From Our Correspondent at FM 90.7
As many readers of the Commissioner’s blog may, ‘Bama basketball is having a season to remember. What started off looking like a disappointing campaign has turned into a remarkable run. Head coach Anthony Grant is the mastermind behind this turnaround that has the Tide thinking NCAA tournament for the first time since 2007.
Hired in March of 2009, Grant came to Tuscaloosa after leading VCU to regular season Colonial Athletic Association titles in each of his three years there. His teams also achieved two CAA tournament titles, and two straight NCAA tournament berths that included an upset in 2007 over the 6th seeded Duke Blue Devils. He has already put together two excellent recruiting classes in his time in Tuscaloosa, and led the Crimson Tide to a 17-15 record in his first season at the helm, but the 2010-2011 season is turning out to be his best job as a head coach. Here is a summary of the season so far.
Disaster in the Virgin Islands- To say the 2010-2011 season got off to a rough start would be an understatement. After two cupcake home games to start the season, the Tide traveled to St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands for the Paradise Jam Tournament. After falling to Seton Hall 83-78 and to Iowa 55-47, Alabama suffered its most embarrassing loss of the season, losing to the St. Peter’s Peacocks of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (no, I’m not making that up) 50-49. To add insult to injury, Coach Grant suspended center JaMychal Green indefinitely for conduct detrimental to the team. Green had led Alabama in scoring in three of their five games so far. It was evident that Grant was not giving out free passes and would hold each player accountable, regardless of their output on the court.
Non-conference struggles continue- Alabama returned from the Virgin Islands and put up home wins against Alabama A&M and South Alabama. They went to Purdue with the chance to pull an upset, but the struggling Tide fell 66-47. JaMychal Green returned from suspension the following week, but Alabama missed another opportunity for a quality non-conference win, falling 82-70 at Providence. After putting away Southeastern Louisiana at home, ‘Bama failed to capitalize on their final chance for a valuable non-conference win, falling to Oklahoma State 68-60.
Tide surprises in conference play- The Tide took an unimpressive 8-6 record into conference play, with their only wins coming at home against less-than-stellar competition and embarrassing losses to Seton Hall and St. Peter’s. However, the Tide went into Starkville and shocked Mississippi State, defeating the Bulldogs 75-57 and earning their first road win of the season. The Trevor Releford show began to take center stage as well, as the freshman led the team with 17 points, 4 assists, and 4 steals. JaMychal Green added 3 blocks and 11 rebounds.
Alabama returned home and put away the Gamecocks 57-47 four days later. Green stepped into a dominant role, scoring 20 of the Crimson Tide’s points and blocking 3 shots. Sophomore Tony Mitchell added a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. But more importantly, Alabama was beginning to find an identity. The Tide were playing lock down defense, holding its first two SEC opponents to a combined 104 points, and playing well down low, with a majority of their points coming in the paint. This was not a team that would beat you in a shootout, but one that wore down opponents, played suffocating defense, waited for teams to make mistakes, and capitalized off of those mistakes. (Sound like another Alabama team we know?) Grant’s process was beginning to take shape.
‘Bama went back on the road and lost a tough game in Fayetteville, falling to Arkansas 70-65. Releford once again led the team in scoring with 17 points, but made freshmen mistakes in the final minutes and committing a couple of turnovers that proved to be the difference. However, Alabama was off to a 2-1 start in conference play, an impressive feat for a team that had struggled so mightily in non-conference.
Kentucky- If there was ever a time for a statement game, this was it. Alabama, undefeated at home, played host to the #12 Wildcats. In front of 14,859 rowdy crimson-and-white-clad fans, including an overflowing student section, Alabama raced out to a 52-32 lead with just under 5 minutes gone in the second half. The Tide were shooting out of their mind from 3, something that had plagued the team up to this point, and were playing lock-down defense on John Calipari’s second wave of talented freshmen. But, as any elite team does, Kentucky did not back down. With 10 seconds left in the game, Kentucky had cut the lead to 67-66. Back-up point guard Ben Eblen came up with the game-clinching steal and after sinking a free-throw, and Kentucky throwing up a last second heave, Anthony Grant had the win he had been looking for the last year and a half. For an idea of the atmosphere in Coleman Coliseum that night, check out this video of Kentucky’s desperation shot, and the Rammer Jammer that followed.
Tennessee- Alabama rode the momentum of the historic upset of the Wildcats to three straight wins at Auburn, at home against LSU, and at home against Mississippi State. The hype was slowly beginning to build, as the Tide suddenly had a 6-1 record in the SEC. The words “NCAA tournament” were beginning to be muttered in circles of the Alabama fan base, but not many people in the national media were talking about this team. What loomed next, however, was a chance to significantly improve their tournament resume. With the SEC West as weak as it is, it was essential that the Crimson Tide took advantage of their opportunities against teams from the East, and that’s exactly what they had to do when they traveled to Knoxville to take on the Volunteers.
Alabama did what has become its trademark, out-hustling and out-working the Vols from the start, jumping out to a 42-31 lead with 15:10 left in the second half. However, the Tide did something else that had plagued them all year, and let UT go on a 14-2 run to take a 44-45 lead with 9:32 left in the game. ‘Bama fell flat from the field, but relied on their gritty defense to force the game into overtime, tied at 55. The shooting woes continued, but Alabama used their size and strength to get to the free-throw line, and went 10-10 from the stripe, sealing the victory. Good free throw shooting is a hallmark of good coaching. Bama's performance against UT shows the kind of coaching Anthony Grant brings.
Vanderbilt- Five days after the emotional win at Tennessee, the Crimson Tide took a trip to Nashville, TN and Memorial Coliseum, a place where Alabama has not won since 1990. While the game was not a must-win, it was certainly another opportunity for a quality win. Alabama played the ‘Dores close for most of the game, but “Memorial Magic” was alive and well, with Vanderbilt getting two close calls late in the game that even reporters in Tennessee disagreed with. While coaches generally don’t like to talk about getting a “quality loss,” a strong showing against Vanderbilt on national television showed the country that Alabama was for real and they were not going away.
Arkansas- Alabama, put the disheartening Vanderbilt loss behind them, and put away Ole Miss at home and LSU in Baton Rouge. The Tide then returned home to face the Arkansas Razorbacks. For those readers who had the privilege of being at Coleman Coliseum last Saturday night, not much needs to be said about this game. There was a lot on the line for the Crimson Tide: revenge over one of the two teams to have beaten them in conference play, and a chance to clinch, at worst, a share of the SEC West title. The Hogs battled ‘Bama close, and with 8:15 remaining the score was tied at 51. It was at about this time that Tony Mitchell said enough was enough, taking over the game and leading Alabama to a 69-56 win in front of an electric home crowd. The energy in Coleman last night rivaled that of the Kentucky game. The whole arena, not just the student section, was on its feet for the majority of the second half, willing the Tide to victory. Here is a video of Tony Mitchell just being Tony Mitchell from last night and the crowd’s reaction:
Where do we go from here?- Alabama has the possibility of being the most interesting bubble team that the NCAA tournament committee has seen in a long time. Coach Grant’s team is undefeated at home, but struggles in non-conference play, especially on the road, has them on the bubble. The Tide could fix all of that, by winning the SEC tournament in Atlanta, however their best bet would be to enter as an at-large bid. ‘Bama has four games remaining on the schedule, at home against Auburn, at Ole Miss, at Florida, and home against Georgia. The game against Florida could turn out to be the make-or-break game for Alabama. The Tide’s RPI is currently 77, and they will need to be in the 60s range to be considered for an at-large bid, especially with a strength of schedule rating of only 130 playing in the weak SEC West. It will definitely be an exciting stretch run as the Tide look to finish the season strong, and hopefully earn a bid to the NCAA tournament.
Finally, I would strongly urge reader’s of the blog to try and make it out to Coleman Coliseum for one of the remaining games this year if you are in or near Tuscaloosa. The atmosphere has been stellar as of late, and Alabama needs all the support they can get. And if you can’t make it to Tuscaloosa, catch the games on TV or at your local sports bar. If it’s anything like the way the season has gone up to this point, there won’t be a dull moment. Roll Tide!
Marc Torrence, from Franklin, TN, is a freshman at The Capstone majoring in Telecommunication and Film . He is co-host of the sports-talk show "The Student Section" on Wednesday nights from 8-10 on 90.7 in Tuscaloosa.
If you like Marc's B'ball reporting, stay tuned. He will be a frequent contributor to The Commissioner's Blog.
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