TIDE PREPARES FOR SDS & FANS GET READY AS WELL...   

     Alabama will head north to Louisville, Kentucky, for their Sweet Sixteen game with San Diego State. Both teams sport powerful resumes.   Alabama is 31-5 and carries the weight of a number 1 seed.   U is a 5 seed and has a 29-6 record.   Alabama has been to the Sweet Sixteen. Ditto for the Aztecs. B ma advanced to the Elite Eight once in 2004.   SDS never made it to the Elite Eight in two appearances. I suspect the Aztecs won't be to the Elite Eight this Year.   

         Tide fans are preparing as well. A lot of lucky shirts will be worn. Some well-worn socks considered necessary for such a big game are a must-do. If you see fans wearing tattered tee shirts, you can bet they are "lucky."  A GPS will direct fans to Louisville. For many Alabama fans, this might be the first substantial road trip they've ever made. Anxiety will be standard behavior for a lot of fans. Post-game plans may be happy-time Bama basketball fans or something akin to the end of the world for others. Younger fans believe Alabama will return to such lofty standings in the future. For older fans, it might be the last chance to see the Tide soar to places they have never seen. The thought or hope Bama wins the national championship is in everyone's mind. 

       I've been a Bama fan since George Linn made the longest shot in basketball history. I was a Rocket Eight fan. Johnny Dee was the man. Jerry Harper averaged 21.5 rebounds a game. Ironically, Harper was from Louisville, Kentucky. The '56 team was 21-3 and 14-0 in the SEC. That was high cotton for Tide fans. I wasn't around for Hank Crisp, but after Rocket Eight, the Tide settled with Hayden Riley. No black Americans played for those coaches. With the hiring of C.M. Newton, things got better. Much better. The Tide made an impact on the SEC and the NCAA. Wimp Newton got Bama into an almost regular appearance in the Sweet Sixteen. Mark Gottfried got to #1 for a week. The Tide made 5 consecutive NCAAs. The program had great players, but Gottfried resigned in 2009. Anthony Grant has a mess to clean up. Grant had a couple of teams snubbed by the selection committee. Avery Johnson was hired and stayed for four years with a losing SEC record. 

     Alabama hires Nate Oats, and this got better. I remember posting that it would take him four years to be successful. Oats won the SEC with players mainly recruited by Johnson. Year three saw the Tide make the NCAA again, but the season disappointed many fans. In Year Four, Oats grabbed the golden ring. So if you are an older fan, such as me, you have seen a lot of bad things and a few good things. Good things are happening now. If Bama wins the Sweet Sixteen game, they should have an Elite Eight foe they will be favored to beat. 

     Young fans tend to demean older fans. They have better seats and don't come to 8PM games. I don't disagree with either of those statements, but older fans have paid for a lot of misery in their lifetimes. If it wasn't for older fans demanding a better program, Alabama may not have hired Coach Oats. 

Alabama will have its hands full with SDSU...

JQ returned to his old form against Maryland.

  The Crimson Tide cruised to wins in the NCAA Tournament. Win #1 did not feature Brandon Miller. 96 points is a lot of points in any game. Scoring 96 points in the NCAA Tournament is dead solid perfect. Win #2 saw Jahvon Quinerly have a spectacular game on offense. Miller knocked down 19 points after being scoreless in game #1. The field of 64 teams doesn't have any weak teams. Alabama has beaten Texas A&M CC and Maryland. Don't diminish the worth of either of those teams. On Friday, the Tide takes on San Diego State. The Aztec Warriors have won 29 games. I don't care which conference they are in. 29 wins is a substantial achievement. Will San Diego State beat Alabama? No, it's not likely, but not impossible. How could the Aztecs beat Alabama?

1. Control the pace of the game. The Aztecs will attempt to slow down the game. They will try to keep the game in the '60s or 70s.   

2. Alabama is looking at them using their physical strength to control the boards. Trying and doing are two different things. Alabama will win the war inside, but the numbers may be manageable.

3. The Aztecs will try to run the Tide's outside downtown game off the three-point line. 

4. Try to get Charles Bediako and Brandon Miller in foul trouble. 

5. They will hope Bama has a stormy shooting night. 

     It is unlikely the Aztecs can sustain all five goals, but they'll give it a good shot. The Aztecs start four seniors and a junior. Alabama is going to start with two freshmen and a sophomore post player. Alabama's freshmen have matured. I'd like to see Noah Clowney have a big game. He could take some of the pressure off of Miller and Quinerly. If Bama shoots well from beyond the arc, they are seemingly unbeatable. If Bama doesn't shoot well, their defense might continue the NCAA winning streak.

PICKNROLL'S FINAL FOUR (as of today)

1. Alabama is my top choice. The Tide has a combination of offense and defense that only one other team has. And that team is 

2. Houston got some good news when Marcus Sasser appeared to be 100% against the hapless Auburn Tigers. One thing to remember is that the Tigers shot many free throws against Houston. If Houston's defense gives Bama that option, the Tide will make enough to win. Bama beat Houston on their home floor earlier this season. The Cougars play Miami next. The Cougars have won 33 games so far this season. 

3. UCONN has had an up-and-down season. The Huskies beat Alabama earlier this season. Bama was a young and inexperienced team at that time. The Tide is no longer inexperienced. The Huskies play Arkansas in the Sweet Sixteen. That should be a great game. A Razorback win would not surprise me, but I'm going with UCONN.

4. Kansas State has a point guard that can do it all. The point guard play might carry KState over Michigan State and then Tennessee. This bracket is now highly competitive. If the officials allow Tennessee to play defense that redefines what fouls are, they will be hard to beat. Tom Izzo is a great coach and a living legend. Can Michigan State escape to play in the Final Four?  

     

Can Miller play through his injury?   

Miller is looking a fewer minutes

    I don't know how long it will take for a groin injury to heal. Per Marcus Sasser, we all know it doesn't take long to worsen a groin injury; you can ask Kelvin Sampson about that. Has Sampson ruined the Houston Cougar's chances to win the national championship? Perhaps, because Sasser is the straw that stirs the Houston team. Houston also reports that guard Jamal Shead has an injured knee. Both Houston stars say, "100 % we will play against Auburn." All players would choose to play. That includes Brandon Miller. What will happen with Miller's playing time? 

     Nate Oats says he wants Miller on the floor for at most 20 minutes per game. That seems the wisest course. After reading medical material about groin injuries, it appears that, at times, a player thinks he can up the tempo. A player can then reaggravate the damage trying to play at full speed. All athletes want to go full speed. It's the nature of the beast. The Tide will likely risk playing Miller against Maryland in a limited capacity. The question in my mind is can Alabama beat Maryland with Miller having limited minutes or not playing at all. How do you factor in additional games in the tournament? 

     Alabama beat TAMU - CC without Miller scoring. He played for 19 minutes. Will that be the game plan for Saturday night? A better question to ask is, can Bama beat Maryland without Miller? Alabama put up over 90-points without Miller's scoring.  We will have to wait and see. Maryland is not a 16-seed team. 

     Yesterday, Purdue was beaten by Fairleigh-Dickenson. Purdue has been overrated all season.  In watching Purdue earlier this season, I never believed the Boilermakers were a great team. The kids from Teaneck, New Jersey, came home with the win. The final score was 63-58. One television announcer called FD, the 17th seed. Gonzaga squeaked by Grand Canyon University 72-70 to move into the round of 32.

Picknroll's Pics for day one...

   

      The first day of the field of 64 is on Thursday.  Right after the hotel buffet, the Terps of Maryland play the West Virginia Mountaineers. That's the 8 and 9-seed teams in Bama's bracket.  I'm going with WVU in a close one. Both of these teams need to be in the ACC or the Big East, but, money talks.  After the morning game is the premiere game of the day. Number 1 seed Alabama plays Texas A&M Corpus Christi. The Christi bunch beat Southeast Missouri State to get into the field. Alabama is a 25-point favorite and might not be enough. TAMUCC didn't have a player of 6-3 on the floor most of the night. This is a perfect game for the Tide to overcome the nerves of being the top seed.  Before the Tide takes the floor, you can catch parts of the Furman vs. Virgina game. I like the 4 seed Virginia by double digits.  Warning - this is likely to be the slowest game you'll see since the four corners' offense was yawned to death. 

     Utah State takes on SEC - gonna' be real good real soon - Missouri, close to lunchtime. I'm picking the Tigers because of a strong finish in the SEC race. Utah State was last four in, then four out, and then back in. The speed of the Tigers will be too much for the Utahans to beat.  I bet Kobe Brown has a big game in his home state.  Around the same time, Howard plays Kansas. If you were going to pick an underdog to win, this ain't the game. Kansas by a biblical flood amount.  

    And its Stars fell on Alabama time, you know, Brandon Miller, Mark Sears, Jahvon Quinerly, Noah Clowney, and the rest of the team. I expect everyone in a Bama uniform will play. But expect the first 7 players to be rotated and prepare for the Saturday game.

    Birmingham will do the State of Alabama in a fine Southern hospitality manner. We'll need a few guys to do live posting during the game. We need to make two things clear. 1. The Legacy area is safe, parking is decent, and you see many fine officers on duty. Thank them for their service. 2. Go to any of the nation's best restaurants, not just the south.  You can go health hazard hot dogs, Thai Pad in Five Points nice. If you want to impress your date, take them to Highlands Bar and Grill. It's one of the top five restaurants in America. There is a bank nearby for the loan to eat there. Several of you say, "this guy isn't a food critic." I admit I'm not, but I don't mean to brag - but I can afford Five-Guys. Roll Tide. 

There is a morning article below if you want to scroll down. 

Bama wins the SEC Tournament in style...

Tide gets ready for Birmingham      

    If there were questions about the Crimson Tide, they have been answered. They did it with Bama's unique style of play. First, the Crimson Tide wore down Texas A&M with a smothering defense. Then, the Tide shot lights out and put Buzz Williams out of his misery. Just joking about Williams; he's a great coach. Nate Oats has put together a team that can win the National Championship. I've been watching Alabama basketball since George Linn threw in the longest basketball in NCAA history. The Tide can win the Championship. I believe 'Bama will do that. Why? They have an unstoppable offense when shooting well and a destructive defense. It's fun to watch all the three-point shots from downtown. It's the Alabama defense that will win it all, however. If you don't believe that, ask Nate Oats. The reason gave the offense chances to turn a 7-point lead into a 20-point lead in the blink of an eye. 

     For our younger fans, this season has been sensational. For us older fans, it has been magical. I've seen more "new" names on the basketball forum page than ever before. Winning is contagious. Alabama was ranked #1 in the 2002-03 season for a week. Mark Gottfried was the coach. That was over 20 years ago. Gottfried had some excellent players. He needed Brandon Miller. The 2002 team won the SEC Championship. Things went downhill after that. Alabama had high expectations under C.M. Newton and Wimp Sanderson. In 1976, two questionable calls allowed Indiana to beat Alabama for a national championship. Leon Douglas was hammered to the ground and was called for charging. Horrible call. Even Bobby Knight later admitted that. Indiana beat Alabama 74-69. In 1987, Wimp Sanderson had a team that could have a national championship. That dream died in Louisville when Billy Donovan and Delray Brooks combined for 49 points to beat Bama 103-82. Tide fans were stunned. The Tide had been 7-point favorites. 

     The Tide's win over A&M has set the Tide faithful on fire. Will Alabama win the National Championship? I don't know, but I do know they have a good chance. The faithful watched a playoff game between Southeast Missouri State (19-16) and Texas A&M CC (23-10). The Islanders won the game. They fought off a comeback from SEMO to have an opportunity to play Bama. 

      Alabama will play the winner of the Maryland-West-Virginia game. I am assuming we will win game one on Thursday. It's a special time for Tide fans. Roll Tide.

And I need two for Saturday. 

     

Bama hammers Mississippi State 72-49

   

      You can't blame Tide fans for being worried about the four games prior to the SEC Tournament.  The Bama fans should wipe the sweat off their brow and get ready for Missouri. The Tide is back it seems. 

      Rocky Top got knocked off by a relentless Missouri offense. The Tide's offense looked focused today.  The Tide shot lights out from the three-point arc. Turnovers were down, and the energy level was up

       It was gratifying to see the better shooting, but it was the Alabama defense that beat the Dogs.  Tolu Smith, the big center, scored 17 but most were made after the game was well in hand.  Mississippi shot only 31% for the game. Bama's defense shut down the Bulldog's interior game in the first half. They made only 21 pts in the first half. The Tide led by 20 and the game was over. Quinerly's push with the ball up court was more that the Bulldogs could contain. The Tide nation was on hand and certainly helped the Tide feel at home. Four teams will lose today, and tickets will be available for the next two days. Expect more Bama fans to come to Nashville and make their presence felt.

      The only thing regarding the offense was Mark Sears going to make a three. He missed 7 in a row and nailed his 8th attempt. Oats was yelling at the guard to let it rip when he was in front of the Crimson Tide bench. He'll be ready for the next game, and he'll get a lot of attempts against the Tigers.  Nat's decision to start Jahvon Quinerly helped get the Tide off to a quick start.  Alabama's inside game hurt the Dogs. Charles Bediako had a stellar game.  He had 11 points and 6 rebounds. He also had 5 blocks and caused several other mis-shots inside. Noah Clowney helped inside. 

      Brandon Miller knocked down 19 points and 9 rebounds. Both led the Tide. State appeared to be tired in the second half. 

      11 Tide players were used in the first half. Dom Welch knocked down a three-point to start a Tide run. Welch was injured later, and we'll learn more about his availability later today.  It was a breath of fresh air for Tide fans.  Alabama takes on Missouri tomorrow. 

 HIGH NOON SHOWDOWN IN NASHVILLE...

Tide needs to win the 50-50 balls.

     Mississippi State is probably not the team Bama wanted today. Kudos to Mississippi State for outlasting Florida in an overtime game.  State played hard in their two games with Bama in the regular season and could have won.  The first was in Starkville, and the Tide won 78-67. The second game was much closer. State played the Tide to end in a 66-63 win. If someone picks the Bulldogs today, I can understand why. The Bulldogs are led by Tolu Smith, a fourth-year senior, who can control the inside. He'll give Charles Bediako all he wants and then some.

     If you watched last night's game between State and Florida, you had to notice the Bulldogs' ease in the paint. Alabama can't let that happen. Look for the Tide to double-team Smith inside. That means State might get some uncontested outside looks.  Mississippi  State made 2-14, which isn't a winning percentage.  When you shoot 28 free throws, it means you are committing yourself to win the boards.  The Bulldogs out boarded the Gators by 12. That was the difference in the game.  That's what Bama will do today. They will commit themselves to winning the boards. If Bama can keep Tolu Smith from a big day, the Tide can win.

     Alabama is going to want to run.  Run early, run a lot, and run late. If the Tide can increase the game to an 80-point score, they should move on to the next round.  Give Mississippi State some room to start quickly because they played on the same floor last night.  If Alabama can make this a running game, they will win.

KEYS TO ALABAMA WIN:

Fewer turnovers

Make 35% of three-points

Make 75% of free throws

Deny State easy passes in the paint

Win the 50-50 balls

Control the boards

 Will Bama win the SEC Tournament Championship?                                                                                              

    Alabama must play better than its last four games to win the SEC Tournament. Here's a quick reminder to understand what's been happening with Tide. The offense needs help behind the three-point arc. After a nice road win over Auburn, the Tide lost two of their next six games. Alabama struggled to score in the Tennessee game. After pounding Georgia 108-59, the Tide struggled against South Carolina, Arkansas, and the second Auburn game. Those close wins were enough to win the SEC regular season championship. Something was wrong, and it showed up in the first half of each of those late-season wins. Bama was allowing teams to secure double-digit leads. Bama beat South Carolina, Arkansas, and Auburn with second-half comebacks. Texas A&M built a 17-point lead, and the Tide managed to erase that lead late in the second half but lost 67-61. Alabama ended the regular season with a 26-5 record and the number-one seed in the SEC Tournament. 

     Despite that phenomenal record, the team will need help on the offensive end. The Tide needed to make more three-pointers, turnovers were piling up again, and the Darius Miles situation was hurting the Tide. Some time away from practice may help Alabama. The bright side of the last two weeks is that Bama found a way to win despite the poor shooting and mounting turnovers. 

      Bama will play the winner of the Mississippi State and Florida game. Most people believe State will beat the Gators. State can land a spot in the NCAA Tournament with a win over Bama. Alabama is playing to win the Tournament and keep a one-seed in the Big Dance. That is a different kind of pressure than State might have.   Alabama will have to play better than it did in College Station. Tolu Smith lives in the lane. Charles Bediako will have his hands full if State wins the play-in game. It always helps a team with playing their second game in a tournament. 

Tonight's games:  

12-seed South Carolina vs. 13-seed Ole Miss - Ole Miss is favored in this game, and it won't surprise me if the Rebels knock off USC. The battle of the bottom feeders is always fun to watch. Each team can use this game to propel them to better results next year. Stay tuned - Chris Beard will be the next Rebel head coach.

11-seed Georgia vs. 14-seed LSU - The birth child of Will Wade will take on the Georgia Bulldogs in the second game tonight. LSU allowed the Wade saga to go on far too long, and look what happened. Georgia will improve with Mike White at the helm. He will cut into AU's pipeline in the Atlanta Metro area. Georgia should win tonight.

My take: If Alabama wins the SEC, they can win the NCAA.

More Bama good news: 

Quick hitters - 

     Jim Boeheim is out at Syracuse University. He's been at SU for 47 seasons. The Orange lost to Wake Forest 77-74 in the ACC Tournament today. 

     Brandon Miller spoke to the press today for the first time. He was eloquent and went straight to points he wanted to make about the Miles situation. When asked another question about the same subject he declined to comment.  

     Reports from the Capstone say that Bama spent a lot of time behind the arc. Alabama needs to make more threes in the postseason. I also learned that Bama worked on ball security to cut down turnovers.

     Will Bama cut down on the player rotation? I've heard some "experts" saying they will. Not in my opinion. 

Jadon Bradley will be more effective against MSU than other teams. He has the physicality to help the Tide against MSU. The freshman will try to get a couple of quick fouls on Tolu Smith fouls. Expect Quinerly to get minutes to speed up the game.

     Will Wade is now the frontrunner for the McNeese State job.

 BAMA WELCOMES SOME REST ...   

Miller fouls out with 2.30 left.

      Texas A&M beat Alabama 67-61. Alabama shot 11 free throws and made 10 in the first half. They were not allowed to shoot any free throws in the second stanza. No doubt, the Aggies got a generous serving of home cooking. The Crimson and White staged a comeback, down by 17 by one point in the second half. Bama took a one-point lead with time running out.   Mark Sears threw a pass to Jahvon Quinerly that an Aggie stole. Charles Bediako was standing between Sears and Quinerly. Mark didn't see the A&M player. That one play killed the Tide. Strange things happen in basketball games. Once again, the Tide needed help to make shots from behind the arc. Tip of the hat to Alabama for staging a comeback. Alabama reverted to early season turnovers. 

     If Bama plays TAMU again, Take the Tide in a double-figure game. Alabama pulled three previous games out of the fire. They couldn't do it the fourth time. If you want to know why Bama has been shooting so poorly from the outside, I look at the grinding schedule that gave no rest to the weary. Tired legs lead to poor shooting. 6 days' rest will fix the shooting. Oats will have his outside shooters practice ready to roll in the SEC Tournament postseason. He'll prepare for Miss. State. He doesn't have to do much pre-game preparation for Florida. The state is a good team. Their current record is 21-10. The Bulldogs have size on the interior and decent guard play. The Tide must shoot better from downtown to beat Miss. State. In the postseason, teams try to peak when it matters most. Given the subpar performances in the last four games, the table is set for a comeback.

   

Oats welcomes the rest for his team.

 Despite the loss, Alabama is still a #1 seed in the NCAA bracketology reports. Joe Lunardi has Bama as the top seed in the South. Look for the Tide to fall a couple of spots in the AP top twenty-five poll, which will be released Monday. 16-2 is a remarkable finish in the SEC regular season. Two years ago, the Tide accumulated the same record and won the Southeastern Conference Tournament Championship. The road to the tournament championship begins with Alabama taking on the winner of the MSU-Florida game. Barring any upsets, Bama will play the winner of the Missouri-Tennessee game. Bama should win their first two games. In the bottom bracket, I like Auburn to beat A&M in round two and play Kentucky in the next game. And no, it wouldn't surprise me for the Aggies to beat Auburn.

The top four teams in the Vegas prediction are:

1. Alabama

2. Tennessee

3. Kentucky

4. Texas A&M 

    I don't understand the love affair that Vegas has with Tennessee. The Vols have lost their point guard and 6 of 10 games. Bama will get no respect from the national media as the punishment for the Bama movement continues. Bama can win the SEC Tournament, but Kentucky and TAMU keep an eye on A&M and Kentucky. Tennessee or Arkansas could be spoilers. If Missouri has a red-hot shooting, they can surprise some people this week.

     For true hoops fans, you can see teams fight for an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament all week. If Bama drops a few spots in the Polls, it is no cause for concern. The real season starts after the SEC Tournament. Can Bama win 30 games this season? I think they will.  

     Bama received a much-anticipated commitment from Kris Parker, 6-6 forward from Quincey, Florida. Parker's final two choices were Villanova and Alabama. Parker is a top 100 prospect. Some recruiting sites list Kris as being 6-8. A strong connection with Nate Oats sealed the deal for Parker. 

     I'd like to see Quinerly start with Mark Sears at the guard position. We had terrible starts with Bradley at this point. We cannot continue to dig a hole from the beginning of most games. I'm not the coach. He burned so much energy in Aggieville in catching up we couldn't finish.  

Miller was named Freshman and SEC PLAYER of the YEAR 

Bediako was named on the All-Defense 1st team

Miller, Bradley, Clowney All-FRESHMAN Team

Jahvon Quinerly CO-SIXTHMAN

Mark Sears -ALL-SEC SECOND TEAM

BUZZ WILLIAMS AND JERRY STACKHOUSE - COACH OF THE YEAR  (tie)