After Alabama’s loss to Vanderbilt at home on Thursday, traveling to Lexington to face Kentucky didn’t sound like a good idea. The Tide came out ready to play physical and aggressive. Although Alabama didn’t come out with a win, they showed that they can compete with the country’s elite. Kentucky pulled out the close contest at Rupp Arena by a final score of 77-71.
Even though Alabama allowed 77 points on defense, it was still a nice effort by the Crimson Tide. Anthony Grant and his team established their game plan early: double team and limit Kentucky’s touches in the paint. Thus, making the Wildcats beat the Tide from outside. The defense executed on that plan for the whole game. Alabama did give Kentucky some easy baskets off turnovers. In fact, Coach Grant knew that would be a focal point for the Wildcats. He said earlier this week that the Wildcats were great at creating points off turnovers, he was right. Alabama also got into some early foul trouble.
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Tony Mitchell, Alabama’s leading scorer, was forced to leave the game after only two minutes of play. He picked up his second foul at the 18:00 mark of the first half. Tony Mitchell would eventually foul out with 5:26 remaining in the game. Andrew Steele also fouled out with 24 seconds remaining after fouling to stop the clock.
Alabama’s foul trouble allowed Kentucky to get some easy shots from the free throw line. It was hard to watch the Tide give away free throws while in the bonus in the second half. At one point in the second half, Nick Jacobs picked up an offensive foul and Kentucky got two points out of his mistake. Simply put, it didn’t help Alabama’s chances late in the game when Kentucky was perfect from the line.
Alabama’s offense looked much improved over Thursday night’s loss to Vanderbilt. JaMychal Green came up big in the low post with 22 points and 13 rebounds. The Tide also rebounded after a very poor shooting performance, shooting 48% from the field and 71.4% (5-7) from three point range. Trevor Lacey found his touch early, making two three pointers.
Trevor Releford also had a big game against the Wildcat defense. Although he was held scoreless in the first half, he delivered big in the second. Releford finished with 17 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists. He was also perfect from outside the perimeter and finished with two three pointers.
Nick Jacobs found his rhythm inside and wouldn’t be denied. Kentucky was unusually soft in the paint on defense. Allowing Jacobs to come up big. He would finish with 9 points and three rebounds, playing 28 minutes off the bench.
It was a welcomed sight to see Tony Mitchell’s name back on the scorecard today. Mitchell finished with 6 points after being held scoreless in the Tide’s last game vs. Vanderbilt. He would only play 20 minutes due to foul trouble, so maybe today’s performance will help him regain his confidence.
Kentucky started the game red hot from three point range, but it didn’t last for long. Alabama’s post defense should get a ton of credit tonight. The held one of the best big men in the SEC to only 11 points. Anthony Grant’s defense forced the Wildcats to shoot from outside and it proved to be very effective.
The Wildcats also ran into a bit of foul trouble in the second half. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was forced to sit until the final minutes with four fouls. Terrence Jones led the Wildcats in scoring with 15 points. Doron Lamb didn’t get the start tonight, but he saw a lot of action coming off the bench. He would finish with 14 points on 5-8 shooting.
One of the low points for Kentucky was free throw shooting. The Wildcats were sent to the line a lot, but couldn’t convert until late. Kentucky finished the game making 67.5% of their free throws. But, they were able to make all their free throws down the stretch. The Wildcats would clinch the game with their near perfect shooting effort in the final minutes.
Although Alabama wasn’t able to pull it out in Lexington, this game should boost Alabama’s moral. The Crimson Tide played well enough tonight to be considered as a top three team in the SEC. After the game on Thursday night, today’s game looked like it might be a disaster. It’s great to see the Tide leave Rupp Arena with some much needed confidence.
Alabama will head to Columbia to face the South Carolina Gamecocks on Wednesday night. Look for the Crimson Tide to end their current losing streak and get back to their winning ways.