Bama falters down the stretch...
I'll say this - Alabama got close to pulling off the big one. At around the three minute mark Retin Obasahan missed a layup. Cleanthony Early then slammed one on the other end, and the Tide couldn't recover. After playing the worst 10 minutes at the start of the game I've ever seen, Alabama stuck out their chest and played like men. The final score was 72-67, and it was a blood bath. No doubt the Tide could have won this one. A win over Wichita State would have been big for Alabama's quickly vanishing NCAA Tournament hopes. You might not like the execution of Grant's team but you couldn't deny the effort. It was as intense a defensive struggle as I've watched in a long time. If you can't play good, then play mean, and Alabama delivered on that point. Once again the almost complete absence of an inside game killed the Tide. That aspect of the Tide's game is not likely to improve much.
I know that everyone think Grant is a poor offensive coach. That isn't true. He gets as much out of his talent as anyone can. Not everyone likes milking the shot clock but Bama has not other choice. Add the in your grill defense and the Tide has the ability to win some games. The question is can they win enough. It is going to take Releford and Lacy to develop something on the inside. Last night, Releford had six assists and everyone of them kept the Tide close or gave them the lead.
Don't think for a minute that Wichita State would like a rematch later this season against the Tide. This one was slug fest. In the end the heavyweight put down the middleweight down in the final round. There is no doubt this team has some real problems. Despite that, Alabama continues to make every game competitive. Next season we have some real talent on hand, and a super little point guard to try to replace Trevor Releford. For the remainder of this season we need to see Randolph, Cooper, and Jacobs pick it up. If they can improve the Tide will be ready for next season. Cooper in particular needs to find a way to help the team. When Bama makes some threes and cuts down on turnovers they will give some teams a good run.
In the meantime Grant continues to lose the confidence of a lot of Alabama fans. Last night a top ten team came to Coleman and the fans just didn't show up in big numbers. The ones who were in attendance made some real noise. I understand the students weren't in school. Honestly, they haven't filled up their section except for the true believers. When you look over the remainder of the schedule it's possible that the Tide might have a losing season. We play Kentucky, Missouri twice, and Florida twice. Let's hope the teams hard work will pay off in a few games. Coach Grant needs more players and that will make next season a good one. But for this season, I'm afraid it will be a lot of pain and suffering for Tide fans. But the SEC is such a bad league this year who really knows what might happen.
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