats saw Sears light up Abilene Christian for 35 points in the CBI Tournament quarterfinals.

Sears has scored at least 20 points in 15 of his last 17 games. He has made at least 50% of his 3-pointers in 17 contests this season. He will be a popular choice in props and parlays among those making NCAAB predictions.

A Big Test Coming Up

Alabama has been tested playing in the SEC and against three ranked teams in the non-conference portion of their schedule. However, UConn is playing at another level heading into this NCAAB matchup.

Illinois guard Terrance Shannon Jr. looked unstoppable heading into the Elite Eight showdown with the Huskies. But the Huskies held him to just eight points on 2-of-12 shooting. Before that, he scored 26, 30, and 29 points in the first three games in the NCAA tournament.

Sears will be staring into the teeth of the aggressive UConn defense. If dealing with freshman defensive stopper Stephon Castle isn’t daunting enough, Sears will face the 7-foot-2 Donovan Clingan if he drives to the paint.

What’s Next?

Sears originally declared for the 2023 NBA Draft before opting to return to Alabama. It is hard to argue with that decision.

With 92 3-pointers, 146 assists, and only 89 turnovers, he is certainly on the radar of NBA scouts.

If Sears stood 6-foot-5 instead of being listed at 6-1, he would be higher on the draft boards. Sears has thrived against other draft prospects. The matchup against Castle will give the Alabama star the chance to show what he can do against a potential top-10 draft pick.

His next stop will be at the professional level. But time will tell just how highly the NBA scouts think of the sweet-shooting Sears.

For NCAAB betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.

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