After an impressive victory over the Houston Cougars on Tuesday night, the Alabama Crimson Tide were back in action Wednesday at the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas, Nevada, facing off against yet another tough opponent in the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.

Here are three takeaways from the tournament game between No. 9 Alabama basketball and Rutgers as part of the Players Era Festival bracket.

Mark Sears scored 24 points and No. 9 Alabama beat No. 6 Houston 85-80 in overtime in the opener of the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas.

Tuesday night brought about what was arguably the toughest test yet for the 2024-25 Alabama Crimson Tide, as the nation’s No. 9 ranked program in the AP and Coaches Poll’s took to the court in Las Vegas against one of college basketball’s elite teams, the Houston Cougars.

Alabama Crimson Tide clinched an 85-80 overtime win against Houston, with Mark Sears scoring 24 points to lead the team. Dubbs and Donnie recap the action.

The Crimson Tide prevailed 85-80 in overtime of this inter-top-10 matchup as it had all the makings of an excellent neutral site game.