Any concern of a hangover after Wednesday's emotional win over Auburn was soon forgotten, as Alabama dominated LSU Saturday night to improve to 6-1 in SEC play. Saturday night marked the 6th time this season the Tide has gone over the century mark, and are on pace to break the single-season points total which was set last year during their historical Sweet 16 run.
The pace of the game suited Alabama well, as it got fast break points all night and turned bad shots by LSU into transition 3-point buckets. The team shot over 40% from beyond the arc, including five three-pointers from Latrell Wrightsell, who has really turned his game up a notch in January. It was a balanced scoring attack from the Tide, with five players scoring in double-digits led by the always-consistent Mark Sears, who dropped 21 points and five dimes.
It was great to see Aaron Estrada get his mojo back after struggling on the offensive end the last two games. Estrada dropped 18 points, grabbed seven boards, and six dimes. Fellow transfer Grant Nelson has turned it up a notch as of late with his post presence. He has learned how to play physically on both sides of the court and the team seems to feed off his energy.
Alabama will close out a very successful January with a road win against an improved Georgia Bulldogs team. Winning on the road in the SEC is never easy and a win Wednesday night in Athens will put an exclamation point on a great month. Outside of the Tennesse game, this team seems to have found themselves. The defensive effort has turned up a notch, the offense is turning into what is expected of a Nate Oats-led team, and the confidence seems to be through the roof.
This is exactly where this Alabama team needs to be heading into February and March. I would expect this team to be back in the Top 25 when the new polls come out on Monday.