1973 was a turning point in Alabama hoop history...

It is hard to understand how much being invited to the NIT meant to Alabama...

Check out those hightops

     For younger fans it seems as if the NIT is some kind of sad afterthought inflicted on teams not deemed worthy to play in the NCAA. That's may seem to be the case now, but in 1973 when Alabama got an NIT bid it was of  significant and historic importance.  Alabama had been one heck of a program prior to going the NIT but because of racial prejudice southern basketball was  never on the map. Johnny Dee's Rocket Eight could have won an NCAA Tournament. Paul Bryant gets a lot of credit for knocking down some barriers. C.M. Newton implemented the changes. There could not have been a better human being than C.M. Newton chose to recruit a black player named Wendall Hudson.  Sweet Chocolate. He was Tony Mitchell before there was a Tony Mitchell. He was Tony Mitchell in a time when the Tony Mitchell's of the world didn't exist. At least in white America.

     In 1973 when the University of Alabama headed north to play in the NIT the Tide had several Black Americans on their team. As hard as it is to believe but such a journey wasn't just to a basketball tournament, but it was a trip that took the Crimson Tide into modern America. At lot of us were going to make that trip one way or another. I was lucky. My parents gave me a head start.

      I grew up in Jackson, Mississippi. My family was poor. We lived on the last "white" street  before the black neighborhood was started. I was already a white kid who shot basketball for hours at a time. The problem was that there were no other white kids around who played the best game in the world. My Mississippi brothers a block away adopted me. The first summer that the black kids let me play in their games was an evolution to me. It wasn't just about basketball. My parents, liberal whites, in a land of hatred had taught me that everyone wasn't just created equal but everyone is equal in the eyes of God. As my mother used to tell me that God saw right through the color of our skin and into our souls.  Ready or not I was going to see what my parents taught me was true or not.

     If you grew up in the era I am writing about you can relate. If you are younger I am sure a lot of  this is going to seem almost impossible to assimilate. I'm talking about young blacks as well as whites. My world   changed that one eventful summer in hot and sticky Mississippi. That summer would open my open my eyes and effect my life forever. Not many people are presented with the opportunity I was given.  It made me a better person.  Even to this day I feel that God put me in a place he wanted me to be, to learn firsthand the lessons of racial hatred, and to allow  me to become someone I would not have become otherwise. My basketball world went from two hand set shots to jump shots, behind the back passes, between the leg dribbles, and no look passes. My real world went from being one of the white kids to being a "nigger lover".  I disdain that word, but it accurately conveys the feelings of the time. All of sudden, in less time than it takes to in bound a pass, I had no white friends. In less time you have to cross have court with the ball my life had changed forever.

     I cried about all this. I prayed to God to help me understand what it was that I had done wrong. My parents, country people who grew up in rural Alabama tried to put things into a perspective that I could understand. No amount of explanation could ever put the mental illness that gripped our society at that time into terms that made sense. My mother just kept telling me that I should do what is right and things would be okay. Looking back I am sure she meant the long term outlook. The short term result was painful. And it was terrifying, but most of all it was necessary...

     My black friends understood all too well what was happening in my world.  They rallied round me and protected me and showed me genuine concern. At that  time I couldn't understand or even appreciate the life lessons which were being taught to me when most people in the South couldn't or wouldn't address. Many didn't acknowledge a problem existed.  I even talked with my pastor. In his office I learned that even the godly could be ungodly. "You are getting what you deserve," was what the pastor said. I realize now that the continued questions about "why" in my life was making him uncomfortable because of a demon he was unable to let go of himself.

     Look, I'm not sharing this with you because I am a better person than anyone else. Heck, I may not even be a good person. All I know is that tumultuous summer changed my life. It caused me to evaluate my life. It caused me to question my life and my world. It caused me to try to figure out where I fit in all this. More than a half a decade later I'm still trying to figure out all that stuff. I'm still trying to become a better person. I'm certainly not trying to preach or teach anyone anything. I am just remembering what that trip to NYC in 1973 meant.

    A lot of  people ask me why I love basketball so much. Well, first I love the fundamentals of the game. The teamwork. I love the wonderful beauty of watching player dribble down the floor and see him figuring out exactly where he fits in the microcosm of life that occurs on the basketball court. But more than any of those things basketball is place where we are truly equal. It is a place where the rancor of life can be set aside for just an hour or so, and I can sit back and feel that things can truly be okay in our world. Basketball has also become a tribute to my parents who raised me 'up right' as we say in Blount County. It is also about one particular black man who taught me the game of basketball and a lot of other fundamentals of life in a turbulent period.  Basketball is a game that teaches us about life its ownself on a manageble scale. In basketball the weather is always perfect. The rest rooms are nearby and hot dogs are cookin' on the grill. And if you are lucky enough you can close your eyes and imagine yourself as a young kid growing up in Mississippi with a life so hard that all the ingredients for a better life were in place because up was the only option left. It also reaffirms that God created something special for me, a not so very special person. To me basketball is a reaffirmation of life and second chances. It is about missing a free throw to lose a game, but knowing you might knock down a three to win the next one. Like life, basketball is about all the endless possibilities that await us. In 1973 Alabama brought some black players. In 2011 Alabama brings a black head coach. Change is possible.

    And so in the early spring of 1973 a lot of us took that trip to the NIT. None of us had to sit on the back of the bus either.

Fond Memories from the another NIT...

In 1973 the NIT was still big stuff...

1973 NIT Program    Cost $1.00

     I'm not sure that any single season of basketball was ever better for me than 1973. Those were salad days for me. I was 26 years old and immortal. '73 meant grad school at the Capstone. It also meant playing a lot of pick up games with some buddies. Georgia Tech had offered me a chance to become a Yellow Jacket in 1965. A knee injury and an inability to do math doomed that chance. But I had some game left. It was a lot of fun playing pick up with some guys named Leon Douglas, Johnny Dill, and Charles Cleveland. For a kid from Cleveland, Alabama this was a close to paradise as you could come. Like I said salad days.

     I believe the '73 team was 22-8. When the Tide got the call from NYC I got my map out. Found a list of Alabama grads living in the NYC and bummed a free room for a few nights. I had this 1970 Subaru that got about a million miles a gallon. The drive took 20 hours. That included a breakdown on the New Jersey Turnpike. The mechanic who worked on my car was not into basketball but he was into gambling. I suggested that Alabama would beat Manhatten. He snorted and made a wager. He'd go ahead and repair my ride for free if Bama won. If Bama lost I'd have to pay him double. Considering I didn't have the money to pay him anything it seemed like good bet. Glenn Garrett, the most unlikely person to even try to make a game winning shot, much less make one, drilled one from the corner. The Jaspers, the hometown team from Manhattan, was out of the NIT. And Alabama was on their way to being to bigger and better things.

       New York in the spring of '73 was equal parts Afro hair cuts and bell bottoms. I wore these crimson and white striped bell bottoms to the game. My attire was resplendent with Crimson colored patent leather boots. My buddies and I had the worst (not to mention cheap) in the Garden. We were so up high up they needed Sherpa guides to show us our seats. By tip-off we were court side. The usher asked  us if we had tickets to the seats. Nope. Just a little moxie. He laughed and walked off.  Last thing he said was to try not to offend the mayor.
    
     When I close my eyes there goes Ron Brewer flying into the Minnesota band. Brewer a hall of famer in baseball was also an All-American basketball post player. As Brewer picked himself out of the trombone section there was Leon Douglas standing on the baseline announcing to the world there was a new sheriff in town. All in all the NIT was a memorable trip. I'd never been to NYC before, and have been there a hundred times since. None of the subesequent trips compared to the first one. Rather than fly to NYC for this NIT I'm going to retrace the trip made in 1973.  Now, if I could just find those boots...

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'Bama earns trip to NYC and NIT Final Four...
      

     It's nights like tonight that I wish my buddy J.Bob Bentley of Oneonta, Alabama was handy. He can wax poetic about the Crimson Tide. You ever known anyone who always seems to have just the right words? Bob is that guy. About now, Bob is somewhere in 'Bama Heaven on his way back to Blount County. Bob and I were sitting in an empty courtroom today going over our closing arguments about just what has made this team so special. How 19-0 at home? If you want to build a strong home base never lose at home?  I've only heard two men say that. J. Bob was one. John Wooden was the other. John Wooden did not love basketball anymore that Bob loves Alabama basketball. 


     We are so very proud of what has happened to Anthony Grant and the Men's Basketball Program. I have appeared on hundreds of radio shows to talk about SEC basketball in general and Alabama in particular. I shared my "expertise" on recruiting when no one even knew who Alabama was even trying to recruit. I started all that 30 years ago, give or take. If I wanted to know the truth about what was going on in Alabama basketball recruiting I'd just get in my car and drive to where ever the recruit was located, find him, or mama, and ask how was Alabama doing? Lately, that answer has been we're doing darn good, and if my hunch is correct we're about to do even better. 

     I'm winding down my own basketball "career" now. All Alabama teams are special to me. Two are the most special. Our '76 team which was in my mind the best team in America, and this year's edition. The two teams have so much in common. J. Bob and I would probably say they each had that "something" you can't explain but can see.  C.M. Newton is a great coach. He is a greater person. He is overlooked by many today for his contribution to Alabama basketball. I've always maintained that the three greatest sport legends in our state are Paul Bryant, C.M. Newton, and Gene Bartow. Not of Alabama fans may not like my inclusion of Bartow. What he did at UAB was remarkable. What C.M. Newton did at Alabama was both remarkable and historic in terms of winning and race relations. What Paul Bryant did was the stuff of myths except that his myths are truths. Only one of those men won a national championship. I'm starting to consider whether a fourth might join those ranks. Anthony Grant hasn't made the list, but he's made the list to make the list. And yes, I do believe Grant will win a national championship before he leaves Alabama. Right now I know two truths about Grant - he can coach and he's about to be the richest basketball coach in Alabama history. The three men on my list all had a singularity of purpose to succeed. All three of those men were Southern gentlemen, and Anthony Grant is as well. The man from Miami has reached new levels of faith among fans. He has given basketball fans such as myself hope that before I get that 5th and final foul in life I may see our Tide win something huge. There have been times when I hoped we could win a national championship. Now I believe we will win a national championship. 

     Here's how good Grant has made this Crimson Tide team - when Grant has gone to the sidelines we typically expand a lead. The last month of this season when Grant and Mitchell were both on the sidelines we expanded leads. There have been times this season when our team on the floor seemed more like the usual suspects in a than a lineup. Regardless of who plays the team plays well. Here's how silly letting the sports media vote on anything - Alabama didn't have one single player make the top five in defense All-Conference teams. It's not that the SEC sports media (excluding Kentucky and New Orleans) don't know anything  about college basketball. They don't, but they don't even know they don't know about college basketball. 

    This season's basketball team has been one of the most amazing stories in college basketball. If you saw this team play early and then watched them late in season you'd swear they couldn't get to where they are from where they started. It was almost like the team had to go to some unknown place to get to tonight. Look, I don't know if we will win the NIT or not.  We've already won so much more this season. I think maybe tonight we watched the end of a new beginning. We aren't there yet, but at least we know where there is and that we are capable of getting there. Hey, J.Bob wasn't it nice to see Scenario finish up like the class act he's always been? Here's how I see this season. First it started with Grant. Then Hillman got it, then Green  got it, then Releford got it, then Davis and Mitchell got it, and then all of us got it . Man, its the first thing I've gotten in a long time that was worth getting. If you get what I mean say Roll Tide. 


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Hillman, Hines, and Davis play last game in Coleman tonight...

Bama's three seniors have been instrumental in Tide rise...

     Right off the bat let me say I have a warm spot in my heart for our three senior players. Hillman, Hines, and Davis sound like some fancy Wall Street wall firm. If they were a law firm they'd specialize in mayhem and intimidation. They would be a defense firm with a little plaintiff work from the arc thrown in to boot.

Hillman...


Scenario came out of high schools as top 20 high school prospect. A lot of people who don't really understand basketball have thrown a lot of grief his way out of ignorance.  Here's how I see Hillman - it took a four year senior to buy into the team play demanded by Grant. The S man gave up his offense to become a great defender.  When the younger players see the sacrifice and commitment it became easier for them to become team players. In short, without Hillman Grant's road to success would have been much harder. Anyone can shoot. Not everyone can defend. Few can defend greatly. TR Dunn, Amp  Murry, and Keith Askins come to mind. That's pretty good company.


Hines...


Hines was an enigma in Juco. He was  a  great player who really wasn't great at anything. He is a Bob Cousey type player. To me that is the greatest comparison a player might receive. I'll always remember Chris lying on the hardwood in his last regular season game. It was Georgia and it was big. Davis picked up his 5th and final foul diving for a loose ball. The game was over. The Tide had it won. But there was a loose ball and by god, all loose balls belong to Bama. The ovation he received was a real tear bringer. He's a junk yard dog who seemed to always be at the right place at the right time. 
 
And then there is Davis...

 Mr. Overlooked by many in high school. There were more questions about CD than you could answer on Jeopardy. He went the Juco route and ended up at Alabama. It wasn't a big deal. Over the course of the last two seasons Davis has become a complete player.  He plays inside and outside. At home he has made 42% of three point shots.  On the road he stands at less than 20%.  Look  it up - he had more rebounds and steals on the road than he had at home, and he made about 65% of two point shots. Best of all he became a more than solid defender.


     A lot has been said about Bama's incoming freshman class. Not much has been said about the three key players who are leaving. I love all three. They will be missed. They are part of a foundation for younger men yet to come.




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 Who are the best teams left in the NIT?

     My heart always says Alabama. But what does the head say?  So how do you look at the remaining teams. Do you look at them by conference or just the team? The three teams that catch my attention are Alabama,, Colorado and Wichita State. I have to admit that I've missed a couple of games on the tube, but it has been those three    teams which seem a cut above the others.

The brackets are divided into left and right. If I had to guess right now I'd guess that Alabama and Washington State look pretty good to make it to NYC.  I also think that Colorado and Wichita State will make the trip back east. Must admit that Wichita State was one team I knew very little about. From a historic perspective everyone knows just how good they have been. They are 26-8 and have the best overall record of anyone left in the brackets. In  round one the Shockers beat the Nebraska Cornhuskers like dust storm rug. Then the Shockers upset (hmm...) Virginia Tech. Tech was another one of those teams that mighta shoulda gotten into the NCAA. The Hokies come from the vaunted ACC.  And according to some that means Virginia Tech should have beaten State. The same logic holds that Miami should beat the Crimson Tide. That might not happen either. The court advantage might prove enough to send the Tide to Times Square.

Conferences proves of little value as to "hows best"...

You look all around the NIT and NCAA and pretty quickly come to the understanding that league doesn't mean much except in the foolish manner that the NCAA choses invitees. The Big East started with 11 teams. Boston College was also selected to the NIT.  BC is a goner. In the NCAA there are only 2 teams out of the original 12 invitees left.  And really it is hard to even count Uconn because they beat another Big East team to advance. How can can I delicately put this in order not offend my eastern brothers. The Big East is once again an overblown media driven league. In other words - you are overrated.  For the math inclined reader that means that 81% of the Big Least teams are gone. I've been outspoken about the bias shown to the Big East and Big Ten. 6 of the Big Ten teams are gone. Maybe we should be happy about all those early easy games. Charles Barkley said it best, "the Big East has great coaches but very average players." I thought Rick Pitino was going to have an old fashioned come apart as my mom used to say. "No, we deserve 11", Pitino maintained. The truth is that the Big East and Big Ten have become cannon fodder for the rest of the NCAA and NIT. All of a sudden Florida and Kentucky, along with Alabama don't look very weak do they?

     Perhaps Miami will become more cannon fodder for another team.


Bill's limited report of last night's game is the post prior to this one...


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Alabama presses the issue in second half to 74-67 win over New Mexico

Bama proves they can win without Green...

Hines battles for rebound in Tide win.

     Bama beat the Lobos going away although some lapses at freethrow line made the game seem much closer than played. The Tide proved two things to themselves on Monday night. First, they proved they can win without their star player, JaMichael Green. Green sat half the a lot of the  game in foul trouble. The Crimson also showed their outside game is better than advertised when they hit 6-14 from downtown and that will win you a lot of games.

     Davis sparked the Tide big run in the second half behind two big threes. But it was Trevor Releford and Tony Mitchell that picked up the slack when the big dog was on the bench. Releford worked his magic around the lane and hit a bank in three right before the half that lifted the Tide to a four point half time lead.

Grant showed Bama can win with
Green in foul trouble

     Alabama fans won't have to worry about Mitchell going to the NBA next season but if NASA comes calling it could be different. The astronaut man soared above the rim time and time again to throw down missed shots and lobs. All this occurred while Green sat. Green picked up third foul on a charge early in the second half. A few minutes later we was back in the lineup when Hines picked up his third foul. Two key players in foul trouble could have been serious. Grant, engineered an offense that opened the floor and took advantage of Releford's craftiness and Mitchells's acrobatics instead.

     The New Mexico zone stymied the Tide in the first half. Once Grant was able to keep Green in the game the Tide took control. With Green flashing on the post he was able to find a cutting Mitchell to the basket. When Davis and Mitchell started making the threes it was over. We had speculated yesterday that a tight zone and foul trouble might beat the Tide. Congrats to the coaches and players for finding a way. Bama moves to 19-0 at home with red hot Miami up on Wednesday night.  The Hurricane's beat Missouri State in a mismatch on Monday.

Tennessee fires Bruce Pearl...

     Tennessee pulled the plug on Bruce Pearl. It was overdue. And regardless what others may say the Vols will be better without their renegade coach. Being better means something more than just wins and losses, especially for a program that has run afoul with the NCAA in two major sports. Let's hope the NCAA will suspend Lane "the Mouth" Kiffin his in your face behavior. I doubt if any sports program has had to endure more than the Vols. The school might deserve what the have coming but not all the fans agreed with either head man. The inequity of banning players for misdeeds but not coaches is unfair and needs revision. It is generally the coaches that entice players to cheat. I suggest a lifetime ban for a second major violation. Unless, of course, the coaches didn't know. LOL

Los Lobos to make appearance in Tuscaloosa

Rare chance to see a great college basketball program...

     It isn't often when a truly great program outside the SEC comes to Tuscaloosa. New Mexico is that great program. If Alabama gets beat tonight don't go home and sulk. The Lobos will come in and go about their business which is playing great basketball. They finished the season at 22-11 and beat Sweet Sixteen BYU twice. That's all you need to know about New Mexico. It has been my privilege to go to "the pit" and watch the team from the Land of Enchantment play. This was back in the day when I took three months to go to as many of the great college venues as possible. The Pit ranks near the top. Hold on to your hats Bama fans because this team is coming in angry for not getting to play in the NCAA. Alabama is upset because of Georgia? How about beat a Sweet Sixteen twice and getting the thumb nose?  New Mexico is a truly gifted basketball team with quality players at every position and they have a great head coach in Steve Alford. 


Bama catches break with Lobo All-Conference PG out tonight....   


     Sadly, the Lobos will be without senior All-Conference point guard Daries Gary had a season ending knee injury a short while ago. Head Coach Steve Alford, of Indiana basketball fame, has found an able replacement in Jamal Fenton, a 5-9 sophomore who is as quick as Releford. He has averaged 12 ppg, and along with 4 assists. He has been a more than adequate replacement for Gary. Fenton is built like a fireplug and is strong as a bull. He'll give Releford all he wants.

     Imagine Alabama without Trevor Releford except Gary was a senior. Alabama is going to put the pressure on the Lobos back court. Earlier when I spoke to Coach Alford he had this to say, "without a doubt this will be the best defensive team we've faced. Turnovers will be the key to the game."  How's that for going out on a limb?

The Lobos go 6-9,6-8, and 6-5 in the forecourt. But they are quick and smart. I'd give Bama an edge with Green, Hines, and Mitchell. Mitchell may be the one player that New Mexico will have a hard time matching. If they put 6-5 Phillip McDonald on Mitchell he can post him down low. Mitchell is quicker than either Hardeman or Gordon. Look for some zone. The problem the zone cause New Mexico is they like to run. Going zone will hurt them in the full court game. I don't think that either NM inside player can play with JaMichael Green, All-SEC. Look for the Lobos to take it to Green and Hines and try to get them into foul trouble.

New Mexico beat Texas El-Paso without their point...


     That alone should tell Tide fans that Alford can coach and Fenton can play. I think the home court advantage is probably enough to give the Tide the edge. Bama must make a few three pointers to keep the Lobos honest should they go to their zone defense. For Bama it is a matter of forcing turnovers and keeping up the defensive pressure. The Tide a solid win over Coastal Carolina. New Mexico beat Texas El-Paso in round one in what turned out to be a really good game. El-Paso cut an 11 point lead to 4 only to see solid play from the Lobos in the final 9 minutes to salt away the win. 


Bama 63 - New Mexico 60 in a barn burner. 




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