'Bama hosts 7-14 Missouri Wednesday...
Tarrant status not clear...
Hopefully, Tide fans will learn the status of Ricky Tarrant today. When it comes to giving any information about hurt players, you would think that Anthony Grant has them doing rehab in Fort Knox. We need him on the floor against Missouri. This is unlike most Missouri teams of the recent past. They have national statistics that are even worst than Alabama. ESPN reports that the Tigers are 302nd in scoring average, 235th in rebounds, 293rd and 285th in field goal percentage. Bama falls at 171, 276,241, and 104 respectively. This could be a game of the bad vs. the really bad. At least the game is in Tuscaloosa. For Alabama this is a must win game to keep hopes alive for an NIT bid. I think the NCAA bid is gone. The Tide has now lost 5 of their last 6 games. And yes, I aware that 4 of those losses were by 2 points. Those close games are the difference in being 17-4 instead of 13-8. That's the difference between being notice and being forgotten. It hurts know the players came so close, but they are still stinging losses.
On Wednesday night, the Tide has a chance to win one. If Tarrant is able to play I feel good about our chances. Without Tarrant, I just don't know. Obasahan couldn't replace Ricky in any sense of the word, despite his effort. Justin Coleman actually had to play against someone who was quicker than him. That might be a first for the freshman. If I were Grant (not that I would want to be him these days) I'd put Justin in the line-up and tell him to let it rip. I'd love to see him and Randolph both have good games. Cooper seems to have settled down into being a positive force, Taylor is getting better, and Shannon Hale, actually played decently against Kentucky. I love his hard nose aggressiveness taking the ball inside and drawing fouls. Riley Norris is learning. He is not afraid to mix it up under the boards. He is still a great shooter when he is allowed to pull the trigger. Kessens seems to have settle into a role of being mediocre. He is still learning, to be fair. How much to do you to learn to be aggressive?
Let's not kid ourselves here. Bama is a better team than last season, but how many additional wins they put on the board is still up for grabs. I'd like to think that they can win enough to play in the NIT. Some fans (if you can call them fans) hope Grant zeros the season in order to get him fired. I think that decision has already been made, but notice I didn't say he'd be fired. Coach Grant will leave on his on accord when he needs to according to a lot of my long terms friends associated with the AD. Alabama will have to pay a lot of money to see him leave early. They'll have to pay a lot more money if he stays as long as attendance continues to fall, and the Tide's national brand continues to take hits. A lot of people think that Bill Battle doesn't care about basketball. He does care about the Alabama reputation, however.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Tarrant can return. He is Alabama's floor leader. Randolph is the teams emotional leader. Together, they can really be a big time headache for anyone. Can Alabama beat Missouri without Tarrant. Yes, but Coleman and Obasahan will need to have big games.
Tarrant status not clear...
Hopefully, Tide fans will learn the status of Ricky Tarrant today. When it comes to giving any information about hurt players, you would think that Anthony Grant has them doing rehab in Fort Knox. We need him on the floor against Missouri. This is unlike most Missouri teams of the recent past. They have national statistics that are even worst than Alabama. ESPN reports that the Tigers are 302nd in scoring average, 235th in rebounds, 293rd and 285th in field goal percentage. Bama falls at 171, 276,241, and 104 respectively. This could be a game of the bad vs. the really bad. At least the game is in Tuscaloosa. For Alabama this is a must win game to keep hopes alive for an NIT bid. I think the NCAA bid is gone. The Tide has now lost 5 of their last 6 games. And yes, I aware that 4 of those losses were by 2 points. Those close games are the difference in being 17-4 instead of 13-8. That's the difference between being notice and being forgotten. It hurts know the players came so close, but they are still stinging losses.On Wednesday night, the Tide has a chance to win one. If Tarrant is able to play I feel good about our chances. Without Tarrant, I just don't know. Obasahan couldn't replace Ricky in any sense of the word, despite his effort. Justin Coleman actually had to play against someone who was quicker than him. That might be a first for the freshman. If I were Grant (not that I would want to be him these days) I'd put Justin in the line-up and tell him to let it rip. I'd love to see him and Randolph both have good games. Cooper seems to have settled down into being a positive force, Taylor is getting better, and Shannon Hale, actually played decently against Kentucky. I love his hard nose aggressiveness taking the ball inside and drawing fouls. Riley Norris is learning. He is not afraid to mix it up under the boards. He is still a great shooter when he is allowed to pull the trigger. Kessens seems to have settle into a role of being mediocre. He is still learning, to be fair. How much to do you to learn to be aggressive?
Let's not kid ourselves here. Bama is a better team than last season, but how many additional wins they put on the board is still up for grabs. I'd like to think that they can win enough to play in the NIT. Some fans (if you can call them fans) hope Grant zeros the season in order to get him fired. I think that decision has already been made, but notice I didn't say he'd be fired. Coach Grant will leave on his on accord when he needs to according to a lot of my long terms friends associated with the AD. Alabama will have to pay a lot of money to see him leave early. They'll have to pay a lot more money if he stays as long as attendance continues to fall, and the Tide's national brand continues to take hits. A lot of people think that Bill Battle doesn't care about basketball. He does care about the Alabama reputation, however.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Tarrant can return. He is Alabama's floor leader. Randolph is the teams emotional leader. Together, they can really be a big time headache for anyone. Can Alabama beat Missouri without Tarrant. Yes, but Coleman and Obasahan will need to have big games.
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