Darrion Trammell and San Diego State used a dominant defensive performance to knock first overall seed Alabama out of the NCAA tournament on Friday night, stifling All-America freshman Brandon Miller in a 71-64 victory. at the sweet 16
Trammell scored 21 points while Miller, whose outstanding season was marred by off-court complications, was held to nine points on 3-of-19 shooting and had six turnovers.
The fifth-seeded Aztecs (30-6) will face either Creighton or Princeton on Sunday in the West Region final as they look for their first Final Four in program history. With No. 1 seeds Purdue and Kansas losing through the opening weekend of the tournament, Houston, which played Miami on Friday night, was the only seed team remaining.
San Diego State trailed 48-39 midway through the second half before going on a 12-0 run and controlling the game from there. The Aztecs finished with eight blocked shots, five from Nathan Mensah, and forced 14 turnovers.
Alabama’s March Madness run (31-6) was marred by his response to the fatal Jan. 15 shooting of a 23-year-old woman in Tuscaloosa, which led to capital murder charges against then-Crimson Tide player Darius Thousands. .
Miller was at the scene of the shooting and has not been charged, but police said in court documents that Miles texted Miller to bring him his gun. Authorities have said that Miller is a cooperating witness and that he did not miss any playing time. Miller has been given armed security protection during the tournament.
