Keon Ellis Steps Up Big on a Night Alabama Basketball Needed Him

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Jaden Shackelford and Jahvon Quinerly were nowhere to be found in the box score Saturday night.

Jacksonville State did everything it could to limit the Alabama basketball team’s top scorers, and did for most of the Crimson Tide’s 65-59 win at Coleman Coliseum.

No problem. Keon Ellis gladly took control. He carried the team with a 20-point effort, just two points away from tying a career high.

"You just have to be ready when it's your time. I guess I hit a couple of shots and was feeling it," Ellis said.

On a night when the offense was abysmal for the first half and most of the second, Ellis was the bright spot for the Crimson Tide.

Alabama (9-2) needed every bit of Ellis’ contributions.

The senior picked up where he left off against Memphis a few days ago, where he led Alabama with 19 points in a losing effort.

Against Jax State, Ellis connected on four 3-pointers and was 6 of 12 from the field 4 of 4 on free throws, and he was all over the glass with a team-leading 10 rebounds.

"We've encouraged him to be more aggressive, which I think he has the last couple of games," Alabama coach Nate Oats said.

Is Ellis getting some confidence and finding his rhythm?

"I've told him to lose himself in the game," Oats said. "Worry about getting stops, making blue-collar plays and be aggressive on offense.

"We needed him tonight in a big way."

Shackelford and Quinerly were a combined 1 of 10 from the field midway through the second half. Quinerly did finish with a flurry, scoring 11 points in the final eight minutes to finish with 15, but Shackelford (18.2 points per game) was scoreless.

Ellis knocked down a go-ahead 3-pointer early in the second half, and his fast-break layup and free throw with just under 10 minutes to play put Alabama up for good. It was his final points of the game.

Ellis had 14 first-half points and hit three of his four 3-pointers in the first half.

"He needed to get comfortable in the offense," Oats said. "He had a different role for us last year. He was our seventh, eighth guy. He gave us some good scoring when we needed it. We need it now."

Ellis can empathize with Shackelford's off night; he's had plenty of those himself. Ellis had four points against Gonzaga and Houston before back-to-back big games with Memphis and Jax State. Shackelford was 0-for-6 from the field with five missed 3-point attempts Saturday.

"He is a veteran player and he knows what comes with it," Ellis said. "Just keep shooting. I wasn't doing my best but I kept shooting. Sometimes you have to shoot yourself out of a slump. It might not have been his game but maybe next game it will. You never know."