Alabama Crimson Tide News: Baseball stays hot, Jaxon Richardson shines, more

Alabama Crimson Tide news and notes from Monday and Tuesday:

Alabama baseball tops Jacksonville State for 8th straight win

Alabama baseball's hot streak continued on Tuesday night with an impressive mid-week road victory over a ranked Jacksonville State squad.

The Crimson Tide broke out to a 3-0 lead thanks to a homerun by John Lemm and an RBI double by Justin Osterhouse, but the Gamecocks wouldn't go away quietly, rallying to tie the game at three by the 8th inning.

In the 9th, Brady Neal came up clutch with a solo homer to put Alabama up 4-3:

Evan Steckmesser shut the door in the 9th after getting JT Blackwood out of a mess in the 8th to secure the win.

It's Alabama's 8th straight victory, which includes back-to-back sweeps in SEC play over Florida and Auburn to go along with a pair of mid-week wins over quality in-state programs.

Alabama now sits at 23-7 overall and will embark on a road series in Norman against No. 11 Oklahoma this weekend.

Alabama commit Jaxon Richardson wins dunk contest, shines in McDonald's All-American Game

Jaxon Richardson, who was a surprise commitment to Alabama last month, has seen his stock continue to go up since then. He had an impressive showing this week at the McDonald's All-American Game, which culminated in strong practices, winning the slam dunk contest, and then performing well on both ends in the game itself.

Richardson's offensive game will take some time to develop, but he's come to the right place to work that out in Tuscaloosa.

But he'll be the top athlete on the roster the moment he steps on campus, and maybe even the best defender. It's easy to project a Mo Dioubate/Juwan Gary type role for Richardson as a freshman in Tuscaloosa, and if he can develop as a shooter, he's got NBA Draft lottery potential.

In Tuesday night's McDonald's All-American Game, Richardson acquitted himself nicely. In 21 minutes, he scored 13 points with 3 rebounds, along with a steal and a block on 6-of-9 shooting from the floor. You can see his highlights below:

Daniel Hill, Keon Sabb talk during Alabama football spring practice

It's been a mostly quiet week so far for Alabama football as the Crimson Tide's spring practice continues, but there were a couple of illuminating interviews with RB Daniel Hill and S Keon Sabb on Monday.

Hill talked about dropping weight to get more burst, his absurd strength, and how young RBs like EJ Crowell and AK Dear are doing in practice. Heading into his third season on campus, Hill is one of the elder statesmen in the room, and with significant talent challenging him, he's doing everything he can to remain at the top of the depth chart.

Sabb is a fifth-year senior and one of the veteran leaders of the team. He's clearly been impressed with some of the young DBs, namely rising sophomore Ivan Taylor, the son of former Steelers legend Ike Taylor. In a crowded group of safeties, it won't be easy for Taylor to carve out playing time, but he's certainly putting his best foot forward.