Bench Points a Key Factor in Alabama Basketball's Success
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Points off the bench in college basketball have always been a statistic that separates the good teams from the great teams every season.
As Alabama basketball fans saw in the 2019-2020 season, a shallow bench can lead to poor overall team performance. For the Crimson Tide last year, lack of bench depth was a key factor in a February collapse that left team with an overall record of 16-15 after dropping eight of its last 12 games to end the year.
This season, though, the winds of change have shifted course.
On Wednesday night in Coleman Coliseum, Alabama basketball defeated LSU for the second time in 2021, downing the Tigers 78-60. With the win, the Crimson Tide are now 15-4 overall and are a perfect 10-0 in SEC play — the first time that Alabama has started with that record in conference play in 65 years.
A key stat line in the game was points off the bench. For the duration of the contest, Alabama outscored LSU 34-7 in bench points — a trend that has continually won the Crimson Tide its games in SEC play this season.
With the team suffering from injuries much like it did in 2020, solid shooting from the Crimson Tide’s bench is what has allowed this team to not repeat its mistakes that it committed last year.
According to Alabama coach Nate Oats, poor shooting from freshman guard Josh Primo and senior guard John Petty Jr. combined with a nagging injury to senior wing Herb Jones led to an opportunity for the bench to step up on Wednesday night.
“Herb’s banged up, not one of Primo or Petty’s better games so when three starters combine to go for 12 points you need to get some production elsewhere,” Oats said. “It’s nice when you can go to the bench and get three guys that give you double figures.”
Nice it is indeed, and this trend has been happening for quite some time this season.
In six of Alabama’s 10 SEC games, the Crimson Tide has either led or tied its opponents in bench points. The only teams it has failed to do so against was Kentucky on both occasions — falling in the category 27-16 and 21-13 despite pulling off the wins — and against Tennessee and Auburn by 19-15 and 16-12, respectively. Solid shooting in those four games that the Crimson Tide failed to produce off the bench ultimately won them the games, but three of those four games were still some of the closest that Alabama has won over SEC opponents this season.
With the Crimson Tide still banged up, it is now more important than ever that the bench remain a solid option for Alabama. Grad-student forward Jordan Bruner is still weeks away from returning from his meniscus injury while Jones is still dealing with a hurt hand. Combine that with an ongoing recovery from illness for junior forward James Rojas, and this Crimson Tide team still isn’t out of the woods just yet.
Sophomore guard Jaden Shackelford noted on Wednesday night the impact that bench had in its season-sweeping win over the Tigers.
“The bench was huge for us today,” Shackelford said. “We got guys that stay ready when their number is called so the way they played is just a testament to how hard they work and just being ready at all times and that was huge for us tonight.”
On Wednesday night, three of Alabama’s five players that shot in double-digits came off the bench in redshirt-freshman forward Juwan Gary with 12, sophomore guard Jahvon Quinerly with 10 and junior guard Keon Ellis with 10. Ellis and Gary also recorded seven rebounds apiece — a crucial key that impacted LSU’s momentum on offense.
For Oats, it’s good to have a solid bench to depend on if the starting five isn’t performing up to expectations.
“You look at our bench and who scored and that’s Juwan, Quinerly, obviously Keon Ellis — you know, those guys were all in double digits off the bench,” Oats said. “That’s nice when you can bring three guys off the bench that can all get you double figures off the bench.”
Alabama remains on top of the SEC with its undefeated record in the conference. However, the Crimson Tide will travel to Missouri to take on another Tigers squad. Missouri currently ranks second in the conference with its 5-3 SEC record. A win over the Tigers would go a long way in securing the regular-season conference title for Alabama, but it’s not going to be an easy trip to Columbia.
However, if this Alabama bench keeps up the momentum that it’s been building this season, another SEC victory could be within reach for the Crimson Tide.
After Wednesday’s game, Gary said that coming into the game off the bench is the way that he contributes to this team’s success.
“That’s [how] I help my team to a great dub,” Gary said. “Coming off the bench, giving all the energy, max effort — it’s a big thing for us tonight.”
