St. Mary's vs Alabama Prediction & Picks - NCAA Basketball

Prediction published on 3/22/25, 10:54 AM  by Travis Pulver | Modified on 3/22/25 at 11:01 AM in NCAA Basketball Picks

The No. 7 seed Saint Mary's Gaels will need to get past the No. 2 seed Alabama Crimson Tide in the second round if they are going to make the Sweet 16 for the third time in the history of the program. Tipoff for this SEC-WCC battle is scheduled for 6:10 pm ET on Sunday, March 23.

Saint Mary's was a 4.5-point favorite against the No.10 seed Vanderbilt in the first round but was down to the Commodores 29-22 at the break. However, a second-half rally led by Jordan Ross saw the Gales outscore the Commodores 37-27 to secure the win and a date with Alabama in the second round. Ross led the way with 15 points and was one of four starters to score in double digits. As for Alabama, the Tide was a 20.5-point over the No. 15 seed Robert Morris Colonials in the first round. However, Alabama led by only four at the half, 40-36. They couldn't pull away in the second half and even trailed briefly 65-64 with around seven minutes to play. But the Crimson Tide was able to quickly regain the lead and extend it to 11 points before settling for a nine-point win. Mark Sears led the way with 22 points and ten assists.