Alabama needed this win. Auburn needed this win. Luckily, Alabama was the one who got this win. Alabama moved to 13-6 (5-1) on the season and gained its 3rd Q1 win on the season, while Auburn has yet to win a Q1 game this season.
What was very encouraging about this game for Alabama was they withstood a huge punch early on going down 16-8, got back up, and went on a huge 32-14 run to end the half. Auburn made another huge run in the second half, but Alabama did not fold and kept punching back and free throws won the game in the end. Mental toughness has been a theme for Nate Oats with this team and it seems slowly they’re gaining that.
I thought Rylan Griffen and Grant Nelson play their best games this calendar year last night. Grant ended up with 14 points and 12 boards and Rylan hit 5 threes off the bench. Grant got abused by Broome in the paint, but the Maine thing was he did not get in foul trouble and did a better job in the second half defending him. Rylan came off the bench for the first time and was a huge boost when Alabama needed it the most early on hitting 4 threes.
Turnovers were still an issue, finishing layups was a big issue, and interior defense was an issue as well but they won despite all of that. If you told me Alabama would turn it over 14 times and shoot below 40% from the field, then I would’ve assumed a loss. That goes to how much Alabama fought on the defensive end to keep Auburn at bay.
It was a huge win, because now they have a marquee win on their resume and have 3 very winnable games coming up in LSU, @UGA, and Miss St with the potential to be at worst 7-2 in conference at the halfway mark. I think everyone would’ve taken that before the season.
What was very encouraging about this game for Alabama was they withstood a huge punch early on going down 16-8, got back up, and went on a huge 32-14 run to end the half. Auburn made another huge run in the second half, but Alabama did not fold and kept punching back and free throws won the game in the end. Mental toughness has been a theme for Nate Oats with this team and it seems slowly they’re gaining that.
I thought Rylan Griffen and Grant Nelson play their best games this calendar year last night. Grant ended up with 14 points and 12 boards and Rylan hit 5 threes off the bench. Grant got abused by Broome in the paint, but the Maine thing was he did not get in foul trouble and did a better job in the second half defending him. Rylan came off the bench for the first time and was a huge boost when Alabama needed it the most early on hitting 4 threes.
Turnovers were still an issue, finishing layups was a big issue, and interior defense was an issue as well but they won despite all of that. If you told me Alabama would turn it over 14 times and shoot below 40% from the field, then I would’ve assumed a loss. That goes to how much Alabama fought on the defensive end to keep Auburn at bay.
It was a huge win, because now they have a marquee win on their resume and have 3 very winnable games coming up in LSU, @UGA, and Miss St with the potential to be at worst 7-2 in conference at the halfway mark. I think everyone would’ve taken that before the season.
