Ken Rogers
01/22 at 12:03 AM

TUSCALOOSA — As Ole Miss guard Terrico White’s shot rose near the rim, Alonzo Gee’s heart sank.

“I just knew it was going in, just with our luck,” Gee said of White’s floater that came with 7 seconds remaining and Alabama clinging to a 74-73 lead.

The ball rolled down into the cylinder, but spun out. A follow tip by Murphy Holloway also rolled in and out before Senario Hillman got a key rebound and iced the game with two free throws.

“Thank God it didn’t go in and we just got it done at the end,” Gee said.

Nothing, apparently, comes easy for the Alabama basketball program.

Not a 3-point victory over Ole Miss on Wednesday night.

Not a 2-2 record in the Southeastern Conference, carved from a pair of Coleman Coliseum victories and two disappointing road performances.

And especially not the exit of senior point guard Ron Steele. A day earlier, Steele’s decision to leave the team was framed as a medical decision as Tide head coach Mark Gottfried announced his departure.

But the point guard himself issued a statement Wednesday insisting that his plantar fasciitis was “definitely not the reason I am leaving the team.”

Against that backdrop, Alabama played hard for 40 minutes and outfought the Rebels for a 76-73 victory in front of 10,267.

“I’m really proud of my players,” Gottfried said. “It was a gutsy win, a tough, hard-fought win. There were some key times when we had to have defensive stops and some times when we had to have some key rebounds and we got them.”

More encouraging was the involvement in Alabama’s offense of Gee and Hillman, to mesh with point guard Mikhail Torrance’s third straight 20-point game. Torrance was 9-for-14 overall and 5-for-8 from 3-point range to lead the Crimson Tide with 24 points.

Gee and Hillman, the two leading scorers who struggled without Ron Steele running the show in road losses at Mississippi State and Auburn, bounced back. Gee had 15, 13 in the second half. Hillman scored 12 points, as did freshman inside player JaMychal Green.

David Huertas led Ole Miss with 26 points after torching the Tide for 20 in the first half.

“I thought first half he had a career half,” Gottfried said. “We were a little slow getting to him. I thought in the second half Andrew Steele and Senario did a much better job of crowding him.”

The Rebels’ White added 14 and Holloway finished with 11.

Rebels coach Andy Kennedy was frustrated by his team’s inability to finish plays. Ole Miss grabbed 17 offensive rebounds, but scored just 12 second-chance points. Alabama also outscored the Rebels (10-8, 1-3 SEC) 36-26 in the paint.

“We got two good looks right at the end from point-blank range,” Kennedy said. “We left way too many points on the floor.”

It was tight throughout. Neither team led by more than 8 points. The Tide led 39-38 at halftime.

Gee started the second half with a steal and fastbreak dunk.

“It’s been awhile,” he said after the game. “It got me going and kind of got the crowd going.”

Gee’s role as a team leader will only increase with Ron Steele’s departure.

“I’ve talked to him. He’s doing great. He’s rehabbing right now,” Gee said. “But basically, we’re focusing on the season right now and trying to get better as a team.

“We’ve got to work harder and get better as a team. And keep Mikhail playing great.”

Steele issued a statement Wednesday, first published by tidesports.com.

“As it stands now, with my physical condition, I have plantar fasciitis, which is a small but painful condition many players have,” part of it read. “It is definitely not the reason I am leaving the team. After many hours of praying and consulting with my family, teammates and close friends, I have decided it is in my best interests to move on.

“I love the University of Alabama. This is not a reflection on the University as a whole. I wish them the best of luck in the future and I will continue to support my teammates wholeheartedly. I hope my brother (Andrew) will feel the same love for the University that I have developed.”

Asked about his relationship with Gottfried, Steele told the Web site, “this was the best decision for me and I want to leave it at that.”

Gottfried was asked to respond to Steele’s statement after the game.

“No. I love Ron Steele,” the coach said. “For us, we’ve got to get moving forward.”

Later, he said, “The drama of all that, I’m not really into all that and neither is our team. These guys want to win ... Things happen and you’ve got to move forward.”