Alabama Basketball at Auburn (8:00 ESPNU)

[pmull]

The University of Alabama men's basketball team returns to the road to face in-state Southeastern Conference rival Auburn in the first of two meetings between the programs this season. Tipoff at Auburn Arena is scheduled for 8 p.m. CST on ESPNU and the radio affiliates of the Crimson Tide Sports Network.

The Crimson Tide visits the Plains with a 15-7 overall record and a 4-4 record in SEC play after a thrilling, 69-67, double-overtime win against Mississippi on Saturday. Auburn returns home, where it is 12-1 this season, after playing three of its last four games on the road to amass a 13-10 overall mark and a 3-6 record in the SEC.

Click here for link

[Jamos]

It will be interesting to see what tempo Bama chooses to play tonight. I'm also wondering if the officials will allow the same type of game as was allowed in the Ole Miss game, a bar room brawl. Somehow I get the feeling this game will be very physical though. 

[Chechem]

You want an understatement?  "Important game for Alabama." 

[pmull]

This game reminds me of the Georgia Tech game earlier this year. We had come out of a bad 3 game stretch but righted the ship with a win over a decent Oklahoma State team. The GT game was on the road and J Green was out with a shoulder injury. I'm not sure what happened but I suppect CAG sat the young guys down and told them we have to have production out of them with JG out of the line up. I think he told them to play like it was high school. If the shot is open don't think about, take it. We came out on fire and beat GT bad. Randolph and Lacy had big nights.

Tonight's game is similar. We have come off a bad 4 game stretch but righted the ship with home wins over Arkansas and Ole Miss. We are on the road at Auburn and Tony Mitchell is out due to suspension. We need some guys to step up and help on the offensive end. It does not have to be one guy. In fact, it will be best if points are spread out. We will see a zone most of the night.

This is a big game. We have a better team than Auburn. There is no reason why we can't get this win.

[BAMAWV]

Remember Auburn playing inspired, or UK playing uninspired, several games ago. As if the Tide needs extra incentive against the barn, TM being out should provide it. But don't get comfortable with this gameplan.  Bama can be a much better team with all its variables calculating into the equation. Sitting TM may have been necessary, CAG knows best, but if we have hopes of post season runs it better not be for long. RTR

[pmull]

Remember Auburn playing inspired, or UK playing uninspired, several games ago. As if the Tide needs extra incentive against the barn, TM being out should provide it. But don't get comfortable with this gameplan.  Bama can be a much better team with all its variables calculating into the equation. Sitting TM may have been necessary, CAG knows best, but if we have hopes of post season runs it better not be for long. RTR

There is no doubt we are a more dangerous team if TM is playing. I read somewhere yesterday that CAG said Monday's practice would go a long way in determining how long he would be out. The link below is from Cassagrande's Daily Blog talking about how JG is trying to help him get his head on straight.

Green spoke with Mitchell after the suspension and urged him not to do “anything dumb and stupid.” Mitchell’s 13.1-point scoring average trails only Green’s 13.8 a game.

“That was the main point of going to talk to him because I’ve been through it,” Green said. “I told him you can’t come back with a bad attitude. You have to come back with a new state of mind and just get better from it.”

Click here for link

[BAMAWV]

Remember Auburn playing inspired, or UK playing uninspired, several games ago. As if the Tide needs extra incentive against the barn, TM being out should provide it. But don't get comfortable with this gameplan.  Bama can be a much better team with all its variables calculating into the equation. Sitting TM may have been necessary, CAG knows best, but if we have hopes of post season runs it better not be for long. RTR

There is no doubt we are a more dangerous team if TM is playing. I read somewhere yesterday that CAG said Monday's practice would go a long way in determining how long he would be out. The link below is from Cassagrande's Daily Blog talking about how JM is trying to help him get his head on straight.

Green spoke with Mitchell after the suspension and urged him not to do “anything dumb and stupid.” Mitchell’s 13.1-point scoring average trails only Green’s 13.8 a game.

“That was the main point of going to talk to him because I’ve been through it,” Green said. “I told him you can’t come back with a bad attitude. You have to come back with a new state of mind and just get better from it.”

Click here for link

“It hurts because Tony is such a big part of what we do,” junior forward Andrew Steele said. “We feel like we can be a better team with him on the court, but like I said, we have to trust coach’s judgment. I guess he feels like he’s doing what’s in the best interest for the team. We have to focus on getting a win (tonight).”

[SUPERCOACH]

Remember Auburn playing inspired, or UK playing uninspired, several games ago. As if the Tide needs extra incentive against the barn, TM being out should provide it. But don't get comfortable with this gameplan.  Bama can be a much better team with all its variables calculating into the equation. Sitting TM may have been necessary, CAG knows best, but if we have hopes of post season runs it better not be for long. RTR

There is no doubt we are a more dangerous team if TM is playing. I read somewhere yesterday that CAG said Monday's practice would go a long way in determining how long he would be out. The link below is from Cassagrande's Daily Blog talking about how JG is trying to help him get his head on straight.

Green spoke with Mitchell after the suspension and urged him not to do “anything dumb and stupid.” Mitchell’s 13.1-point scoring average trails only Green’s 13.8 a game.

“That was the main point of going to talk to him because I’ve been through it,” Green said. “I told him you can’t come back with a bad attitude. You have to come back with a new state of mind and just get better from it.”

Click here for link

This is great to hear from Green.  My apologies to him for incorrectly lumping him into the "bad attitude" group with Mitchell a few games ago when he was playing on a bad ankle.

[BAMAWV]

Remember Auburn playing inspired, or UK playing uninspired, several games ago. As if the Tide needs extra incentive against the barn, TM being out should provide it. But don't get comfortable with this gameplan.  Bama can be a much better team with all its variables calculating into the equation. Sitting TM may have been necessary, CAG knows best, but if we have hopes of post season runs it better not be for long. RTR

There is no doubt we are a more dangerous team if TM is playing. I read somewhere yesterday that CAG said Monday's practice would go a long way in determining how long he would be out. The link below is from Cassagrande's Daily Blog talking about how JG is trying to help him get his head on straight.

Green spoke with Mitchell after the suspension and urged him not to do “anything dumb and stupid.” Mitchell’s 13.1-point scoring average trails only Green’s 13.8 a game.

“That was the main point of going to talk to him because I’ve been through it,” Green said. “I told him you can’t come back with a bad attitude. You have to come back with a new state of mind and just get better from it.”

Click here for link

This is great to hear from Green.  My apologies to him for incorrectly lumping him into the "bad attitude" group with Mitchell a few games ago when he was playing on a bad ankle.

His attitude problems have been obvious long before the ankle turning. But I also hope it is behind him.

[Marshal Dillon]

I think the team steps up tonight, mainly to show they can play without Mitchell, plus they have no choice if they want to stay in the hunt for an NCAA bid. Our RPI is 31 (good) and the SOS is 15 (outstanding). We have to beat teams like Auburn or our ratings will drop like a stone. Aubarn has an RPI of 129 and a SOS of 114. I wonder if Lacey is 100%. Hankerson really stepped up in the last game and I hope it carries over in to this game. I think he's been hurt that last few games which is why we hadn't seen him before the Ole Miss game.


 

[Jamos]

I can remember an incident when I played HS football that is somewhat similar to what is happening with Mitchell. It was on a gameday, Friday, that Coach had told us  not to go watch the Black football team, before intergration, play their game that afternoon after school. Well a few of us decided how the heck will he ever know, so we went. When we came to the school for our pregame meal that evening Coach came up to me and said he wanted to see me in his office after we had eaten. When we met , the first thing Coach said to me was, I think I am going to kick you off the team. I knew then that I had been caught so I just listened. I didn't lie to him about any of it and then he said he would let the starters on the team make a decision of whether I should be suspended or kicked off the team. The starters didn't want me to be kicked off so the decision was a suspension.

When game time started his instructions to me were to stand right beside him the whole game. The player that replaced me was having big time problems blocking downfield, I was a tight end, and all Coach would say was, "did you see that", and my response was always, "yes sir". When we were in the third quarter and Coach was at the brink of having a heart attack over the lack of blocking downfield, he turned to me and said, "do you think you can block that safety", and again my response was, "yes sir". To my amazement he grabed me by the facemask with this deathly stare and told me to get out there and show him. If I ever made a good block in my life, it was then. I hit that guy so hard and I heard Coach scream out, "that's the way". I was feeling good on my way back to the huddle but when I looked up, there was my replacement. As I reached the sideline Coach had my facemask again with that same look and told me to stand right beside him and don't say a word, and I didn't.

What I learned that night was how valuable I was to my team and what I had cost them by not being obedient and following the coach's rules. Sure I thought I was Mr. Big, being a senior and a starter, but after that night I was a changed person in honoring my commitments to the people that I care the most about.

I hope Tony Mitchell can see through his blinders that he has been wearing and understand that the team is the closest thing to him other than his immediate family and grow up a little and learn what his role is to this team. Roll Tide!!

[pmull]

I can remember an incident when I played HS football that is somewhat similar to what is happening with Mitchell. It was on a gameday, Friday, that Coach had told us  not to go watch the Black football team, before intergration, play their game that afternoon after school. Well a few of us decided how the heck will he ever know, so we went. When we came to the school for our pregame meal that evening Coach came up to me and said he wanted to see me in his office after we had eaten. When we met , the first thing Coach said to me was, I think I am going to kick you off the team. I knew then that I had been caught so I just listened. I didn't lie to him about any of it and then he said he would let the starters on the team make a decision of whether I should be suspended or kicked off the team. The starters didn't want me to be kicked off so the decision was a suspension.

When game time started his instructions to me were to stand right beside him the whole game. The player that replaced me was having big time problems blocking downfield, I was a tight end, and all Coach would say was, "did you see that", and my response was always, "yes sir". When we were in the third quarter and Coach was at the brink of having a heart attack over the lack of blocking downfield, he turned to me and said, "do you think you can block that safety", and again my response was, "yes sir". To my amazement he grabed me by the facemask with this deathly stare and told me to get out there and show him. If I ever made a good block in my life, it was then. I hit that guy so hard and I heard Coach scream out, "that's the way". I was feeling good on my way back to the huddle but when I looked up, there was my replacement. As I reached the sideline Coach had my facemask again with that same look and told me to stand right beside him and don't say a word, and I didn't.

What I learned that night was how valuable I was to my team and what I had cost them by not being obedient and following the coach's rules. Sure I thought I was Mr. Big, being a senior and a starter, but after that night I was a changed person in honoring my commitments to the people that I care the most about.

I hope Tony Mitchell can see through his blinders that he has been wearing and understand that the team is the closest thing to him other than his immediate family and grow up a little and learn what his role is to this team. Roll Tide!!

Good story Jamos. Sports teachs kids so many things that you take with you the rest of your life. I have one question. Did your team win or lose that game?

[Jamos]

I can remember an incident when I played HS football that is somewhat similar to what is happening with Mitchell. It was on a gameday, Friday, that Coach had told us  not to go watch the Black football team, before intergration, play their game that afternoon after school. Well a few of us decided how the heck will he ever know, so we went. When we came to the school for our pregame meal that evening Coach came up to me and said he wanted to see me in his office after we had eaten. When we met , the first thing Coach said to me was, I think I am going to kick you off the team. I knew then that I had been caught so I just listened. I didn't lie to him about any of it and then he said he would let the starters on the team make a decision of whether I should be suspended or kicked off the team. The starters didn't want me to be kicked off so the decision was a suspension.

When game time started his instructions to me were to stand right beside him the whole game. The player that replaced me was having big time problems blocking downfield, I was a tight end, and all Coach would say was, "did you see that", and my response was always, "yes sir". When we were in the third quarter and Coach was at the brink of having a heart attack over the lack of blocking downfield, he turned to me and said, "do you think you can block that safety", and again my response was, "yes sir". To my amazement he grabed me by the facemask with this deathly stare and told me to get out there and show him. If I ever made a good block in my life, it was then. I hit that guy so hard and I heard Coach scream out, "that's the way". I was feeling good on my way back to the huddle but when I looked up, there was my replacement. As I reached the sideline Coach had my facemask again with that same look and told me to stand right beside him and don't say a word, and I didn't.

What I learned that night was how valuable I was to my team and what I had cost them by not being obedient and following the coach's rules. Sure I thought I was Mr. Big, being a senior and a starter, but after that night I was a changed person in honoring my commitments to the people that I care the most about.

I hope Tony Mitchell can see through his blinders that he has been wearing and understand that the team is the closest thing to him other than his immediate family and grow up a little and learn what his role is to this team. Roll Tide!!

Good story Jamos. Sports teachs kids so many things that you take with you the rest of your life. I have one question. Did your team win or lose that game?

We were a very big favorite that night and won with a touchdown in the 4th quarter. It wasn't my playing that the team missed that night, it was the huge distraction that I had made for the team and no ones mind was where it should have been.

[Chechem]

 

Clemson finally missed.  Let's tip off.

[Chechem]

Slow start: Aub 6-2.

[Guest]

Username:
Password:
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

There aren't any users online.

Loading Tweet...