Mark Sears Q&A: Alabama star discusses his decision to wait on the NBA Draft and run it back with the Tide

There are names that exist in a special type of lore in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, thanks to their achievements on college sports’ biggest stages and almost all of them are associated with Alabama football.

Mark Sears entered that sort of rarefied air this spring by leading the Crimson Tide men’s basketball team to its first Final Four thanks to seven 3-pointers in an Elite Eight triumph over Clemson. In a game that will go down in Alabama sports history, the Crimson Tide exploded for 54 points in the second half to take basketball supremacy in a rivalry often associated with football.

That was Sears coming up big in the biggest moment. Take it from the sweet-shooting lefty himself.

“I feel like earlier on in the first half I hit a lot of adversity, went 0 for 7, but that second half, I was really at my best for sure,” Sears told CBS Sports.

Sears could have parlayed some March magic into a jump to the NBA. Instead, he decided to return for his fifth season of college basketball — and third at Alabama — instantly vaulting the Crimson Tide into the preseason No. 1 conversation.

Sears talked with CBS Sports before the draft about his decision to return, his goals and much more.

(NOTE: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.)

CBS Sports: You played for almost an extra month and then you had a pretty quick turnaround [to prepare for pre-NBA Draft activities]. What have the last few months been like for you?

Mark Sears: “The last few months, I’ve been really training hard, getting prepared for the combine, and I got the combine, end up getting hurt on the max vertical jump drill, was kind of limited, wasn’t able to be myself during the game. I played, and I decided to come back and I’ve really just decided to work on my body and get in better shape, so it could help me be the best version of myself.”

CBS: When you talk about working on your body, what…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/mark-sears-q-a-alabama-star-discusses-his-decision-to-wait-on-the-nba-draft-and-run-it-back-with-the-tide/

Author : Zachary Pereles

Publish date : 2024-07-10 13:24:35

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