Alabama's undefeated start to conference play ended Saturday afternoon against Tennessee in Knoxville, with the University of Tennessee Volunteers defeating the Tide by a final score of 91-71.

The Vols, ranked No. 6 in the nation, physically dominated Alabama from the start.

Turnovers were the story of the game for the Tide. Alabama gave the ball away 13 times in the first half, compared to Tennessee just four times, and the Volantes led 50-37 at halftime.

The Vols made 19 of 40 shots in the first half, compared to 12 of 21 for Alabama.

Tennessee had nine offensive rebounds in the first half alone, compared to Alabama's nine in total. Alabama also shot just 4 of 21 from the 3-point line, a 19% success rate.

Alabama continued to struggle in the second half, committing 22 total turnovers, nine more than Tennessee's seven.

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Mark Sears finished with 22 points, scoring just seven points in the first half, but also committed a season-high seven turnovers. Rylan Griffen also turned the ball over five times.

Dalton Knecht continued his impressive run, scoring 17 points in the first half and finishing with 25 points. In Knecht's last three games entering Saturday afternoon, he had scoring performances of 28 points, 36 points and 39 points.

Overall, Tennessee was the better, more disciplined, more physical team on Saturday. It fell short in all three categories.

Alabama has some important work to do before No. 13 Auburn comes to Tuscaloosa on Wednesday night.

Michael Brauner is a senior sports analyst and contributing writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @MBraunerWNSP