SPOKANE, Wash. − Noses bloodied. Guys scrapped. Players hit the floor. The matchup between Alabama basketball and Grand Canyon couldn't have been much more physical.

There wasn't a much better time for the Crimson Tide to call on true blue-collar basketball. Alabama had no shot of winning the March Madness battle without it.

But the Crimson Tide players brought their hard hats until the very end. As a result, Alabama beat Grand Canyon 72-61 on Sunday to advance to the Sweet 16. It's the third Sweet 16 appearance for Alabama in four seasons.

Here are observations and takeaways from the game between No. 4 seed Alabama (23-11) and No. 12 seed Grand Canyon (30-5).

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Defense shows up early and often in rock fight for Alabama basketball

The first half wasn't for the faint of heart. There was physicality, there was intensity and there was defense.

Not a whole lot of points, though. At least not for a good chunk of the first half. Good thing Alabama didn't let offensive issues affect its defense.

The Crimson Tide brought the defensive intensity needed when shots weren't falling.

By the first timeout, Alabama had gone 2-for-10. Grand Canyon couldn't capitalize, though. The Crimson Tide defense made sure of it. Alabama fought and battled throughout, seldom giving up easy buckets. As a result, Grand Canyon started 1-for-11. The Crimson Tide held the Lopes to .833 points per possession in the first half, a strong mark.

Eventually, Alabama started to get more shots to fall, largely thanks to Mark Sears and Rylan Griffen. Each tallied 13 points before intermission, making four shots apiece. Griffen stepping up offensively was much needed with Latrell Wrightsell Jr. exiting the game with a head injury.

Alabama shot only 38% in the first half but still held a 38-30 lead going into the break.

Fouls plague Alabama basketball in second half, but Mo Dioubate steps up

The Crimson Tide had to stay busy substituting in the second half. Foul after foul racked up, and several players found themselves in foul trouble.

Especially the bigs. Jarin Stevenson fouled out with 6:46 left. By that point, Grant Nelson had already picked up his fourth foul, and soon after, Rylan tallied his fourth.

Then GCU did its damage from the free-throw line. The Lopes had already crossed 20 free throws made before the game crossed into the final five minutes.

Nothing Mo Dioubate couldn't fix. The bench forward stepped into the game and asserted his will. He grabbed rebounds, he made buckets and he sunk free throws.

In the end, he all but willed Alabama to a victory.

What's next for Alabama basketball?

Alabama will advance to the Sweet 16, facing No. 1 seed North Carolina in Los Angeles on Thursday. This marks the third trip to the Sweet 16 for coach Nate Oats at Alabama.

Nick Kelly is the Alabama beat writer for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network, and he covers Alabama football and men's basketball. Reach him at nkelly@gannett.com or follow him @_NickKelly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Alabama basketball beats Grand Canyon in chippy March Madness rock fight