Tide faces a very good Vandy team today

 

   After an enormous win over South Carolina, the Tide travels to Nashville to take on Vanderbilt. Expect Avery Johnson to go with his big lineup again. Road games are always tough. When you play the gilded lily, Vandy, of the SEC Conference, you don't have to worry about some home cooking from the officials. No, expect deep fat frying as Vandy heads to the free throw line like refugees in masses. Numbers over the decades will back up that statement. Can you expect fairness in Nashville? No. You won't get it. About the only thing that Johnson can do about that is to tell his players that fairness is highly overrated, and play as hard as you can. 

    Take my opinion as Bama's first problem and add to it a couple of other problems. Vandy is a good team. They have two sure-fire NBA draft choices in Damian Jones and Wade Baldwin. Add Luke Kornette to the mix and Bama has problems. Kornett has suddenly caught a case of greatness. He is 6-11 and loves to shot the three. In has last game he had over ten blocked shots. That is phenomenal. Even more phenomenal is that he isn't the  'Dores best shot blocker. That would be Damian Jones, the seven-foot post man, who spurned a potential first round selection to the NBA, to play his senior

year. Wade Baldwin may be the best point guard in the SEC. He is going to play in the league one day. He can shoot, dish, and drive to basketball. He has a total game, and might well be the 'Dores best backcourt defensive players.

     Look for Johnson to go big, and hope that Retin Obasahan can slow down Baldwin. Taylor, Kessens, and Hall are going to have to have another good game inside. Riley isn't likely to duplicate his last outing, but he needs to score to spread out the Commodore defense. The love to play zone. Bama needs for Obasahan to be very active on offense to penetrate and put a few fouls on Vandy big men. Attempting to get Jones into foul trouble is big for Bama in this game. 

     Turnovers continue to be a problem for Alabama. The Tide is trying to play an up-tempo game with limited numbers. That's hard to do. One final thing - Shannon Hale needs to play well.

Vandy by 8.

Bama heads to the worst place in the SEC

 My right arm for a win at Vanderbilt...

      My disgust for Vanderbilt runs deep and is still active even though I'm old enough to know better. Vandy is recognized as the best academic school in the South, and in our conference. They are also some of the most bigoted fans I've ever met or heard. One winter we headed north to Nashville. We were killing them. That's when the student section started a chant. 

     "That's all right, that's okay, you'll all work for us someday." 

      Even worse were the racial slurs directed at our players. I'll never forget that and will never forgive them either.  But I don't care. I hate Vandy worse than Auburn some ways. I cut AU slack because most of them are Alabama residents. They may be misguided, but they are our neighbors. I know, I know, but I have Tiger friends. Back to Vandy. I'm not talking about their players. I know several and all are great men. I even shared a stage with one player when a Nashville High School gave me an award. (which proves anything is possible) 

      I love watching the 'Dores get beat in basketball. I'll watch them play anyone in hopes they lose. Yes, even Auburn. Not that it makes any difference because AU can't win enough games to matter. The other reason I dislike Vandy is we just can't beat them ofter enough suit me. First, you rarely shoot free throws in that dinky little place they call a coliseum. Players sit below the floor and get a first class view of what kind of shoes everyone is wearing.  Also, the teams sit at the end of the floor down on the baseline. That's just wrong. Coaches can't communicate with the players. And the concession stands are second rate. I'd give the restrooms a passing score. It is the worst arena in the SEC. But, and this big, it is a tremendous homecourt advantage. 

       Of course, after the game you have to listen to country music. It's on every station except the ones that ask you to send their ministry money. To be blessed you can just lay you hand on the speaker, and shazam... yep, I hate Vandy and Nashville, Tennessee. Their nicest building is called the Batman building which give us an idea of their lives. Even their horses walk funny. The best thing in Tennessee is the YOU ARE NOW LEAVING TENNESSEE sign on the interstate. It's as good as a doctor telling you the medical test you just paid money for was negative, but he'll give you some Percocet for pain anyway.  

Tomorrow we can talk about the game. I had to get that off my chest about Vandy.

     
Norris explodes for 27 and ties a school record


   

  Several days ago one of the TiderInsider posters said that Riley Norris brought "nothing" to the Alabama Crimson Tide basketball team. Hey, I know the taste of crow myself. I said then, and I'll say it again - Riley Norris is a great player. He's not a franchise type player, but he can shoot better than any Alabama player we've had in our program for a long, long time. Last night Norris, the nothing player, was in the books for 27 points and 7 rebounds. He made 8 three-pointers from deep behind the arc. His teammates found him wide open, and Norris ripped it. The USC Gamecocks got rocked from the start by Norris and the Bama defense piled on.  Just as important, the Crimson outrebounded the 'Cocks by five. South Carolina made some inside baskets when the game was well in hand.  

      How good was the Tide defense? In the second half, it took Carolina almost ten minutes to score.  For the third time this season, the Crimson Tide took down a top-twenty teams. The Tide's RPI rose to 38th in the NCAA. After a 0-2 start in the SEC, it was a big win. Avery Johnson notched his first SEC win.  After the game, an effusive Johnson explained why he wanted to coach at Alabama.  As a Tide supporter, it sure made me feel good to hear the things he said.  He does all the small things needed to light a fire under the Tide's program had stalled. I'm sure a lot of fans came to celebrate the football championship. I'd bet that a lot more came to watch basketball. I'd also bet that most of them will return to see Johnson's team grow. It's going to be a fun ride. Not every night will be as good as last night. We may well have some nights along the way.  More likely than not, we'll see a couple of repeats of last night. Our talent level is good enough to win some games. I think this team is learning how to do that.  What Norris did last night was remarkable, but he will do it again. I'm looking at all the players we have right now, and each brings something different to the floor. Grant got some good players. Johnson seems able to coach them. What happened last night was without Ingram and a very minimal contribution from Hale. That's coaching. That was also some tremendous play. 

  
Kentucky shuts down the Tide Offense
Woeful rebounding has to improve
Obasahan and Norris play well

   

Retin played like a Lion

       It's not my intention in shooting a dead horse. We didn't play defense, we can't score, and we can't rebound.  Winning basketball has always been about three things. It's the same three things since James Naismith nails the first peach basket on the wall. It's all about shooting, it's about taking care of the ball, and it's about rebounding. 

      Alabama was forced to attempt poor shots because that's all the Kentucky defense allowed. The Cats contested ever shot that Bama tried.  Kentucky kept the Tide from running anything resembling an offense. Time after time the Tide was down to less than ten seconds before taking a shot. 

         On the positive side, the Tide committed only seven turnovers. I'm not sure that that the Tide improved in that area since the Mississippi game, or Tide players just couldn't find anyone to pass the ball to on offense. That kept the game from being totally embarrassing. Kentucky beat the Tide on boards. Kentucky pulled down 40 and the Tide a mere 23. The Alabama starting lineup managed only 11 rebounds. Unbelievable.  Despite all the problems the Crimson has on offense, they held Kentucky to 77 when it could have been worse.

     I am lucky to have been around a lot of great coaches in the SEC. I remember Dale Brown telling his team that rebounding is about two things. The first was proper fundamentals and the second is manhood. "Men will rebound when nothing else you are doing is going well." I wrote that down. 

Alabama has what I characterize four big men. None of them are proving they want to rebound. I think rebounding is about pride and effort, and courage. If Riley Norris were 6-10, he'd pull down 15 rebounds a game. Why? He has great fundamentals, especially under his basket, and he is a warrior. Donta Hall hasn't learned proper fundaments yet. He has the heart.  Jimmie Taylor and Shannon Hale have all the skills to be great rebounders. If you have to sit on the bench because of fouls, you can't rebound. If all you do is think about shooting three-pointers, you are not in a position to rebound. Until these four players man up and decide to compete the season is going to long and hard.

     You can fix the turnovers by explaining to your players about choosing good passes vs. questionable passes. I think that Johnson got that through to his players. Jimmie just doesn't seem able to hang on to the ball. He can learn to hang on to the ball. Or can sit and watch Donta Hall learn to hang on to the ball.  The most disappointing player under the boards is Michael Kessens. He has the tools, but he seems to have the attitude of a kitten and not a lion. I think Coach Johnson needs to sit him down and explain the laws of what being a 6-9 power forward is all about.  I'd take him in the coaches office and say words to the effect - 'Son, go in there, pick out a man on the other side and introduce yourself to him by knocking him down. Big men live in a land where only the strong play. Michael, be a man, or sit down and watch.'

     Let's be clear on one thing Kentucky is a good team. They are not a great team. They are going to lose some more games.  If I was a 'Bama big man I'd be embarrassed with the sissy type effort I saw today. I know that one day we will have better players, but you don't have to be better to put forth the effort to rebound. Honestly, it takes more effort when you are a better player. 

           It speaks well that the Tide managed to cut the 16 point Kentucky lead to 4 in the second half. I think the TV crew was correctly stating that the road game in Oxford, coupled with a short turnaround wore down the Tide. The inability to rebound is the ultimate killer in college basketball.  It requires the desire to rebound. I think all of our players have the ability to do what is required. They don't seem to have the will. It is time for Bama's big men to man up. You are embarrassing yourselves.  

TIDE has An enormous task Saturday  

Kentucky has the size

 Bama is only a 4 1/2  point underdog to big dog Kentucky.  I have to admit that number surprise me. I thought the number would be around 10. So does that means that the Tide is better than we think, or is Kentucky really as fragile as they look despite all those big time recruits? Can Bama beat Kentucky? Yes, if they do the following

1. Fill up Coleman to give Bama a real home court advantage. A loud crowd will help the Tide with the officials. 

2. Keep the turnovers down to 10.

3. Shoot 25 free throws and make 80%.

4. Keep Jimmie Taylor in the game. That means giving up some shots on the perimeter. That also means the Michael Kessens is going to have to play very well. He's getting there. 

5. Bama's point guards, Obasahan and Coleman, have two big jobs. First, slow down Tyler Ulis. Do not allow him to easily penetrate or take wide open three points hots

Kentuky by 12

CRIMSON HOOPS - Ole Miss wins, but

AVERY JOHNSON IS GETTING IT DONE

...Tide doesn't win but is getting better...

        We didn't win. One dry spell in the second half killed the Tide. That being said, Alabama played hard and had a chance. You don't win with 19 turnovers. You never win with that many floor errors. If Bama can keep turnovers down to 10, they'll win some ball games. Maybe not NCAA flavored games, but they'll be sniffing the NIT. The loss of Dazon Ingram, the illness of Shannon Hale, and just plain old sloppy play is hurting the Tide. All that, and still, the Tide was close at the end. If I were Kentucky, I'd stop thinking pit stop and start thinking land mine.  Alabama probably won't Kentucky, but I'm not discounting the Tide under Avery Johnson.  I bet in a couple of seasons we are going to be getting tons of national press about the sport that uses the round ball. 

         I'm not saying that losing is acceptable. But sometimes winning comes in small steps and not leaps and bounds. Johnson will get us to a better level.  Alabama's first five games are killers. Game won goes into the loss column, and now Bama stands at 9-4. That record could be 9-8 shortly. I'm betting the Tide wins a couple of the next four games. If Bama could get through those games and stand at 11-6, we'll make the NIT at least. The NIT would be an outstanding job well done for this team. Retin Obasahan, who has been the butt of so many jokes in the past, continues to shine.  He played better than Stephan Moody on Wednesday night. In the two games, his scoring was down he was still a defensive demon, and rebounded well. I've known he speaks four languages. I'm not sure which ones, but I'd go with shooting, defense, rebounding, and hustle if we are talking hoops. 

      What Johnson needs is for Hale to play better. He also needs Michael Kessens to catch fire and perform up to his potential. He has moments, but Johnson needs him to have long stretches of good play. Most importantly, the team needs to rebound much better and protect the ball. You can coach a team to reduce turnovers. The players have to make a commitment to rebound harder.

     

       'Bama didn't win. Their 8 point halftime lead was squandered with turnovers and giving up to many offensive rebounds. Both of those are killers for a basketball team. The Tide gave up 15 offensive rebounds. Add that to the 19 turnovers and it means Alabama gave Ole Miss 34 additional chances to score. 

         Tide enters SEC race this week  

 Tide ends 10-3 in Pre-SEC

        Alabama played a good game in the second half against a pretty gritty Norfolk team. The Spartans have played in the postseason the last four seasons. Time for some objectivity here. Alabama is not a great basketball team, but they are getting better. I don't see how Avery Johnson could have done any better with his team up to this point. The only thing surprising to me is that the scoring remains low. I think the Tides average shooting is the culprit. Lack of inside scoring is not nearly where we hoped it would be, but maybe it's all it is going to be. I'll give credit to Jimmie Taylor. He's getting better. I'll give a knock to Michael Kessens, who should be able to score more but has not done so. You can't dismiss Kessens rebounding has been excellent.

        The players have impressed me so far. Retin Obasahan may not make many all-conference teams but he should. Riley Norris is a good player. He brings all he can, and is a surprisingly good rebounder. Arthur Edwards isn't a great all-around floor man. The man can shoot. The man can shoot the three ball. He's isn't afraid to pull the trigger

      Those three have played well and have made significant contributions. The improvement of Justin Coleman has been fun to watch. The little guard has the game and seems to be finding the confidence to match. His shooting is up and down. It always was as a high school player. It will get better with playing time and better coaching. 

      I think the Tide has the toughest opening SEC schedule of any team in the league. It is entirely possible that Alabama will lose it's first five or six SEC games. That's not going to be fun to read, but the SEC office did the Tide no favors when they drafted the league schedule. The Tide needs to win another  12-14 games to get an NCAA game. No one wants to see that happen than me, but Johnson will get the Tide to the field next season. 

      And to all the misinthropss oin cyber-space, I count TR.NAZ as a win. I understand the NCAA does not. And please, if you don't like what I write, just don't read. My late father used to tell me, "their is only two letters of difference between class and ass". Pick the one you think you should be.