Crimson Red Sports

The game is on SEC TV @ 7:30 pm at the Barn.

Auburn 8-9 & 0-6 SEC  RPI 185  SOS 117
game averages: 73.2 pts (137th)  35.6 reb (160th)  12.6 assists (192nd)  FG% 44.9 (147th)


Alabama 9-10 & 3-3 SEC  RPI 83  SOS 2
game averages: 70.6 pts (216th)  34.1 reb (229th) 11.5 assists (275th)  FG% 45.3 (129th)


I hope they let Hale play more than 20 minutes, again. I think he can go for at least 20 tonight.

 #+

This game tonight is much bigger than what most folks think. Bama needs a win to keep pace in the SEC but I think CAG needs this win big time. If Bama loses this game tonight, I feel CAG just unlocked the door for his departure. This is not saying he will be dismissed if they do lose tonight but I think it will put him on some very thin ice.

This isn't just an SEC game tonight, it is Bama's most hated rival and they haven't won an SEC game this year. Bama has been like a yoyo this year, up and down and there are big time rumblings coming from the paying fans, the season ticket holders and this isn't good, they pay the bills or they are the reason the bills get paid. JMO

I totally agree. Auburn has played Florida, Ole Miss, & Missouri very hard & close before losing. They have been blown out in 3 games, against Iowa State (#!7), Illinois, & Arkansas. We have to win this game. I think Hale has a big game.


 :popcorn2:

Expect Auburn's best effort of the year tonight.

Auburn has lost 16 SEC games in a row. Their last win was against us about a year ago. CAG does not need to be the bookends of that streak.

Roll Tide. We need this game!

Barn leading 12-0. Tide is 0-5 shooting with 5 turnovers.



 :facepalm: :facepalm: :facepalm: :facepalm: :facepalm:

Releford scores and hits FT, 12-3 Barn. Can't find game on TV, am listening on radio. Turnover by Levi.



 :wall:

2 fouls on Releford with 14.47 left in half. He now sits, replaced by Hale. Barn 14-3.


 :wall:

Barn 16-5.

Tide 8 turnovers, Barn 1
Tide 1/9 FG, Barn 5/11
Tide 10 rebounds, Barn 6


 :pullhair: :pullhair: :pullhair:

Barn 23-11. 7:00 min. left in half

Tide 2/15 FG, Barn 8/16



 :problem:

Releford off bench with 2 fouls. Jacobs scores, 23-13 Barn.


On Court: Hale, Releford, Cooper, Key, & Jacobs. Hale only one doing anything, has 4 points & 4 rebounds.



 :shake:

26-19 Barn with 3:45 in half, Levi fouled.

Hale 6 pts  4 rebounds



 :popcorn2:

30-22 Barn  HALF



 :kickme:

Very ugly first half. Let Auburn out to a 12-0 lead.

Our zone has slowed them down but we have to find a way to score.

You can watch it on ESPN3

Turnovers  :wall:

42-30 Barn. Key has 6 points in half. Releford gets 3rd foul. 16:00 left in game.

On Court: Hale, Cooper, Releford, Taylor, & Key.
Barn out-hustling us, bad!

 :wall:

49-35 Barn. Grant ship is sinking, slowly but surely. No energy or hustle by team against its biggest rival??? Are you kidding me? Key & Hale on the bench even though they have been the hottest players this half. We have to step it up and win this game!



 >:(

Barn hitting 75% FG's in 2nd half. 51-35 Barn. 11:40 left in game.

Tide 24 rebounds, Barn 29
Tide 12/39 FG, Barn 17/37
Tide 11/14 FT, Barn 15/21



 :dog:

Barn 67-52. We have stunk the place up. 3:35 left in game.



 :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse:

Denson 30 points for Barn & Harrell 23 points & 11 rebounds.


74-55 Barn. Disgusting performance. Coaching hot seat is starting to sear Grant's fanny now. 1:12 left in game.



 :wall: :wall: :wall:

That was pathetic.  It reminded me of the game there last year.

Okay, we'll beat them in softball, baseball and gymnastics.

LOL!! I like your attitude.


 :clap:

Somewhat disappointing to see almost no comments by my fellow posters. I think there is so much frustration and the realization that this is a lost season that nobody wants to talk about it. The season started with so much hope, at least on my part, and to such such crap as we play is truly a letdown.



 :(

You have diagnosed the situation perfectly.

Liked CG and think he's a good guy but it's not working. This is his last season here.

I didn't get to watch the game, but I can surely imagine how bad they must have looked, losing by 19 points to their arch rival, who lost their last 16 SEC games. The last SEC team they beat was....you guessed it, Bama.

(http://th209.photobucket.com/albums/bb71/BeautifulRoses11/Smilies/th_shakinghead.gif)

I knew this was going to be a tough game for us. I knew Auburn would give us their best shot. What I did not expect was for us to give such a poor effort. They shot the ball better, fought for rebounds, and got all the loose balls while we were standing around with our hands on our hips. Our players lacked energy, showed no emotion and was not ready to play.

Auburn only have two players that can score. We allowed those two to score 32 and 23. Going into the game you know all you have to do is slow down two players. We allowed those two players to score as much as our entire team. We have bad offensive nights but we are normally a good defensive team. Last night Auburn did anything they wanted to against us. We made a team that had lost 16 straight SEC games look like a top 10 ten.

CAG has got to find the answer for winning games on the road. We have not won a game this year away from Coleman Coliseum.

This was a terrible and frustrating loss to the worse team in the league. 

Yea, Marshall, you nailed it.  Been disappointed too many times by the results CAG gets.  Really seems like this team is not going to play hard for him.  To me that means it's time for him to exit, stage right.

I get more excited these days following the Lady Tiders!

Unfortunately, I think economics keeps him in his job 1, maybe even 2 more years. We foolishly gave him a contract extension through either 2017 or 2019, per another poster, pmull I think. No way are we going to pay him $8-$10 mil to go away. This gets more frustrating by the hour. Paying so much for failure really irks me. When does the AD wake up to such nonsense?  


 :facepalm: :facepalm: :facepalm:

Another game and another example of BAMA losing because of the three point shot. 

BAMA's lead diminished significantly against LSU as BAMA shot, and missed, more 3s in the second half.  BoogerU opened up their lead in the second half as BAMA shot, and missed, more 3s.

When are the coaches, and players, going to realize that they are not an outside shooting team?  They might become one, but at the present time that is a part of their game they need to abandon.

BAMA was out rebounded, again.  Rebounds are all about effort.

BAMA's best basketball this season was the first half of the LSU game when they were driving the lane, taking short jumpers, and pressuring the defense with the inside push.

Something is wrong with this team.

Really?

BAMA should have won this one walking away and with the bench and alternate lineups seeing significant time.



Frankly, his record at home is not that impressive.  Wins against the likes of Georgia State and South Florida only count for so much.

We got the sh** beat out of last night but it had nothing to do with 3 point shooting. In fact we made more 3's and shot a higher percentage than the barn. We got beat because they out played us in every phase of the game except 3 point shooting.

As for the LSU game I don't know what you are talking about. Our 3 point shooting is what won the game. We were 8-16 against LSU going 7-9 in the 2nd half. Anyone in the country would take that.

Well, I expect next year you will see a huge creme puff schedule. Grant knows he is in trouble so we will get a healthy dose of Alabama A&M's, Georgia State's, and the like. This will give him a bogus winning record and maybe result in even winning 20 games. Of course, many Tide fans will fall for this farce and hail and proclaim him a good coach because he won 20 games. Next year for Coach Grant is about improving his record any way possible, not going to the NCAA Tourney.


 :dog:

Grants record at home has been very good. The best in the SEC after UK and Florida.

I think you are under estimating CAG and the Alabama fan base. I do not expect a cream puff non conference schedule next year. I do not think it will be the # 2 SOS like it is this year but it will be a legitimate schedule.

We need to weather the storm this year because things look better next year IMO. No one is happy with our play or our record but CAG is not going anywhere. I want him to get things turned around and I think he will. It just will not be this year.

I think you are banking way too much on next year's class. Remember, they will still be freshmen and Grant's record on player development is not good. I expect to see the same stuff we have seen for the last 5 years, no rebounding, poor passing, too many turnovers, poor outside shooting, too much standing around, etc., etc., etc. I'm looking at this with my eyes wide open and in a pragmatic way. Hope he proves me wrong, but I don't see it happening. Plus, I can hear the excuses for next year already, the team is young, give Grant more time, give the players time to learn the system, etc.


 :dog:

The team will not be young next year. Randolph, Cooper, Key and Jacobs will be seniors.  Obasohan will be a 4th year junior. Hale and Taylor will be sophomores.

New Players:

Transfer point guard Ricky Tarrant will be a 3rd year junior. He started two years at Tulane and was all conference. He averaged 15 pts.

Transfer Michael Kessens will be a 3rd year sophomore. He was a starter at Longwood and was Freshman Player of the Year in their conference. He averaged 13 points and 8 rebounds.

Note: Both of the transfers have been practicing with the team all year and will have a year in the system before they play their first game. IMO both of these guys will be good players for us.

We have three Top 100 recruits coming in as freshmen. IMO three guys have the potential to contribute to the program right away but only time will tell.

This will be the deepest and most balanced roster CAG has had at Alabama. We also have some big guys who can rebound and score in Hale and Kessens. Taylor, who will be better in his second year, and Jacobs will add some depth.

You are really going to hang your hat on 19% 3 point shooting?

You are correct boogerU shot 17%, so BAMA did have a higher % overall.

Ok.  You have said previously that it is not coaching, but talent.  In the above situation you described who is to blame?  If it is talent, who is to blame for that?


My apologies.  You are right they got on a streak in the second half.  Of course anyone would be happy with 50%

BAMA went 0 - 6 (3s) in the first half v. LSU.  BAMA started the 2nd half with a 13 point lead and won by 3.  So, in spite of BAMA having their best 3 pt shooting half of the season they managed to surrender a 13 point advantage and win by 2 while going 3 - 4 from the free throw line in the waning seconds of the game.  That was also BAMA's best 3pt shooting game of the season.

BAMA shot 37% of their 3s in the 1st half.  This means they shot 63% of their 3s in the second half.

I simply see an inverse relationship between BAMA's 3pt shooting and their performance in the other aspects of the game.  In my opinion the more 3pts they shoot the more the other aspects of the game suffer.

On average BAMA shoots less than 30% against "quality" opponents.


That means nothing.  That is like saying 19% 3pt shooting is something to be proud of b/c your opponent shot 17%.

Look at the overall level of competition and the outcomes v. top 25 teams among the three teams.  Of the three teams only one has no wins over a top 25 opponent.

Quality, not quantity.

If BAMA plays Duke today Duke beats BAMA by 40+.

I don't know what to say anymore. I just hope we can get better someday. RTR!

I'm not hanging my hat on anything. We played like crap last night. If you would have said we lost the game to rebounding, turnovers, lack of effort or any other phase of the game but three point shooting you would have been correct. The only reason I spoke up is because you blamed the 2nd half of the LSU game on three point shooting and as you have acknowledged that is what won the game for us.

Like him or not CAG has a good record at home. He is 56-10 at home the last 4 years. (I could not quickly locate his first year home record.) That is pretty good. The 10 losses have been to good teams.

We are having a terrible year. Fans are frustrated but I do think the future looks good.

Does anyone else not think BAMA's #2 SOS is a joke?

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/bracketology/sos (http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/bracketology/sos)

UNC played MSU, Louisville, and UK before even starting ACC play and they are 14 spots lower in SOS.

How is it possible that BAMA has a higher SOS than UNC?  It is not.  It is laughable.  Look at who BAMA precedes on that list.

Basing SOS on the winning percentage of opponents from the previous year is flawed.  BAMA having a #2 SOS ranking is proof.

This one has BAMA at 42 and falling.

http://www.teamrankings.com/ncaa-basketball/ranking/strength-of-schedule-by-team (http://www.teamrankings.com/ncaa-basketball/ranking/strength-of-schedule-by-team)

With the exception of turnovers I made reference to all of those.  If you cannot see how 19% 3pt shooting leads to a loss I do not know what to say.

The last 3 made free throws are why BAMA won that game.

Like I said, I just see the overall level of play decrease as BAMA shoots more 3s.


I like him and want him to do well.


Historically BAMA has played well at home and lost on the road.

There is still time for BAMA to turn things around.  If they get hot and that carries over into the SEC Tourney (how many years has that been said?) they still have some potential.  

I do not see getting to the first round of the NCAA and losing as success.  If it included an SEC Tournament Championship I would be okay with that, but it has been over a decade since BAMA even made a serious run in the SEC Tournament.

I will put our schedule up against anyone's. The SOS not only looks at the top teams you play but the very bad teams you play. We have played a difficult schedule. ESPN, Yahoo and Realtime agree with your CBS link that our SOS is # 2 at this point.

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/rpi/_/sort/sos

http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/polls?poll=5

http://realtimerpi.com/rpi_Men.html

Put it up against UNC's and explain to me how BAMA is 14 spots better.  They are not.
 

Take an objective look at the CBS list, or any list that has BAMA at #2.  It is just wrong.

Of course they look at all teams to tabulate a strength of schedule.

If the three you added use a similar formula as CBS then they will have similar results.


Have a good weekend.

Hey Preacher, Hang in there, Softball is just around the corner.

Let us see your credentials as a coach Roll Tide Roll, you seem to have all of the answers to Bama's problems.  :dunno:

I don't think anyone needs credentials if they have eyes & an open mind. Our play is atrocious, there just isn't any way to sugarcoat what we see on the court.


 :dog:

If his resume is that good I was going to get it to Bill Battle, maybe you would like to add yours as well. ;)

 :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2:

By the way Chech, I saw C.M. Newton today and had a brief chat with him.

Hopefully HE submitted a resume!  That man can coach bb.
Before he came to Alabama, we'd not won a single SEC game in 1-2 years.  He turned it around immediately, even when using first-year players.  Those were great times.

I moved back to Alabama in 1969 when he was getting started. You are right, they didn't win many games back then and he did turn the program around very fast. I can still see the first student sign, "Fig Newton". Coleman had just been built as well.

Boy I wanted to play BB for Alabama but he wouldn't offer me a scholarship. Auburn did but they wanted me to walk on the first year and then I have 3 full years. I didn't want to play for Auburn so I just went to the ARMY and pulled for Alabama. RTR!

Preacher, you are amazing.   :worship: :worship: :worship:

Power forward Preacher?  ;)

Play for Auburn or go to Vietnam and you chose the Army. :worship:

Please tell me what you see that makes you defend Grant so strongly. Are you happy with the level of play we have had the last 5 years? Do you enjoy mediocrity in our basketball program? At what point do you accept the fact he can not coach at a higher level? I'm on the fence right but I'm having a hard time staying there.


 :popcorn2:

I'm not defending anyone. I think I posted yesterday that if Bama lost the game last night that it would unlock the door for his dismissal. I still feel that same way but when it happens it will happen and until then so be it and move on. There are some games left this season and I will be at the home games regardless of the coaching status. There is nothing I can do to change the performance of the team except to cheer them on and I'm going to try and enjoy it the best I can. I don't need a few on the board trying to tell me what all the problems are, they are very visible so I just make the most of it. So I suggest to all of you that are so disappointed, just ease off the rest of us with your gripes and if you can't enjoy the games, just don't watch them. Things will get better down the road. :D 

I have to agree with this. We are fans and bystanders. Nothing we can do but try to cheer them on. The problems are obvious and numerous. It isn't just one thing and it isn't just coaching, even though that is part of the problem.

Pmull is correct, I think, in that next year could be the year that we've all been waiting for. The team will be deeper than it has been since CAG has been at the helm. I'm afraid if he is canned this year, that no matter who we get, we will be starting all over again next year.

For that to happen, however, I think he will have to prove us wrong about his abilities concerning player development.

 :popcorn2:

Memories are great but you & Jamos are getting senile.   :lol2:
 I too watched Tide BB back then, but Coach Newton inherited a disaster. His first year he was 4-20 with a bunch on slow, untalented white boys. Our center was 6'7" and could jump maybe 2" high. He doubled his win total the next year and went 8-18. His 4th year was his break-out year when we went 18-8 wit the great Wendell Hudson. What a fantastic player. Do you remember seeing Hudson jump center? He was 6'5"-6'6" but could jump like crazy. My best memory is of Hudson jumping center against Tom Boerwinkle of Tennessee who was a 7 footer. Hudson easily out-jumped him every time. Other great players under Newton were Leon Douglas, TR Dunn, Reggie the Mule King, Anthony Murray, & more. What a great coach.

 :D you may say I was totally stupid but I have always and will always be a Crimson Tide Fan. I was not about to wear Blue against my favorite team, oh but you better know my Daddy, had a PF Flyer type of fit! :lol2: :lol2: RTR!