Though it was down by one at the half, Alabama men’s basketball had the momentum the moment the second half began. The Crimson Tide started the half on 5-0 run, then later rattled off a 14-0 run in less than four minutes to extend its lead to 16 with 12:17 remaining in the game.

But Kansas State did not allow the run to affect them. The Wildcats chipped the lead down to 13. Then 11. Then nine. And eventually all the way down to one in a span of less than six minutes.

But Alabama would not let them get any closer.

The teams traded shots for the better part of the final seven minutes, but a last-second half-court heave by Kansas State could not tie the game as Alabama defeated the Wildcats 77-74 on Saturday night.

“It was good to get a close win,” coach Nate Oats said. “I think it was the first time we have won when it’s been under five points, so we need to be in some close games knowing that we can win them.”

Losing a player who has scored double-digits in 13 of his past 15 games, like Alabama did when junior guard John Petty Jr. picked up a technical foul and his fourth personal foul of the game with 16:17 remaining in the game, should not bode well.

But with Petty on the bench, freshman guard Jaden Shackelford stepped up by converting an and-one, making a 3-pointer and then drawing a charge the next possession. Shackelford was responsible for nine points during the 14-0 run, also assisting junior forward Herbert Jones on an and-one layup. Shackelford finished with 11 points and contributed on the glass by adding seven rebounds.

“We were just jelling as a team during that run,” Shackelford said. “We were getting out in transition. I feel like coming out of halftime strong was important for us.”

As a top five rebounding team in the country, Alabama has been out-rebounded just three times in 19 games it has played thus far. But on Saturday night, it allowed Kansas State, ranked 298th in rebounding, to control the glass the entire game and lost the rebounding battle 45-33.

On the offensive glass, Kansas State held a 22-3 advantage, which resulted into 15 second-chance points. The Crimson Tide’s paint presence was thinned after redshirt freshman forward Javian Davis picked up an injury against Vanderbilt and only played four minutes on Saturday night.

“One of the areas you can look on the stat sheet and see how hard you played is rebounding,” Oats said. “They destroyed us on the glass. I know we play small sometimes, but I don’t think that was the issue as much as it was just not giving an effort when we needed to.”

Sophomore guard Kira Lewis Jr. led all scorers with 26 points while shooting a perfect 8-for-8 from the line and added seven rebounds.

The Crimson Tide will travel to Baton Rouge, Louisiana on Wednesday night to face LSU (15-4, 6-0) with tip off at 6 p.m. The Tigers are the final unbeaten team in SEC play, but they have won their last six games by a combined 15 points.