TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (Interstat) — Alabama defeated Sam Houston 96-74 in a men’s NCAA Division I basketball game Tuesday at Coleman Coliseum, using a decisive second-half stretch to improve to 1-0 while dropping the Bearkats to 0-1. The announced attendance was 11,612.

Sam Houston trailed early but stayed within reach for much of the first half. Drew Fielder opened the scoring with a layup for Alabama, and Aidan McDowell answered with two free throws for the Bearkats. Qayden Samuels and Jamarion Davis-Fleming followed with baskets for the Crimson Tide, but Zion Pipkin hit a 3-pointer to keep Sam Houston close. After Brandon Garrison made two free throws and Jacobe Coleman connected on a jumper, Alabama began to separate. London Jemison made a 3-pointer and Jaxon Richardson added a dunk, and the Crimson Tide later used a run that included a Tarris Bouie layup, a Bouie 3-pointer, a Garrison hook shot and a Jemison fast-break jumper to build a 37-21 lead. Sam Houston responded with 3-pointers from Pipkin and Coleman, and Coleman added two free throws before Amari Allen’s layup just before halftime gave Alabama a 40-29 lead at the break.

The decisive portion came immediately after halftime. Garrison made a jumper, Jemison hit a 3-pointer and Garrison added a layup as Alabama opened the second half with a 7-0 run. Cheikh Ndiaye ended the burst with a jump shot for Sam Houston, but Alabama continued to control play. Davis-Fleming made a layup, Samuels hit a 3-pointer and added a layup, and Jemison and Bouie kept the pressure on as the Crimson Tide pushed the lead to 56-31. Sam Houston tried to rally behind Pipkin and Coleman, and Xavier Roberson made a 3-pointer and a layup, but Bouie answered with a layup, a free throw and another 3-pointer. Fielder then made a layup and a tip-in, Anderson Diaz added two layups and Fielder hit a 3-pointer to extend the margin to 76-45. Justin Begg kept Sam Houston moving with a layup and a 3-pointer, and Enel St. Bernard finished an alley-oop, but Alabama answered with a Jemison layup and later got a 3-pointer from Allen and an alley-oop from Davis-Fleming. Sam Houston closed with late 3-pointers from Coleman, McDowell and Rylan Kelly, along with a tip-in by Mahliq Guiseppi-Kitson and two free throws from Riccardo Greppi, but the outcome had long been settled.

Sam Houston scored 74 points from 84 possessions, an offensive rating of 88.5. Alabama scored 96 points from 82 possessions, an offensive rating of 117.0. Sam Houston shot 25 of 65 from the floor, 15 of 33 from three-point range and 9 of 16 from the free-throw line. Alabama shot 36 of 75 from the floor, 10 of 31 from beyond the arc and 14 of 19 from the line. Each team had 12 offensive rebounds. Alabama had 17 assists, 10 blocks, 10 turnovers and 16 fouls. Sam Houston had seven assists, six blocks, 23 turnovers and 16 fouls.

Alabama forward Tarris Bouie, a 6-foot-6, 175-pound Charlotte, N.C., native and former SPIRE Academy player, had 18 minutes, 13 points, seven rebounds, two assists and one block. Sam Houston guard Zion Pipkin, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound player formerly at Legacy School of Sport Sciences, South Plains College and Wichita State, had 23 minutes, 11 points, three rebounds and six assists. Alabama forward London Jemison, a 6-foot-8, 212-pound former St. Thomas More player, had 20 minutes, 15 points, three rebounds and one assist. Alabama forward Drew Fielder, a 6-foot-11, 242-pound former Southern California Academy player, had 21 minutes, 15 points, six rebounds and one assist. Sam Houston guard Jacobe Coleman, a 6-foot-3 former Dynamic Prep player, had 31 minutes, 16 points, six rebounds and one assist.

Alabama guard Amari Allen, a 6-foot-6, 215-pound former Ashwaubenon High School player, had 19 minutes, 12 points, four rebounds, four assists and one block. Sam Houston forward Enel St. Bernard, a 6-foot-6 former Panola College and Indiana State player, had 29 minutes, five points, eight rebounds, three assists and two blocks. Sam Houston guard Justin Begg, a 6-foot, 190-pound former Episcopal player, had 26 minutes, 13 points, four rebounds and four assists. Alabama forward Jamarion Davis-Fleming, a 6-foot-9 former Canton High School player, had 16 minutes, eight points, three rebounds, one assist and two blocks. Alabama forward Keitenn Bristow, a 6-foot-9, 216-pound former Holiday player, had 21 minutes, five points, three rebounds, one assist and four blocks.

Sam Houston will next host Howard Payne, host Pepperdine, visit Illinois, visit Wyoming, visit Boise State, visit Washington State, host Paul Quinn, visit Rice, visit Denver in Kansas City, Mo., and visit Nevada.

Alabama will next host Arkansas State, host Oakland, host Seton Hall, host Kennesaw State, face Baylor in Las Vegas, visit Miami (Fla.), face Houston in New York, face Saint John’s in Birmingham, Ala., visit South Florida and face Iowa in Des Moines, Iowa.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Alabama 97, Sam Houston 88. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Alabama with a 97.6 percent probability to win. Alabama had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus 27. The total score of 170 went over the over/under line of 172.