was that fun or what?
bama comeback shows potential...
If you are reading this is likely means you love Alabama basketball. I kept telling my friends the first half was horrible but we were only 9 points down. Flash forward 4 minutes in the second half and Tide was winning. It just goes to show that basketball is a game of runs and chemistry. The also should remind each of us the importance of defense. I'll give it up for our fans. They were defense cheering fanatics in the second half. Alabama is one of the few places where the fans really understand just what defense means to this team.
A big comeback occurred quickly...
A&M had a 14 point lead at one point in the first half. At the 13:27 point in the second half the Tide had made an 18 point turnaround. I've seen a lot of basketball. I mean a whole lot of basketball in my life. Alabama and VCU are the two best defensive teams I've seen in a long time. When you looked at the eyes of A&M players after that run you saw confusion. Who are these guys, and where are they coming from. Alabama got pretty tired during those frenetic minutes of the opening in the second half. That allowed the Aggies to take a 2 point lead with just under 10 minutes. Grant called a very timely and much needed time out with 9:37 left. It allowed the Tide some rest. The Tide gone 10 minutes in the first half without scoring. Now they hadn't scored in 5 minutes.
Game on the line
At the next media time out which lasted almost three minutes Grant told his team they could be the team they were in the first half, or they could go another path. After catching a five second call and an almost immediate 4th foul on Steele things looked bad. TAM had gone on a 9 point run to take a 39-34. The scoring drought hit the 6 minute make but Alabama was only 5 points behind. With 8 minutes left the Tide could win or they could fold. I remember thinking would this be like the Tennessee game or like a couple of others where we wilted. When Trevor Releford punched in a 3 ball the lead was reduced to 2, the crowd got back in the game, and out of a media time out the team looked pretty darned determined. Alabama had allowed Elston Turner had only gotten one shot in half number two. At the 5:38 mark the margin was 41-39 after Releford made two freebies.
A great defensive play by Bama...
Small things make a difference. Bama forced TAM to burn another time out and that left the
Aggie with only one. That would come back to hurt them. Then it became the Trevor Releford show. TR made 2 great layups to keep the Tide even. Releford might have a bad ankle but it didn't show on the offensive end. The next magic trick for the little magician was steal and layup which put Bama up 2.
Mr. Dependability...
With the score tied A&M. ran an isolation play against Steele. Steele played it well but not over aggressively. It was the Aggies by two under a minute when Steele drove the lane and scored a layup and hit his free throw. The unaggressive Steele on the defensive end if the floor was not going to be stopped. When A&M hit a floater that got a kind bounce the Texans were ahead again by 1. Logic dictated that Lacey or Releford drive in the paint and score or shoot a couple of free throws. Give credit the TAM they cut off the lane and forced Lacey to shoot an 17 foot fade away. It was nothing but net. So the little team that can't score had just won by 1 at 50-49. The key numbers were 1 and 49. This was as good a defensive performance I've seen in years with Randolph shutting down Turner. All the great things Bama did on offense were nice. Without Mr. Dependability playing defense it wouldn't have mattered though.You think maybe A&M would have wanted one more time out to set their defense after seeing Alabama's offensive set at the end? Sometimes it is plays that we forget that make a differnce.
bama comeback shows potential...
If you are reading this is likely means you love Alabama basketball. I kept telling my friends the first half was horrible but we were only 9 points down. Flash forward 4 minutes in the second half and Tide was winning. It just goes to show that basketball is a game of runs and chemistry. The also should remind each of us the importance of defense. I'll give it up for our fans. They were defense cheering fanatics in the second half. Alabama is one of the few places where the fans really understand just what defense means to this team. A big comeback occurred quickly...
A&M had a 14 point lead at one point in the first half. At the 13:27 point in the second half the Tide had made an 18 point turnaround. I've seen a lot of basketball. I mean a whole lot of basketball in my life. Alabama and VCU are the two best defensive teams I've seen in a long time. When you looked at the eyes of A&M players after that run you saw confusion. Who are these guys, and where are they coming from. Alabama got pretty tired during those frenetic minutes of the opening in the second half. That allowed the Aggies to take a 2 point lead with just under 10 minutes. Grant called a very timely and much needed time out with 9:37 left. It allowed the Tide some rest. The Tide gone 10 minutes in the first half without scoring. Now they hadn't scored in 5 minutes.
Game on the line
At the next media time out which lasted almost three minutes Grant told his team they could be the team they were in the first half, or they could go another path. After catching a five second call and an almost immediate 4th foul on Steele things looked bad. TAM had gone on a 9 point run to take a 39-34. The scoring drought hit the 6 minute make but Alabama was only 5 points behind. With 8 minutes left the Tide could win or they could fold. I remember thinking would this be like the Tennessee game or like a couple of others where we wilted. When Trevor Releford punched in a 3 ball the lead was reduced to 2, the crowd got back in the game, and out of a media time out the team looked pretty darned determined. Alabama had allowed Elston Turner had only gotten one shot in half number two. At the 5:38 mark the margin was 41-39 after Releford made two freebies.
A great defensive play by Bama...
Small things make a difference. Bama forced TAM to burn another time out and that left the
Aggie with only one. That would come back to hurt them. Then it became the Trevor Releford show. TR made 2 great layups to keep the Tide even. Releford might have a bad ankle but it didn't show on the offensive end. The next magic trick for the little magician was steal and layup which put Bama up 2.
Mr. Dependability...
With the score tied A&M. ran an isolation play against Steele. Steele played it well but not over aggressively. It was the Aggies by two under a minute when Steele drove the lane and scored a layup and hit his free throw. The unaggressive Steele on the defensive end if the floor was not going to be stopped. When A&M hit a floater that got a kind bounce the Texans were ahead again by 1. Logic dictated that Lacey or Releford drive in the paint and score or shoot a couple of free throws. Give credit the TAM they cut off the lane and forced Lacey to shoot an 17 foot fade away. It was nothing but net. So the little team that can't score had just won by 1 at 50-49. The key numbers were 1 and 49. This was as good a defensive performance I've seen in years with Randolph shutting down Turner. All the great things Bama did on offense were nice. Without Mr. Dependability playing defense it wouldn't have mattered though.You think maybe A&M would have wanted one more time out to set their defense after seeing Alabama's offensive set at the end? Sometimes it is plays that we forget that make a differnce.
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