Mark Sears Stats Tonight - How did Alabama star fare vs Houston? (Nov 26) 

Mark Sears bounced back from a scoreless outing against No. 25 Illinois, leading the No. 9 Alabama Crimson Tide to an 85-80 overtime win over the No. 6 Houston Cougars in the Players Era Festival on Tuesday night.

Alabama Crimson Tide guard Mark Sears (1) drives to the basket in the NCAA game against the Purdue Boilermakers at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind. (Image Source: IMAGN)

Mark Sears scored 24 points to help the Crimson Tide improve their record this season to 5-1. He finished the game with four rebounds, three assists and one steal.

Sears was a workhorse for Alabama, playing a team-high 41 minutes against Houston. Only the Cougars' L.J. Cryer played more minutes than him in this contest.

Below are his stats from the game against the Houston Cougars:

Player	MIN	PTS	REB	AST	FG	3PT	FT	ORB-DRB	STL	BLK	PF	TO
Mark Sears	41	24	4	3	4-13	4-8	12-14	0-4	1	0	3	2

Mark Sears' explosion in 2nd half and overtime helps Alabama pull off win vs Houston

Sears shot 4-of-13 from the field against the Cougars, including 4-of-8 from beyond the arc. He made a living at the charity stripe, shooting 12-of-14 from the free throw line.

Sears did most of his damage against Houston after halftime, scoring 16 points during that period. He amassed 13 points in the second half and knocked down a 3-pointer for Alabama's first bucket in overtime.

It wasn't just Sears who delivered for Alabama in the showdown against Cryer and Houston though. Grant Nelson posted a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds while fellow starter Latrell Wrightsell Jr. added 12 points.

Cryer dazzled for Houston in a losing effort, scoring a game-high 30 points. He shot 9-of-26 from the floor and made all 10 of his free throw attempts.

Houston Cougars guard L.J. Cryer (4) shoots the ball against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the first half at MGM Grand Garden Arena. (Image Source: IMAGN)

Cryer had a chance to give the Cougars the win in regulation but his baseline jumper with two seconds left failed to drop.

Sears silenced the critics who blasted him for his poor performance in Alabama's last game against Illinois. He failed to score a single point against the Fighting Illini, missing all five of his field goal attempts in the Crimson Tide's 100-87 win.

The Crimson Tide continue to show why they deserve the No. 9 spot in the recent Associated Press rankings, winning five of their first six games.

Sears has been a vital cog for Alabama this season, averaging 13.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game.

Sears and Co. are back in action on Wednesday when they face the Rutgers Scarlett Knights at MGM Arena.