Nine Points in 49 Seconds: The Stretch That Flattened No. 15 Arkansas
The No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide led No. 15 Arkansas 62-50 with 9:14 to play.
The Razorbacks (12-4, 1-3 SEC) trimmed the Crimson Tide lead down to just two points at the 4:54 mark.
Alabama head coach Nate Oats immediately called a much-needed timeout.
Then, the game flipped in less time than the timeout break lasted.
“I just told them, ‘Look, it’s a game of runs. We’ve got to get back to getting stops, taking care of the ball on offense. Just settle down a little bit,’” Oats said. “They did. They came out and got stops, hit some big shots. [...] Out of that timeout, we had a group in there that played well together.”
The Crimson Tide (14-2, 4-0 SEC) forced two turnovers and knocked down three back-breaking threes in the span of just 49 seconds of game clock. Alabama added four more unanswered points in the following 2:16 to complete a 13-0 run.
A 13-0 run on the road against the 15th-ranked team in the country — led by freshmen. That’s special.
“[Noah] Clowney is not scared of much and neither is Brandon [Miller],” Oats said.
Teams that have the ability to crush their opponents’ souls in the final minutes of the game — especially after blowing a double-digit lead — are the teams that compete late into March and April.
The Crimson Tide is beginning to look like one of those teams that could lift the trophy at season’s end.
“Our guys showed that they’ve got some toughness, some character, some grit — [they] can handle some runs and still stay in there,” Oats said. “Our guys did well.”
Now 4-0 in the SEC, Alabama is in good shape too. The Crimson Tide is likely to be favored in every game it plays the rest of the way, excluding potentially being an underdog in trips to Auburn and Knoxville in mid-February.
Next up, Alabama will be back on its home floor on Saturday against LSU. Tipoff between the Crimson Tide and Tigers is set for 3 p.m. CT on ESPN.
See Also:
No. 4 Alabama Uses Second Half Run To Pull Away From No. 15 Arkansas
