It seemed we were on the verge of the same old same old story against Tennessee. Getting out-rebounded, the three-ball not falling, and their inside presence just being too much for this Alabama team for a sixth straight time. Obviously, this team showed their March moxie in the second half, overcoming a double-digit halftime deficit and being down 55-42 with just over 12 minutes left in the game. Latrell Wrightsell was huge on Saturday night, keeping his team within reach, putting up 25 and hitting six of nine behind the arc.
Labaron Philon obviously took some time to get going in Knoxville but had a huge second half, putting up 15 of his 23 points over the final 20 minutes, including the game-winner with a little over 22 seconds left in the game, which was the first lead of the night for the Tide.
When it looked the bleakest, this team kept fighting, and despite getting embarrassed on the boards and giving up a boatload of second-chance points, they got the job done late. Aiden Sherrell had some huge rebounds and blocks late in the game and played a boatload of minutes against Felix Okpara and J.P. Estrella.
It feels good for this team to get the weight off their back of losses to Tennessee, but it gets no easier to start March with a big game on Tuesday night against Georgia on the road, which has huge implications for tournament seeding. Then of course, ending the regular season with the Iron Bowl on the Court rematch at home, which also has huge possible tournament implications, especially for Auburn.
Going into March, though, it is good to see this team being able to win when the three-ball is not falling with regularity and the adversity is great.