Aden Holloway scored 26 points and Houston Mallette added 19 to lead No. 8 Alabama to a comfortable 115-76 win over UNLV on Tuesday at the Players Era men’s tournament in Las Vegas.
The Crimson Tide (4-2) scored 64 points in the second half, pushing their record to 1-1 in the tournament after a setback against No. 12 Gonzaga on Monday.
Holloway was hot throughout, making 9 of 14 attempts from the field overall and 5 of 6 from 3-point range. Mallette began the game cold, making 2 of 8 attempts from beyond the arc in the first half, but he was 2 of 4 on 3-point tries in the second half and finished 5-for-14 from the field overall.
London Jemison chipped in 18 points for Alabama on an efficient 5-of-7 from the field. Amari Allen added 13 points and six assists, and Labaron Philon Jr. also tallied 13 points.
Alabama will play Maryland in a consolation game on Wednesday. UNLV (3-4) will face Rutgers on Thursday after falling to 0-2 in tournament play.
The Rebels’ Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn led all scorers with 25 points on 9-of-19 shooting, making 3 of 8 attempts from 3-point range. Isaac Williamson added 15 points for UNLV, and Kimani Hamilton contributed 13.
The Crimson Tide opened the second half on a 12-5 run to stretch their lead to a then-game-high 22 points on a 3-pointer by Mallette with 17:15 remaining.
UNLV kept itself afloat for the first 10 minutes of the game, pulling within 23-21 on a jumper by Hamilton that capped a 6-0 run. However, Alabama scored the next six points.
Starting with he latter spurt, the Crimson Tide outscored the Rebels 28-15 for the remainder of the half en route to a 51-36 halftime lead.
Allen led Alabama with nine points while Millette and Holloway each scored eight points before intermission. Williamson paced UNLV with 11 first-half points, and Hamilton had nine.
