AUBURN, Ala.— Down on the plains of Lee County, the Crimson Tide visited the Jungle and came away with their heads held high.  

On Saturday, Feb. 11, No. 3 Alabama defeated the Auburn Tigers 77-69 in a classic performance that came down to the wire.  

Leading the way for Alabama was freshman Rylan Griffen, who poured in 16 points on 5-for-7 shooting, drilling three of his five attempts from downtown. 

Griffen, a 6-foot-5 guard from Richardson, Texas, has put the country on notice posting double figures in four of his last five games for the Crimson Tide.  

Joining Griffen with a big-time performance was backcourt counterpart Mark Sears, who scored 15 points on 5-for-7 shooting while grabbing six boards and dishing out three assists.  

“We don’t win this game without Rylan,” Alabama head coach Nate Oats said. “And I really felt like he did the best job defensively on Wendell Green Jr.” 

Sears, a Muscle Shoals, Alabama, native, shined during his first taste of heated in-state action, hitting two of his three attempts from beyond the arc while carrying the load for Nate Oats’ team down the stretch.  

It was another solid outing for freshman Jaden Bradley, scoring 12 points on 5-for-6 shooting while dishing out two assists of his own.  

Bradley, a former McDonald’s All-American, posted double-digit scoring numbers for the first time since Jan. 17 versus the Vanderbilt Commodores.  

While he didn’t play up to his standard of excellence, SEC Player of the Year frontrunner Brandon Miller scored 13 points on 5-for-13 shooting from the field, sealing the game for the Crimson Tide down the stretch with some clutch free throw shooting.  

Miller, a 6-foot-9 freshman forward from Antioch, Tennessee, failed to make a 3-pointer over the course of his seven attempts, but still managed to grab six boards and tally three assists. 

“Brandon came to a lot of Alabama football games. He understands the Iron Bowl rivalry in football,” Oats said. “This is the equivalent to the Iron Bowl rivalry, it’s just in basketball. I think Brandon understood it. The guys hadn’t been involved in it yet, they should understand it after playing in the environment they played in today. It’s great. It’s what makes college basketball different than the NBA.” 

After walking into Neville Arena and stealing a victory, Oats now boasts a 4-3 record versus the Tigers and friendly in-state rival Bruce Pearl. The Crimson Tide continue their stranglehold on the SEC, sitting atop the league at 22-3 (12-0 SEC). 

“We knew this was going to be a tough game,” Oats said. “They’re not an easy team to play. They play hard. Our guys have been through some tough games. We’ve played Houston on the road. We’ve played Arkansas on the road. Different types of a team. Missouri on the road is a really good offensive team. This is a big rivalry game, and our guys stepped up and played well for us.” 

Alabama’s won four in a row, and 13 out of their last 14, but if today was any indication, they show no signs of slowing down as they prepare for yet road test versus Rick Barnes’ Tennessee Volunteers.  

Tipoff for No. 3 Alabama and No. 6 Tennessee is set for Wednesday, Feb. 15, at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN2.