Alabama basketball holds off pesky McNeese: 3 takeaways

Alabama basketball got another test from another quality mid-major on Monday night. The Crimson Tide held on to a 72-64 win to move to 3-0 after squandering a 21-point second-half lead with a porous effort from the under-16 to the under-8 media timeout.

McNeese, coached by former LSU head coach Will Wade, had a good defensive game plan that flustered Alabama. They played several combinations of zone with full and half-court traps. Alabama struggled to break the zone and didn't shoot well enough from three to make the Cowboys pay for it.

After scoring 41 points in the first half to take an 11-point lead at the half, Alabama managed just 31 points in the second half in what will ultimately be one of their lower-scoring halves of basketball this entire season.

Grant Nelson led the team in scoring with 22 points. Mark Sears and Latrell Wrightsell also finished in double figures with 15 points each.

3 takeaways from Alabama's win

3. McNeese is a quality team

This will be another game where box score watchers panic at the sight of a single-digit win over a mid-major - Alabama's second in a row.

But McNeese won 30 games last season and is favored to win the Southland conference again. The Cowboys were a 12-seed in last season's tournament and a popular upset pick. They're coached by former LSU head coach Will Wade, who is very familiar with Nate Oats and this Alabama program.

Wade had a great game plan to attack Alabama and had his team well-prepared. This was another really good test for the Crimson Tide and one they can learn a lot from as they now enter the brutal stretch of their non-conference schedule.

2. Nelson and Wrightsell looked healthy

After missing both preseason scrimmages due to injury, Grant Nelson and Latrell Wrightsell both had slow starts to the season. Wrightsell was coming off of a 1/9 shooting night against Arkansas State, and Nelson was still working his way into the lineup.

Nelson dominated the first half of this game, scoring 16 of his 22 points. He also had 8 rebounds and 3 assists.

Wrightsell got it going in the second half and hit 5/9 from three to finish with 15 points. Wrightsell's ability to stretch the floor is key for this team. He and Sears were the most feared shooting backcourts in college basketball last season and will be again this year.

1. Alabama's defense looks much improved

A lot of the focus will be on how disappointing the offense was in tonight's game. But I'm not worried about that at all. I know the potential this team has offensively and have zero doubts that they will ultimately be one of the best in college basketball.

The defense was another question entirely. Alabama finished sub-100 in defense last season on KenPom. If Alabama wants to get back to the Final Four and perhaps win a national championship, the defense was going to have to improve.

There will be bigger challenges ahead, but I've been impressed by the effort, energy, and overall ability on that end of the floor so far. Alabama held McNeese to 0.95 PPP (points per possession) for the game, and that number would've been better if it wasn't for some really difficult midrange shots the Cowboys got to fall.

Alabama forced McNeese to take the shots it wanted it to take, something Oats will live with even if a higher-than-optimal percentage of them went in.

Tonight was the last time Alabama will play in Coleman Coliseum until December 14th when Creighton comes to town. Alabama goes on the road to play Purdue on Friday before facing Illinois in Birmingham next Wednesday. The Tide then heads to Las Vegas for the Player's Era Festival.