A near-perfect first half on the offensive end of the floor allowed Alabama basketball to build a 24-point lead after the game's first 20 minutes and they never looked back from there, rolling to a 105-82 win over South Dakota State at Coleman Coliseum.
Alabama scored 57 points in the first half, connecting on 41% from three (with 12 makes) and only turning the ball over three times. The shooting came back down to earth a bit in the second half, but Alabama connected on 19 three-point attempts for the game and only turned the ball over five times.
A week off seemed to do Alabama some good as they looked to have fresher legs than last Sunday. And that's with Alabama being down two players for this afternoon's contest. Freshman Derrion Reid was in a boot with a minor ankle injury and senior Houston Mallette missed the game after battling an illness the last few days.
Alabama's three guards each scored 20+ points to lead the way. Mark Sears and Aden Holloway led the shooting barrage with a combined 14 made threes on 33 attempts. Holloway finished with 26 points, Sears chipped in 20, and Labaron Philon had 21 as the Crimson Tide guards led the way for a long-coming offensive avalanche.
3 takeaways from Alabama's win over South Dakota State
3. Aiden Sherrell is beginning to look like a real player
A quick glance at the box score isn't going to produce eye-popping numbers from freshman Aiden Sherrell, but for my money that was his best overall game in an Alabama uniform. He competed on defense and held his own against star South Dakota State big man Oscar Cluff and gave Cliff Omoruyi good rest.
Sherrell had six points and seven rebounds, including two offensive boards. Sherrell is a guy who has a clear-cut role if he's able to continue his growth. Alabama needs his size, particularly as SEC play begins this coming weekend.
2. Grant Nelson set the early tone
The story of the game is Alabama's guards, and I'll talk more about them below. But it was graduate senior forward Grant Nelson who got things started in the right direction for the Crimson Tide on Sunday afternoon.
Nelson scored the first eight points for Alabama against the Jackrabbits, connecting on two three-pointers. Nelson finished with 17 points, 8 rebounds, and blocked two shots. He was oustanding once again on both ends of the court.
Nelson missed most of the summer with an injury and has spent non-conference play getting back into game shape. He's stringing together strong performances in a row and is looking like the player we saw in the NCAA Tournament last season. That's huge for Alabama heading into the conference schedule.
1. Alabama's guards lived up to elite billing
Alabama's trio of lead guards - Mark Sears, Labaron Philon, and Aden Holloway - have the potential to be as potent as any group in the country, particularly on the offensive end of the floor. They showed that on Sunday afternoon, with all three players finishing with 20+ points.
Both Holloway and Philon finished with career-highs in scoring. Holloway did it by hitting 8-of-19 three-pointers while Philon did it with his craftiness around the rim.
Holloway off of the catch-and-shoot is as good as anyone in the country. He needs to avoid his bad habit of shooting off the bounce. Essentially, I'd like to see his offensive role become more of what Latrell Wrightsell's was.
The keys to the offense should be in Philon's hands; everything just runs smoothly when he's running the show instead of Sears. And that's not a knock on Sears, but he's one of the best shooters in the country and he needs a guard like Philon to be setting him up with open looks.
Sears continues to find his shot and he was 6-of-14 from three and scored 20 points for the Crimson Tide.
It won't always look this good for those three, but their performance showed just how scary this offense can be when everything is clicking.