Alabama Basketball's Jordan Bruner Makes Impact in Return To Lineup on Senior Day
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — University of Alabama forward Jordan Bruner made his long-awaited return to the Crimson Tide's starting lineup on Saturday afternoon versus Vanderbilt inside Coleman Coliseum.
Bruner had missed the team's previous nine games with a torn meniscus suffered back on Jan. 12 against Kentucky.
During the 82-78 win over the Commodores, Bruner, who wore a knee brace and was clearly still limited, hauled in six rebounds and added one assist, one block and one steal.
He also went 1-of-2 from the free-throw line.
"He's obviously not back to 100 percent but I was so happy he was able to play on Senior Day in front of his family," Alabama coach Nate Oats said.
Before his injury, the Yale grad transfer was averaging 7.9 points and 5.3 rebounds. His best game of the season came at Auburn, where he scored a season-high 20 points and recorded seven rebounds, four assists, three steals and one block, just days before the Kentucky matchup.
"It was real good to see him progressing from his injury," Alabama guard John Petty Jr. said. "Just his voice and his leadership. We had been kind of lacking that in these games without him. But it was real good to have him back on the court."
With a SEC regular-season title just one win away from the Crimson Tide, Oats was glad to see Bruner shake off the rust before a meeting with Arkansas on Wednesday night.
"It's huge," Oats said. "We needed him back. He plays great for us... Bruner's stat line wasn't great today but he hasn't played in over a month. So we expected him to be a little rusty. It was good to get him game minutes before we go to Arkansas and play. And if you look at our defensive efficiency numbers, his defensive leverage is strong. He led the team tonight.
“Our team defense was a 1.05 and we were 0.88. That’s the lowest of anybody. When he is in the game, his talk anchors us, his IQ, he sniffs out plays, he rebounds the ball well, guards the post. There are some many little things that don't show up on a box score. When he is in the game, our defensive leverage is really good. So it's good to get him back."
