Despite Loss, Brandon Miller Shines against Gonzaga

Miller finished the game with 36 points and six rebounds, with 26 of those points coming in the second half alone.

Author:
Joey Blackwell
Updated:
Dec 17, 2022 5:14 PM EST
Original:
Dec 17, 2022

In this story:

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Alabama basketball fans have a lot to point their collective fingers at when looking for reasons that the Crimson Tide fell 100-90 to the Gonzaga Bulldogs on Saturday afternoon.

Frequent turnovers in the first half and poor defense in the second half were two of the key factors in the Crimson Tide's loss. However, there was one factor that Alabama fans can't and won't point to, and with good reason.

The factor? Brandon Miller.

After the first 20 minutes of the game, it was evident that Miller was going to finish the game strong. With 10 points and three rebounds at the break, Miller was poised to lead Alabama in multiple categories. He didn't stop there, however.

By the end of the game, Miller totaled a whopping 36 points and six rebounds. While the Crimson Tide failed to establish any sort of presence on the defensive end of the court — particularly in the second half — Miller was dominating on the opposite end.

"He got it going there — especially in the second half," Alabama head coach Nate Oats said after the game. "It's a good thing he did or we'd have be in some real trouble with how good Gonzaga was on offense. Brandon's really talented, as we know. They started trapping him on ball screens we probably should've done a better job figuring out how to counter that.

"Brandon made some shots and we gotta figure out ways to use him when teams guard in different ways and we gotta do a little bit better to counteract what teams are doing since that's not the last time he's gonna have some explosive games like that."

After playing opposite him on Saturday, Gonzaga forward Drew Timme believes Miller to be an NBA lottery pick on the Crimson Tide's roster.

"We thought he would do something like that," Timme said. "Not to that level, obviously, but lottery-level guy. He's a hell of a player and he really stepped up when his team needed him. You just gotta tip your hat off because you can only play such good defense."

So far this season, Miller is averaging 20.1 points per game and is second to only fellow freshman Noah Clowney in rebounds with 90 through 11 games. He is third on the team with 10 blocks and has tallied six steals on the season thus far.

Miller has been gaining national recognition over Alabama's 11 games. However, Saturday's game on CBS arguably put Miller on his largest stage yet. And with the Crimson Tide currently sitting at No. 4 in the AP Top 25 — and will no doubt drop in this coming week's edition — flying under the radar is no longer an option for Miller.

To Miller, his success has all been part of developing as a player.

"It's just a learning process," Miller said. "I try not to get too caught up in the crowd and all the outside stuff, so I just stay close to my teammates and just play off them."

The loss certainly won't sit well for Alabama fans. After beating then-No. 1 Houston on the road last weekend before downing Memphis in a revenge game on Tuesday, the Crimson Tide seemed poised to finish the tough three-game stretch with a 3-0 record. That wasn't meant to be, but Alabama fans can satisfied with the fact that Miller finally performed well in a big game.

Against then-No. 1 North Carolina in the Phil Knight Invitational, Miller recorded 14 points and seven rebounds — a decent showing when you consider the fact that Miller didn't score in the first half, but not numbers that Crimson Tide fans have come to expect. At Houston, Miller was relatively quiet once again with just eight points and five rebounds.

However, against Gonzaga, Miller finally had a showing against a top-25 opponent. With 36 points and six rebounds on a national stage. The game result might not have been what Alabama fans wanted, but they can take solace in the fact that Miller has been living up to everything that was promised.

To Oats, Miller was a big difference maker.

"We wouldn't have been in the game at all," Oats said. "[...] It's nice to have a guy that can go score the basketball at a pretty high clip to keep you in some games when you're struggling in some other areas."

This story will be updated with video from Saturday's postgame press conference.