The turtle couldn't win this one...

Green shows his frustration from the bench

     If Maryland was the turtle, then Alabama was the hare. Chalk one up for the rabbits. Bama used a pressing defense to stifle Maryland of the ACC 62-42. It wasn't that close. At one point in the second half I wondered whether Maryland would score 30 points. Once Coach Grant pulled his rotation Maryland finally began scoring a few points.  But only then. 


    What were the Terps thinking  when they were down 20 in the first half and knew that Alabama's best player was not playing?  Alabama did not play a perfect game. On defense it is hard to believe anyone could do better. The Crimson Tide took a mediocre and injury plagued Maryland team and turned them into the gang that couldn't shoot straight. Maryland looked horrible. The 'terps looked lost and confused. Maryland couldn't have dribbled a basketball to the end of a pier and hit the ocean. Let's recap some stats.

• Maryland shot only 26% on 13 of 49 shots. Very few of those shots were good ones. 
• Maryland shot only 16% of three-point attempts. They were 2-12 from the floor.
• Alabama out boarded the 'terps 44-28. When you only shot 26% there a lots of rebounds
• Alabama only allowed 8 assists. 
• Alabama shot 43% from the from the floor, but shot 46 % in suburb land. 
• Alabama uncharacteristically made only 7-14 free throws
• JayMykal Green  played just 13 minutes after learning exactly how the block charge line works.

I know the ACC is supposed to be the big dog league of the NCAA. Alabama clearly had better players, better athletes , and executed their game plan. Grant had his team ready. There would be no repeat of last years un-excellent Caribbean adventure. The Tide played well. 

     The Tide's largest lead was 25 with Green on the bench. Tony Mitchell had a team high 17 points. He got 15 of those in the first half when he  was  playing somewhere above the space shuttle. He hit 2 nice threes in the first half to jump start the team. Releford kicked in 10 with several of sweet penetrations to the basket. Green and Cooper each had 7.  Perhaps the biggest news of the was the big Swede. Carl Engstrom had 5 rebounds after replaced Green he also had 2 blocked shots. Engstrom is getting there and it seems that Grant's faith in him might pay off for the Tide. Charles Hankerson had 8 points and played another steady game. And in a news flash, Ben Eblen actually took a shot after a big league steal and scored. The bench went wild. 

 Trevor Lacy had 10 points in 25 minutes of play. Lacy is getting close to 100% coming off knee surgery. Levi Randolph may be the best athlete on the team. He played 22 minutes and was a demon on defense. He limited the 'terps best shooter to no points. Nick Jacobs continues to show what he can do. In his 18 minutes on the floor he had 4 points and 2 rebounds, but more importantly he got into the flow of the game. He's a keeper. 

Bama takes on Colorado in its next game. The Buffs beat a good Wichita State team  62-57 in what might be considered a mild upset. The game is set for an 8:00 CST tip. ESPN2 will have the live action. 

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