The 3-Pointer: Lessons from Alabama’s win over Kent State

The 3-Pointer: Lessons from Alabama’s win over Kent State

The 3-Pointer: Lessons from Alabama’s win over Kent State

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – It was far from perfect on a sleepy Sunday afternoon three days before Christmas, but No. 6 Alabama had it much easier in its 81-54 win over Kent State on Sunday than it did in its nervy 97-90 win on the road in North Dakota last week.

Turnovers continue to plague Alabama, but the Tide’s depth and versatile scoring ability overcame Kent State’s disciplined defense. The Tide also defended their basket well for 40 minutes to prevent a member of the Golden Flashes from making the same impression Treysen Eaglestaff did when he dropped 40 points against the Tide in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

Here are three takeaways from Alabama’s win over Kent State.

Small ball wakes up Alabama

Alabama’s starting five got off to another slow start on Sunday. The Tide began the game 0 of 7 from the field, prompting a line change from the coach Nate Oats during the U16 break.

Alabama went small, with a lineup that included Chris Youngblood, Aden Holloway, Houston Mallette, Derrion Reid and Mouhamed Dioubate. Against a smaller Kent State team – the Golden Flashes don’t have a player taller than 6-foot-10 – the group found some life on offense. Alabama went on a 7-2 run without a turnover and from then on built an ultimately insurmountable lead.

From there, Alabama woke up and increased the momentum of the small-ball lineup with a 15-2 run. Kent State’s stubborn defense began to lose points and Alabama’s previously stifled starters were able to get going.

After a frozen start from the field, Alabama’s strength got things going and gave the Tide the impetus for an easy win. 33 of Alabama’s 81 points on Saturday came from the group’s reserves. Aden Holloway was second on the team with 13 points, while he and Youngblood combined to make five of Alabama’s nine three-pointers on Sunday.

Alabama continued to have no chance on shots from outside the arc and leaned back to the inside line in response. The Tide scored 34 points in the game and beat Kent State’s smaller players on the offensive glass, turning 20 offensive rebounds into 22 second-chance points.

Kent State’s score disappears in a flash

While it took a while to gain traction on offense, Alabama continued to defend its basket effectively. During Alabama’s 15-2 run, Kent State went 1 of 11 from the field in front of the coach Rob Senderoff is called a timeout.

Kent State didn’t score its next field goal until 8:45 into the first half. Every Golden Flashes appearance was at least slightly controversial, as Alabama rotated well on defense. A player would provide assistance if his teammate bit on a pump fake. When Kent State drove to the rim and kicked outside for a three-pointer, Alabama was quick to stop the shot. The Tide totaled six blocks as a team, with Grant Nelson and Dioubate accounting for two blocks each.

The Golden Flashes made just one three-pointer in the first half and finished the game making 19 of 71 shots. Kent State threw the ball up 11 times, which Alabama turned into seven points. His dominance on offense carried over to defense. Alabama set a new season high with 58 rebounds. Missed shots gave Kent State some additional opportunities, but the Tide’s defense limited the Golden Flashes to 10 second-chance points despite 14 offensive boards. Alabama’s defense also held Kent State to just seven points off turnovers despite numerous losses on offense.

Alabama also did a good job on defense for long stretches of the game without fouling. After committing four fouls in the first five minutes of the second half, the Tide did not commit another foul until the 7:57 mark and did not put Kent State in the bonus in the second half.

Sales remain a problem

It was anything but complete Alabama dominance on offense. Even though it managed to regain its footing after a slow start, it still looked like it was sleeping at times

The Tide experienced a few more scoring losses throughout the game and committed 13 turnovers in the first half, surpassing its season first-half average for the second straight year. Alabama finished with 19 turnovers, one shy of its season-high 20, which came against Rutgers in the Players Era Tournament.

Many of the giveaways were not forced by Kent State’s defense, but were lazy passes or forced giveaways on Alabama’s offense. Aden Holloway shot a ball at the umpire that was about to hit Clifford Omoruyi as he crossed half court. Jarin Stevenson passed the ball directly to a defender after failing to see him sneak up behind Mark Sears in the backcourt.

Final statistics

Next

Alabama will play its final non-conference game against South Dakota State on December 29th at 2:00 p.m. at Coleman Coliseum. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network+.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *