BamaCentral Courtside: No. 22 Alabama 102, South Alabama 46
TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats was pleased after the No. 22 Alabama men's basketball team scored in excess of 100 points for the third consecutive game. While the offensive output was noteworthy for the head coach, he was happy with the improvements shown in his squad's effort on defense.
This enhanced effort led directly to more minutes for some of the team's fresh faces, such as freshman Sam Walters, who scored 16 points. He was one off point guard Mark Sears' 17, which led all scorers in the matchup. The Crimson Tide held the Jaguars to 23 points in each half, and South Alabama coach Richie Riley stated that his team has work to do following a 102-46 loss.
Another player who improved on Tuesday was forward Nick Pringle, who was once again in the starting five and whom Oats wanted to play better. He answered the call with 12 points to go with seven boards. There were four double-figure scorers for Alabama during the game. The offensive efficiency was there, but the defense was the main area Oats hoped would improve. He seemed to get his wish. The intensity alone that the Crimson Tide brought to that aspect of Tuesday's game eclipsed the team's prior two contests.
For what it's worth, though almost no one expects any offense to put up triple digits every single game, Alabama does have an opportunity to extend its streak of doing that to four in its next game, on Friday against Mercer. As things stand presently, this is the first time the program has scored 100 points or more in its opening three games since the 1956-57 season.
