Juwan Gary Providing Toughness and Energy Off the Bench for Alabama Basketball
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Juwan Gary hasn't been dealt the greatest luck to start his career at the University of Alabama.
From tearing his ACL in the preseason last year to not being cleared until days before the first game this season, which caused him to miss a lot of live practice time in the summer and fall, his efforts in the Crimson Tide's 70-59 win over Kentucky this past Tuesday night was maybe his brightest moment yet.
Even Alabama coach Nate Oats commented afterwards and said that he didn't think the Crimson Tide pull out a victory without him.
Gary played a season-high 16 minutes off the bench and tallied six points, three rebounds, one block and one steal. He finished third on the team with a plus/minus of nine.
While offensively he hasn't proven to be a massive threat, his defense is what has been the difference.
Take the most recent game against Kentucky for example.
Per the analytics company Alabama uses, Kentucky scored 0.46 points per possession with Gary on the floor versus 0.79 with him off of it.
"I had to watch from the bench last year," Gary told reporters on Friday afternoon. "I saw the ups and downs they went through. I was taking everything in and everybody was keeping my head up. Everybody was teaching me something...
"My mindset going into the game Tuesday was that I just wanted to help my team win and do everything that coach wanted me to do."
With forward Jordan Bruner out due to a torn meniscus, James Rojas not at 100 percent because of an undisclosed medical condition and a slew of other issues for the banged up Crimson Tide, his contributions will need to continue to pay dividends if Oats and company plan on keeping their 10-game win streak alive.
"He plays really hard all the time," Oats said. "He as a great attitude. Getting better and better. Didn't get cleared until week of first game, missed a lot of live practice. Still catching up but makes up for that with his energy and effort and his athletic ability."
No. 9 Alabama is set to take on No. 24 Oklahoma as part of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge on Saturday morning at 11 a.m on ESPN and Gary will look to bring the effort, toughness, and energy off the Crimson Tide bench in a battle of two teams that are fighting for the best seeding possible come March.
"His role is going to continue to increase," Oats said. "Juwan was pretty good against Kentucky and he's been good for us all year defensively and rebounding-wise."
