The X-Factor for Alabama Basketball's Matchup Against St. John's

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — No. 15 Alabama men's basketball obliterated North Dakota 91-62 on Monday in its season opener, and while head coach Nate Oats was pleased with a lot of the team's performance, he was disappointed in one of his new players.

Florida State transfer forward Taylor Bol Bowen scored eight points, while adding an assist and a block, but Oats was disappointed with the fact that the junior could've had much more than three rebounds.

"Taylor had zero [offensive rebounds]," Oats said after the North Dakota game. "He had zero in the exhibition. He doesn’t get offensive rebounds ever."

Alabama will face a much tougher opponent on Saturday against No. 5 St. John's at 11 a.m. CT in Madison Square Garden. In the days leading up to the game, Oats explained on Friday that "we haven't gone real hard [in practice] just because of the injuries," but he's content with how Bol Bowen has responded to the criticism.

"His attention to detail has been better," Oats said. "I would anticipate him playing a lot better. Obviously, the physicality of St John's, he's going to have to deal with it. He's going to have to attack it, embrace it and play well against it. But I think his mentality, his attitude, everything's been great these last couple of days."

Bol Bowen averaged 8.0 points, 5.2 rebounds (1.2 offensive) and an impressive 1.5 blocks per game for the Seminoles last season. The 6-foot-10, 202-pounder has shown that he could be a bit of a playmaker with the Crimson Tide, but Oats also wants more of a presence inside as a rebounder on both ends of the floor.

This will be key against a St. John's team that has been viewed as one of the best defensive units in the nation. Getting second chances on the offensive glass could make a difference on Saturday morning and Oats is emphasizing that "we have got to rebound the basketball."

"We've got to show some toughness," Oats said. "We've got to get in gaps and make defensive plays. We've got to be more active on the defensive end.

"When we talk about all of our blue-collar points — deflections, defensive plays, rebounding, particularly, on both ends. Really, this game, the defensive rebounding is going to be huge, but we just, we've got to show some toughness and make a lot of blue-collar plays."

Bol Bowen played 18 minutes against North Dakota. Oats took him out multiple times following mistakes and missed rebounding opportunities. With fellow Alabama transfer forward Keitenn Bristow expected to miss his second game with an injury, Oats is counting on Bol Bowen to be the X-factor for the Crimson Tide against the Red Storm.

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