Mark Sears' hot-shooting night for Alabama was a shining example of hard work paying off

No. 4 Alabama is heading to its first Final Four in program history after an 89-82 victory over No. 6 Clemson on Saturday. The Crimson Tide stunned the Tigers in the Elite Eight thanks to an all-around team effort paced by a ho- shooting performance from Mark Sears, who showcased a shining example of hard work paying off. 

As a freshman at Ohio, Sears shot only 28% from three-point range. However, he's since developed a habit of taking 15,000 threes in practice, raising his three-point hit rate to 43% and setting the stage for seven makes from beyond the arc against Clemson on the big stage. 

The Alabama native finished with a game-high 23 points, shooting 8-of-18 from the field and 7-of-14 from three. 

To say Sears was feeling it from deep would be an understatement. While none of his attempts were cheapies, one of his seven-made threes came from another zip code while also giving the Crimson Tide some much-needed breathing room late.