Alabama basketball remains unbeaten in conference play following its 71-63 upset win at Tennessee over the weekend. The Crimson Tide faces another big challenge Tuesday as it hosts Florida. The Gators are coming into the matchup off an 83-79 victory over LSU.
Here’s all the information you need to know about Tuesday’s game.
How to watch
Who: Alabama (7-3, 2-0 in the SEC) vs. Florida (5-1, 2-0)
When: 6:00 p.m. CT, Tuesday, Jan. 5
Where: Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa Alabama
Watch: ESPN2 (play-by-play: Karl Ravech, analyst: Jimmy Dykes)
Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network (play-by-play: Chris Stewart; analyst: Bryan Passink; sideline Roger Hoover)
Alabama projected starting five
Herbert Jones: 6-foot-8, 210 pounds, senior
Stats: 12.0 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 2.0 apg, 44.6% FG, 50.0% 3-pt
Jaden Shackelford: 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, sophomore
Stats: 13.0 ppg., 4.7 rpg, 1.8 apg, 37.9% FG, 36.8% 3-pt
John Petty Jr.: 6-foot-5, 184 pounds, senior
Stats: 12.7 ppg., 5.6 rpg, 2.4 apg, 42.9% FG, 35.1% 3-pt
Joshua Primo: 6-foot-6, 190 pounds, freshman
Stats: 7.0 ppg., 3.3 rpg, 0.8 apg, 43.1% FG, 30.0% 3-pt
Jordan Bruner: 6-foot-10, 225 pounds, graduate student
Stats: 6.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.3 apg, 47.9% FG, 28.0% 3-pt
Florida projected starting five
Tre Mann: 6-foot-5, 190 pounds, sophomore
Stats: 15.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 4.0 apg, 46.4% FG, 44.0% 3-pt
Noah Locke: 6-foot-3, 203 pounds, junior
Stats: 9.7 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 0.5 apg, 43.8% FG, 41.4% 3-pt
Scottie Lewis: 6-foot-5, 189 pounds, sophomore
Stats: 14.0 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 2.5 apg, 53.3% FG, 46.7% 3-pt
Anthony Duruji: 6-foot-7, 220 pounds, redshirt junior
Stats: 5.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 0.3 apg, 41.4% FG, 27.3% 3-pt
Colin Castleton: 6-foot-11, 231 pounds, junior
Stats: 11.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 0.3 apg, 73.7% FG
Notes and quotes
— John Petty Jr. was selected as the SEC’s Co-Player of the Week on Monday. The senior guard averaged 15 points and six rebounds while shooting 61.1 percent (11 of 18) from the field and 63.6 percent (7 of 11) from 3-point range during Alabama’s wins over Ole Miss and Tennessee.
“We’re real comfortable basically from the preparation we put in, from the time we spent on film, from the late nights in the gym getting jumpers up with the team,” Petty said. “And also, just the way our offense has been flowing. We have our guards getting into the game, and they get our shooters great shots. It all just contributes into the stuff that we do to prepare for games.”
— Jahvon Quinerly is also coming off a big week for Alabama, averaging 18 points off the bench during the Tide’s two wins last week. The five-star point guard leads the team with 3.4 assists per game and is tied for the team lead with 13 points per game.
“He’s been playing great in the games, to be honest with you,” head coach Nate Oats said. “We’re just trying to get him to lock in and be focused on the defensive side of the ball. I thought he was pretty good defensively against Tennessee. He was even better offensively. I think his offensive game hasn’t ever really been an issue this year. It’s more attention to detail on defense, taking the defensive end as seriously as he takes on the offensive end.”
— Quinerly has come off the bench the past two games after starting 7 of the Tide’s first eight contests. Monday, Oats said he was undecided how the former McDonald’s All-American will be used moving forward.
“I don’t know what we’re going to do yet,” Oats said. “I think (Josua) Primo’s been really good, but Quinerly’s been great. We’ve kind of been playing back and forth between Quinerly and Herb (Jones) at the point. It’s kind of nice to have one of them on the bench so they’re both starting together.
“But we’re going to start the guys who give us the best chance to win. That might not be the best five players. Our starting five’s usually not been what our closing five’s been. Quinerly was in there at the end of the game when we were closing the game. I think that’s probably more important, to be honest with you.”
— Alabama is looking for its fourth straight win. The last time the Tide won four straight games occurred last January when it tallied consecutive victories over Auburn, Missouri, Vanderbilt and Kansas State.
— Alabama is off to a 2-0 start in league play for the first time since the 2016-17 season. The last time the Tide began league play at 3-0 came during the 1986-87 campaign when it son its first seven SEC games.
“We’re going to see what we’re made of tomorrow night after a big win like we had against Tennessee,” Oats said. “We’ve got to come in and answer the bell and see if we’ve got some humility about us, see if we can stay locked in and not let that win get to us. We’ve got to bring even better energy. We have a really good opportunity ahead of us to get to 3-0 in the league. You’ve got to take care of business at home if you’re going to compete for league championships.”
— The first NET rankings of the 2021 season were released with Alabama coming in at No. 36. The Tide is the sixth-highest SEC team in the rankings behind No. 3 Tennessee, No. 10 Missouri, No. 22 Florida, No. 23 LSU, No. 24 Arkansas.
“It’s nice,” Oats said of the ranking. “I’m not sure exactly what that means in terms of getting an NCAA bid right now. We’re just trying to get better every game. It’s obviously better to be at 36 than to be outside of the top 50 or 60 because then you’re going to have a hard time playing your way into the tournament.
“Now that we’ve got ourselves up to where we should be a tournament team, we’ve got to continue to put a resume together to where we get picked to play in the tournament and have a decent seed at it.”
— Alabama’s game against Florida last season was one of the Tide’s toughest losses of the year as it blew a 21-point lead before losing 104-98 in double overtime. Monday, Petty the team has matured a lot since then.
“We understand what it takes to get a lead and also what it takes to keep one,” he said. “I feel like our seniors like me and (Jordan) Bruner, Herb, (Alex) Reese, we’re all doing a good job with coaching the younger guys and letting them know you can’t take plays off. Even though you get a good lead, the league we’re playing in is full of good teams, and any team can come back at any moment.”
— Florida and Alabama will meet for the 146th time in series history with the Tide holding a 75-70 advantage in the series, including a 27-12 record in games played at Coleman Coliseum. However, Alabama has lost eight straight and 10 of the last 12 to the Gators at home. The last time Alabama defeated Florida inside of Coleman Coliseum came on Feb. 26, 2006.
Here’s all the information you need to know about Tuesday’s game.
How to watch
Who: Alabama (7-3, 2-0 in the SEC) vs. Florida (5-1, 2-0)
When: 6:00 p.m. CT, Tuesday, Jan. 5
Where: Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa Alabama
Watch: ESPN2 (play-by-play: Karl Ravech, analyst: Jimmy Dykes)
Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network (play-by-play: Chris Stewart; analyst: Bryan Passink; sideline Roger Hoover)
Alabama projected starting five
Herbert Jones: 6-foot-8, 210 pounds, senior
Stats: 12.0 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 2.0 apg, 44.6% FG, 50.0% 3-pt
Jaden Shackelford: 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, sophomore
Stats: 13.0 ppg., 4.7 rpg, 1.8 apg, 37.9% FG, 36.8% 3-pt
John Petty Jr.: 6-foot-5, 184 pounds, senior
Stats: 12.7 ppg., 5.6 rpg, 2.4 apg, 42.9% FG, 35.1% 3-pt
Joshua Primo: 6-foot-6, 190 pounds, freshman
Stats: 7.0 ppg., 3.3 rpg, 0.8 apg, 43.1% FG, 30.0% 3-pt
Jordan Bruner: 6-foot-10, 225 pounds, graduate student
Stats: 6.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.3 apg, 47.9% FG, 28.0% 3-pt
Florida projected starting five
Tre Mann: 6-foot-5, 190 pounds, sophomore
Stats: 15.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 4.0 apg, 46.4% FG, 44.0% 3-pt
Noah Locke: 6-foot-3, 203 pounds, junior
Stats: 9.7 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 0.5 apg, 43.8% FG, 41.4% 3-pt
Scottie Lewis: 6-foot-5, 189 pounds, sophomore
Stats: 14.0 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 2.5 apg, 53.3% FG, 46.7% 3-pt
Anthony Duruji: 6-foot-7, 220 pounds, redshirt junior
Stats: 5.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 0.3 apg, 41.4% FG, 27.3% 3-pt
Colin Castleton: 6-foot-11, 231 pounds, junior
Stats: 11.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 0.3 apg, 73.7% FG
Notes and quotes
— John Petty Jr. was selected as the SEC’s Co-Player of the Week on Monday. The senior guard averaged 15 points and six rebounds while shooting 61.1 percent (11 of 18) from the field and 63.6 percent (7 of 11) from 3-point range during Alabama’s wins over Ole Miss and Tennessee.
“We’re real comfortable basically from the preparation we put in, from the time we spent on film, from the late nights in the gym getting jumpers up with the team,” Petty said. “And also, just the way our offense has been flowing. We have our guards getting into the game, and they get our shooters great shots. It all just contributes into the stuff that we do to prepare for games.”
— Jahvon Quinerly is also coming off a big week for Alabama, averaging 18 points off the bench during the Tide’s two wins last week. The five-star point guard leads the team with 3.4 assists per game and is tied for the team lead with 13 points per game.
“He’s been playing great in the games, to be honest with you,” head coach Nate Oats said. “We’re just trying to get him to lock in and be focused on the defensive side of the ball. I thought he was pretty good defensively against Tennessee. He was even better offensively. I think his offensive game hasn’t ever really been an issue this year. It’s more attention to detail on defense, taking the defensive end as seriously as he takes on the offensive end.”
— Quinerly has come off the bench the past two games after starting 7 of the Tide’s first eight contests. Monday, Oats said he was undecided how the former McDonald’s All-American will be used moving forward.
“I don’t know what we’re going to do yet,” Oats said. “I think (Josua) Primo’s been really good, but Quinerly’s been great. We’ve kind of been playing back and forth between Quinerly and Herb (Jones) at the point. It’s kind of nice to have one of them on the bench so they’re both starting together.
“But we’re going to start the guys who give us the best chance to win. That might not be the best five players. Our starting five’s usually not been what our closing five’s been. Quinerly was in there at the end of the game when we were closing the game. I think that’s probably more important, to be honest with you.”
— Alabama is looking for its fourth straight win. The last time the Tide won four straight games occurred last January when it tallied consecutive victories over Auburn, Missouri, Vanderbilt and Kansas State.
— Alabama is off to a 2-0 start in league play for the first time since the 2016-17 season. The last time the Tide began league play at 3-0 came during the 1986-87 campaign when it son its first seven SEC games.
“We’re going to see what we’re made of tomorrow night after a big win like we had against Tennessee,” Oats said. “We’ve got to come in and answer the bell and see if we’ve got some humility about us, see if we can stay locked in and not let that win get to us. We’ve got to bring even better energy. We have a really good opportunity ahead of us to get to 3-0 in the league. You’ve got to take care of business at home if you’re going to compete for league championships.”
— The first NET rankings of the 2021 season were released with Alabama coming in at No. 36. The Tide is the sixth-highest SEC team in the rankings behind No. 3 Tennessee, No. 10 Missouri, No. 22 Florida, No. 23 LSU, No. 24 Arkansas.
“It’s nice,” Oats said of the ranking. “I’m not sure exactly what that means in terms of getting an NCAA bid right now. We’re just trying to get better every game. It’s obviously better to be at 36 than to be outside of the top 50 or 60 because then you’re going to have a hard time playing your way into the tournament.
“Now that we’ve got ourselves up to where we should be a tournament team, we’ve got to continue to put a resume together to where we get picked to play in the tournament and have a decent seed at it.”
— Alabama’s game against Florida last season was one of the Tide’s toughest losses of the year as it blew a 21-point lead before losing 104-98 in double overtime. Monday, Petty the team has matured a lot since then.
“We understand what it takes to get a lead and also what it takes to keep one,” he said. “I feel like our seniors like me and (Jordan) Bruner, Herb, (Alex) Reese, we’re all doing a good job with coaching the younger guys and letting them know you can’t take plays off. Even though you get a good lead, the league we’re playing in is full of good teams, and any team can come back at any moment.”
— Florida and Alabama will meet for the 146th time in series history with the Tide holding a 75-70 advantage in the series, including a 27-12 record in games played at Coleman Coliseum. However, Alabama has lost eight straight and 10 of the last 12 to the Gators at home. The last time Alabama defeated Florida inside of Coleman Coliseum came on Feb. 26, 2006.
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