The No. 1 overall seed in the 2023 men’s NCAA tournament has fallen, as Alabama fell in the Sweet 16 on Friday to No. 5-seed San Diego State, 71–64.
The Aztecs, led by coach Brian Dutcher, turned in a physical performance to eliminate the Crimson Tide, and become the first Mountain West team in history to advance to the Elite Eight. Prior to Friday, the Mountain West had gone 0–6 in the Sweet 16.
SDSU took a 28–23 lead into halftime, and led by as many as nine points in the second half before Alabama mounted a furious comeback. After trailing for much of the contest, the Tide made things interesting late as the Aztecs held on to a 66–64 lead with 47 seconds in regulation. Fortunately for SDSU, a pair of free throws by guard Matt Bradley with 45 seconds to play proved to be the deciding edge in the contest.
SDSU will now move to face the winner of No. 15-seed Princeton and No. 6-seed Creighton on Sunday.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.