TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Throughout the week, all the hype surrounding Alabama was the debut of new, “retro” jerseys. With the fans getting up early and showing out, the Crimson Tide put on a performance that would make Wimp Sanderson proud.
Four of Alabama’s starting five scored more than ten points, with Mark Sears, Rylan Griffen, and Latrell Wrightsell Jr. all going over 15 points. The team shot over 50 percent from the field, and over 40 percent from three, which made the biggest difference. Sears lead the way with 23 points, matching Colin Sexton for most 20 point games in a single season at Alabama.
With the offense firing on all cylinders, players like Wrightsell and Sam Walters were able to really get into the flow of the game. Walter had 11 points on four-of-six shooting. Alabama is undefeated in game where Wrightsell scores over 10 points, which continued after his 16 point performances Saturday.
“That’s a good barometer…he’s not a guy that we run a ton of plays for, when the ball moves he gets open shots,” said Head Coach Nate Oats, “When he scores double-digits because the ball is moving we’re playing great on offense,” he added.
On the defensive side, Alabama played one of their best games of the season. The Aggies shot below 40 percent from the field and were a dreadful four-for-23 from deep. The gameplan for the Crimson Tide was to pressure the ball right at midcourt. It forced Texas A&M to try to move the ball quicker, and Alabama capitalized to the tune of 14 forced turnovers, with nine steals.
“We were better, but nowhere close to where we need to be,” said Oats.
Alabama was getting hurt on the offensive glass, with a 49-38 rebounding advantage for the Aggies, who lead the nation in offensive rebounding. It was a misleading stat, with Alabama’s shot making ability keeping its lead stable throughout. Tyrece Radford lead Texas A&M with 22 points, but it was not enough for the Aggies.
Despite the struggle on the board, Alabama’s ability to knock down shots meant that the game was never truly in doubt. It was going to be tough on the glass, but the Crimson Tide won every other battle, and when this team can win a shooting contest, games are never really close.
This game was the 10th, 100 point SEC game for Alabama under Nate Oats, with all other SEC teams having 10 between them during that time.
Alabama now sits at 18-7 overall and 10-2 in the SEC. The team is still atop of the conference standings with a physical Florida team coming to town Wednesday, Feb. 21. The recent NCAA Tournament Committee’s projections have the Crimson Tide as three-seed in the south bracket with a few weeks to go.
