CLEVELAND –– 2-seed Alabama men's basketball cruised past 7-seed Saint Mary's 80-66 in the Round of 32 on Sunday night in Cleveland. Sunday night's win earned the Crimson Tide back-to-back-to-back Sweet 16 appearances for the first time since 1985-87––when Alabama head coach Nate Oats was in middle school.

It wasn’t the best offensive game for Saint Mary’s, but the Gaels relied on their suffocating defense. Ross also played a huge part on the defensive end, holding Vanderbilt star Jason Edwards to only five points in the second half on 2-for-8 shooting. The Commodores also went through a nine-minute stretch with only four points.

Saint Mary’s doesn’t let teams score 80 points. Before the Gaels faced Alabama basketball in the s econd round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, the last time an opposing squad hit 80 came on March 8, 2022, when it fell 82-69 in the WCC tournament title game to Gonzaga.