Alabama basketball dominated on defense and on the glass in an 81-54 rout of Kent State on Sunday at Coleman Coliseum in the Crimson Tide's last game before Christmas Break.
It wasn't pretty for most of the night on the offensive end as Alabama struggled with turnovers and once again couldn't hit shots from three. But Nate Oats wanted to see more energy and effort from his team on the defensive end, and he got just that.
The players took Oats' words this week as a warning. Oats talked about shortening the rotation and not playing the players who weren't going to defend. Everyone gave effort on the defensive end on Sunday afternoon.
Mark Sears led the way with 16 points and Aden Holloway joined him in double-figures with 13.
Alabama moves to 10-2 on the season with one more out-of-conference game to go. Alabama plays in Coleman Coliseum next Sunday against South Dakota State before starting the grind of SEC play.
3 Takeaways from Alabama's dominant win over Kent State
3. The shooting continues to be a struggle
At one point in the second half, Alabama and Kent State had combined for 4-of-47 from three. Alabama got hot down the stretch and started making some threes to blow it open, but still finished the game just 9-of-35 (25.7%) from three.
Alabama also struggled from the free-throw line, hitting just 18-of-35. Add in 19 turnovers, and it wasn't a pretty offensive game for the Crimson Tide.
You can see the potential for this to be a good shooting team. Mark Sears and Aden Holloway should both be shooting better than they are. Chris Youngblood has the confidence and as he continues to get his legs under him, he's going to start knocking them down, too.
If the shots start falling, this is probably the best offense in the country.
2. Alabama's dominance on the glass can make up for the poor shooting
Alabama came into Sunday's game ranked No. 41 in the country in rebound margin, a number that is sure to go up after finishing +20 on the glass against Kent State. The Crimson Tide's length is one of its greatest strengths, and combined with the hard-hat style of play that Oats demands, there's no reason Alabama shouldn't be one of the best rebounding teams in the country.
Both Grant Nelson and Cliff Omoruyi finished in double-figures on the glass with 14 and 12 respectively, both finishing just a few points shy of double-doubles. Mo Dioubate did what he does in his limited minutes, crashing the glass and grabbing eight rebounds in just 15 minutes.
Alabama grabbed 20 offensive rebounds and finished with 22 second-chance points. Alabama's ability to rebound is a big reason they still scored over 80 points in a game where the shots weren't falling.
1. Alabama's defense was at a championship level
After a poor defensive game on the road against North Dakota, Oats demanded better from his team. They went through grueling practices and Oats publicly talked about benching players that weren't giving proper effort on that end of the floor.
The team responded, at least for one afternoon. Alabama held Kent State to 0.71 points per possession for the game. The Golden Flashes shot just 28% from the field and 7% (2/27) from three.
Alabama defended the rim well with seven blocked shots, including two each from Nelson and Dioubate.
If Alabama isn't going to be the elite shooting team it was last season, it has no choice but to be elite on the defensive end of the floor if they are going to achieve the lofty goals it entered the season with.