TIDE FAVORED BY 10.5 OVER THE IMPROVED GAMECOCKS...

      Alabama should beat South Carolina today. Carolina is not a bad basketball team and is 17-10 overall and 8-7 in the SEC.  That ties them for 5th in the conference with the Crimson Tide. Both teams are three full games behind 4th place Tennessee and Arkansas. Barring a total collapse, it appears the Tide will finish no better than 5th in the regular SEC season. Those two losses to Georgia and Missouri come back to haunt the Tide's hope for a double-bye in the SEC Tournament. Alabama is 18-20 and is fighting for a twenty-win season before the postseason. 

       Frank Martin, the headman of the Gamecocks, is a good coach. His 26-11 team in '17 made it to the Final Four. That's something that no Alabama coach has ever done. Carolina has won four consecutive league games including a stunner over LSU. Don't think that can't happen today if the Tide doesn't bring their best game today. For some comparison, the Gamecocks' last game was a 14 point win over Mississippi State. Carolina can get itself back in the NCAAT conversation with a strong finish. The Tide is probably a lock, but a solid finish might see the Tide awarded with a three or four seed.

    Better shooting in the last four games has helped the Gamecocks win for straight. Martin's teams play a hard physical brand of basketball, which should send Bama to the free-throw line more often. Carolina is going to fight on the boards. Heck, the Gamecocks are going to fight everywhere. These are not the same 'Cocks from earlier this season. Alabama played a good second half against Vandy and welcomed a solid second half from Jahvon Quinerly. If Bama can get that type of play from the point and speed up the game, they should win. One additional thing favoring the Tide is the poor free-throw shooting of Carolina. They are last in the SEC in percentage made. 

     Alabama's Juwan Gary continues to struggle with a fractured sinus bone. The mask helps him get on the floor, but you have to wonder how it affects his overall play. The kid's a warrior. We have to give him that. Noah Gurley has stepped up his game and is becoming the player the Tide hoped he might be. The great news is that he's coming back to play next season in T-Town. I've been told by two reliable Alabama sources that Jahvon Quinerely might return next season. Given the status of his plan this year, it seems one more season can only help his draft status. His slump has put him in projected NBA drafts as a late-second-round pick. He's better than that. JD Davison is now listed as an early second-round pick in projected drafts. He has improved, but is he NBA-ready? We'll see. 

     Charles Bediako needs to keep Carolina off the boards today. The Gamecocks aren't timid in the paint. James Rojas is likely to get some big minutes today. Rojas isn't afraid to bang heads with anyone on the floor.  Bama will be favored against Texas AM next week. That sets up a final-season road game with LSU. The Tigers will be tough at home and favored to win. I gotta' feeling that might not happen. Is Bama peaking at the right time? They just might be. Nate Oats has seen his Tide have difficulties this season. The Tide has also had some splendid nights. None of those matters now. It's almost tournament time.

 Gonzaga number one? My numbers say no. 

The Dean's list

  When my friend Picknroll asked me to write a weekly article about the nation's top-twenty teams, I agreed. Certain rules applied. First, I picked the topic, and second, he could only edit what I wrote. That seemed fair enough. Our weekly conversation about the AP Poll is something we both love to discuss or argue, depending on our respective opinions. Week one and we differed on which team was number one. Picknroll liked Gonzaga, and I think Arizona is better. We both agreed that at least 7 teams could win the crown.

     Those teams are the Zags, Arizona, Kentucky, Kansas, Auburn, Duke, with Purdue lingering around the edges. We talked about stats. We talked about defense, and we talked about shooting. I'd say our conservation went on for two hours. At the end of the conversation, I had convinced Picknroll that Gonzaga simply could not be the best team in the NCAA. Here's the reason why I think the Zags are not the best. Who have they beaten? Who have they won? Alabama walloped Gonzaga in a game billed as the biggest game played in the State of Washington. Duke beat the Zags in a close one. Neither of the losses was an away game. So who have they won?

Texas is a pretty good team. UCLA is a tournament team, and the Zags handled them. I supposed Texas Tech is going dancing but could hardly be called a good team. St. Mary's is a good team but hardly a world-beater. That's it. The rest of the teams that lost to Gonzaga are not worthy of mention, except Wisconsin is a good loss. Pick says that doesn't mean Gonzaga could still be the best team in America. I just don't see it. Right now, I think it's Arizona. According to the NCAA, it is interesting to note that Auburn, Kansas, and Arizona have all been engaged in cheating. When you play in a fairy-tale league, it causes some questions about how good your team might be. 

 Vandy is never friendly to the Tide... 

     Vanderbilt. A name that has always been ghastly for the Alabama basketball program. Tonight, the Tide goes to Nashville, to the SEC's trash heap of arenas. It's not an easy place to play. Players talk about the lighting, the depth perception while shooting, and one telling me he was afraid of all off the edge of the Court. 

       And now, the Commodores are a decent team. Scottie Pippen, Jr. could be the best player in the SEC. Pippen leads the SEC in getting to the free-throw line. Eleven trips to the line won't cut it for the Tide if they hope to win. Oat's comments are probably directed at a couple of players. With every win a necessity to improve your NCAA Tournament berth,  I have no idea what our starting line might be. Oats says we may not a point guard or a center but he'll figure it out. I'm anxious to see how that works out. I suspect he means the practices leading up for the game tonight but who knows. 

       Oats is trying to build a program, and it starts with defense. It always starts with defense. The problem that Bama has is the lack of horses inside and one guard whose defense is lacking. He recruited these guys, or a least kept them. He knew that coming in. So the Coach bears some of the responsibility. I'm not being anti-Oats. I'm just being honest. If Oats says such things publicly needs to live with the results. Can Bama beat Vandy? They might, perhaps they should. I guess we will see if the defense rules the night. 

    A win tonight gives Bama some momentum going into a two-game homestand. South Carolina and Texas A & M. That will give some throttle the LSU road game and SEC Tourney

  

    

    

'Bama can beat Kentucky if the officiating is fair... Yep, I said it and believe it...

       

 I've been watching the pro-Kentucky officiating for eight decades. Every year. Every game. Until the end of time and then some. Yeah, I know some are saying you are just all Alabama. You can't be objective, but being objective is what I'm doing. In the first 42 minutes of today's contest, the Wildcats had 4 fouls. They had three in the first half. Kentucky shot 19 free throws. The Tide shot 9. Not 9 in the first half, 9 for the entire game. 

     Here's the burr under my saddle. Oscar Tsheiwe had only one foul called. One. Close to none. Tsheiwe came over the back of Bama rebounders at least 15 times. He's like an Abrahm Tank that gets 50 miles a gallon. If you won't call a foul against Kentucky you need to quit your job. An official's job is to be fair.

      Next point, John Calipari got upset and banged his rather prominent honker into an official and was not called for a technical. That only happens in Lexington. It's time for the cowardly SEC Director of Men's Officials to end this never-ending problem of the edge Kentucky gets in the SEC. Perhaps it's time for an independent board of observers to review and suspend a few refs. Nat Oats gets a technical foul and goes to the corner of the bench, sits down, and then gets kicked out of the game. Do you think that would happen to a Kentucky coach?

    It's been 10 years since the Wildcat's last national championship. That's a long time for a prominent program not to win. Why? Because the UK doesn't get preferential officiating outside the SEC. The sad thing about pro-UK-officiating is it takes away from the prominence of their program. I readily admit they have the best program in the SEC. When the Wildcats go outside the protectorate of the SEC, the Cats lose. I'm not stupid and indeed not blind. I tip my hat to the Tide for their hard played game. Would Kentucky beat Alabama on a neutral floor outside of the SEC? Yep, not every game but a fair share. You can win with poor shooting sometimes. Poor rebounding might beat you as well. One-sided officiating will always beat you. Saturday's game was exhibit number 1.

    Okay, sometimes I'm stupid. Saturday's game is not one of those times. Alabama played well enough to win if they got a few calls or Kentucky was fairly officiated. Just call a fair game. Alabama didn't need all the calls, just a few. When you allow people to push off from behind, it creates cheap baskets. And that's what beat Alabama. 

IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS, WE'LL HAVE A NEW WRITER WHO WILL PIN THE DEAN'S LIST," WHICH IS A PERSONAL TOP 25. IF  YOU'D LIKE TO CONTRIBUTE AN OPINION ARTICLE, SEND ME AN EMAIL AT BAMABASKETBALL@PROTONMAIL.COM

Kudos. to Keon Ellis, who was my Player of the Game. He had 28 points and played bandit defense.  Bama is close to being good. We need Q to find his mojo again. Roll Tide.

I can also help Auburn fans with counseling referrals after getting beat by middlin' Florida. 

WHERE ARE THE NAYSAYERS TODAY?

      

      Where have you gone? You know, the ones who said Oats couldn't coach and Alabama's basketball program was a joke? One game later, the shots start to fall, the Tide almost scores a hundred, and everyone's happy. Shooters gotta shoot, and sometimes they miss. Sometimes they all miss. Despite the poor shooting, Kentucky beat the Tide by only 11, which meant the team did many things well. 

     Last night the Ole Miss Rebels had a stellar game and got their doors blown off. Sure, the Rebels are a great basketball team, but they showed they can shoot lights out from time to time. Had Ole Miss played a lot of other SEC teams last night, they would have won. Shackleford led the Tide with 30 points. He had 19 in the first half. Check these numbers out. Quinerly and Davison had 8 assists each. Holt played great defense and had 6 rebounds and one monster dunk sending the Tide bench into hysteria. Even Coach Oats broke into a smile. 

     Alabama has some challenges remaining this season. Kentucky and LSU on the road are back-breaking games. Those games will test the mettle of any team. The suddenly red-hot Razorbacks come to Tuscaloosa this weekend. Alabama might be underdogs in all three of these games. If the Tide shoots well, I'm betting they win two of the threes. The Tide doesn't have to shoot as well as they did against the Rebels. Just shoot well enough to run their offense. Could Bama lose all three? Perhaps. If Alabama plays as well as they did against Ole Miss they won't. 

    Bama will be favorites to win the remainder of there games. None will be easy, but the Tide is playing better defense. If Alabama's downtown game comes back they will be a force in the SEC Tournament and beyond.

 Bama needs a road win over Ole Miss...

    After the most brutal three-game stretch imaginable, the Tide goes to Oxford to take on the Rebels. It doesn't mean that things get easier for the Crimson and White. It is never easy to secure a road win this the SEC. It isn't like Alabama is starting to peak as the season winds down. To lose to the Kentucky Wildcats, Alabama put up a real stinker on offense. Lost in the horror of that performance was a silver lining, however. The offense collapsed, but the defense was outstanding. You must have done something correctly when you fall to a top-5 team by only 11. I thought the D played some hard-nosed, in-your-face defense. 

     You can fix the poor defense. I'd suspect the Tide guards may have shot a hundred three-point shots in practice. Coach Oats can tell the team to keep shooting and pray they make a few. Some nights to basket looks as tiny as a thimble. Sometimes it seems as big as a bathtub. I'll say this, Alabama is due for some good shooting games. The Tide now plays eight games and has a chance to win six of them. They have Kentucky and LSU on the road. Road games against Vanderbilt and Ole Miss could be wins, if, and this is a big if, Alabama can start shooting better. I think 20 wins before the SEC Tournament is attainable. I'm not predicting that, however. The Tide has some chemistry problems that cannot be cured with the snap of your fingers. 

     Charles Bediako played a great game against Kentucky. He held his own against the best center in the SEC. He has been improving, and now the Tide needs him to finish the year on a high note. If Bediako can become a force inside, the outside shooting will find better opportunities. I'd like to see Keon Ellis get a few more outside attempts. That isn't likely if JD Davison continues to get more minutes at the point. Defenses don't respect his shooting from the perimeter. He is looking better from downtown, however. Davison's attack the paint moves are precisely what Alabama needs now. Oats cannot fix his roster problems. I think he's done an excellent job with what he has on the bench. Next season should be better. 

     I believe Oats is going to be successful. He overscheduled for a team that had to replace five key players, and the Tide has paid for it. He'll learn from that. Five more wins will keep the Tide in the Dance, but six will find a better seeding. When 'Bama shoots the rock, well, they can beat anyone. Considering all the key players who graduated, the Tide's record is not surprising. Every team has a horrible shooting night. Let's move on. 

    Try to remember that Alabama has the nation's strength of schedule ranking.

Alabama's in a hole today...

      When you watch a bad game, you want to pour another drink, and then another, and for good measure, make sure there's one shot left in the bottle. It's pretty obvious that the Tide has blown up or blown down, whichever is correct.   Alabama prides itself on outside shooting. The shooting is ok, the making shots not so much. Alabama could have laid a lovely brick home with what they did last night. (exception Mr. Keon,  2 of 7, thank you, Ellis). It was a night of airballs, ill-advised shots, forced shots, what the heck was that, and missed shots of unknown origin lay-ups. In short, Alabama couldn't walk to the edge of the Warrior River drop the ball in the water.

     In all fairness, Alabama was having difficulty getting an uncontested shot because the Wildcats were playing some good lockdown defense. Despite all the confusion and sloppy play, the Crimson Tide only allowed 66 points. The Tide held the 'Cats to 40% shooting overall, turned them over 15 times, the larger Kentucky outboard the Tide by only three, and a lot of those came in the last five minutes. Alabama had four blocks to two for the Blue. Jahvon Quinerly kept Sahvir Wheeler from scoring. Kentucky had 12 assists, and the Tide had 4.

      All of those numbers above are excellent. Heck, Bama even went to the free-throw line 26 times to the Cat's 19. Alabama didn't lose the game on the defensive end. They played winning ball with their defense. Alabama. It's hard to believe the Tide only shot 28% from the floor at home. They made 3-30 from downtown for 10%. And they made the boo-birds start posting again. Here's some truth serum, Nat Oats is not the worst coach in history, as some maintain, but he's not the greatest coach either. There is a lot of middle ground between the two, and the SEC is a tough league.

     I wondered if any Alabama player could have made the Kentucky starting line. I finally decided that Quinerly would, and perhaps Keon Ellis. Here's a difference to consider. Kentucky had nine players who probably could have started. There was little, if any drop-off, in KU substitutes. Alabama struggles to decide who starts at times. Let's take the time to give Charles Bediako some praise. He only allowed the KU center to score 10. The lanky Canadian scored 10 himself, captured eight boards, was given credit for 1 rebound but had 4. had an assist, and only 1 turnover. He also altered a few shots. Charles made some significant steps toward helping the team last night.

     Jusuan Holt, the freshman, got eight minutes. J. Holt pulled down 3 boards and kept his defense was very solid. I thought Holt played well and is deserving of more playing time. He rarely makes mistakes. Given a chance, he'll score some as well. That brings us to JD. He's getting better. Sure, there were some passes from the depths of a confused mind. But, here's what he did. His defense is perfect but is better. Due to  JD's athletic ability, he has to guard someone bigger. That happened to him last night. Still, he had 6  boards and 7 points. He nailed a three, and it seems he's catching on.

     Before the game, Shackleford was announced as sick but led the team in minutes, but his offense was sorely missed. Gurley pulled down four rebounds and played well. He only played only 17 minutes. I thought Oats did an excellent job rotating James Rojas (5 rebounds) and Bediako. Sad me lost when we played such good defense, and yes, we will start making baskets again. This one's over now we go to Oxford.