Alabama basketball eliminated by Richmond in first round of NIT
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The Alabama men’s basketball team saw its run in the National Invitational Tournament ended before it could begin Tuesday night, as the Crimson Tide fell 71-64 to Richmond inside Coleman Coliseum. Unable to play with the same consistency that saw it make a run in the SEC Tournament over the weekend, Alabama committed 16 turnovers leading to 20 Richmond points.
The loss ends Alabama’s season at 19-15, denying the Tide a first 20-win season since 2013. Alabama has now lost in the first round of the NIT in both of head coach Avery Johnson’s two seasons in charge. Last season, the Tide fell 72-53 to Creighton.
No. 6 seed Richmond moves to 21-12 with the win and will move on to host No. 7 seed Oakland in the second round.
Tide's top performers
Playing his final game in an Alabama uniform, Corbin Collins led the Tide with 19 points on 5 of 12 shooting. The graduate transfer was 5 of 10 from beyond the arc and hit a couple big 3s to keep Alabama in the game in the second half.
Collins was joined in double figures by Dazon Ingram, who scored 11 points to go with six assists and three rebounds. Donta Hall had nine points, while Riley Norris and Braxton Key finished with seven.
The difference maker
Alabama failed to demonstrate the same defensive tenacity it has prided itself on all season, allowing Richmond to shoot 54 percent from the floor. ShawnDre' Jones led the Spider on the night, scoring a game-high 22 points on 9 of 15 shooting, including 3 of 5 from beyond the arc. Joining Jones in double digits were T.J. Cline (15 points), De'Monte Buckingham (14 points) and Khwan Fore (11 points).
It was over when...
Collins missed a running 3-point shot with nine seconds remaining and Alabama trailing 69-64. After Alabama tied the game at 61-61 with 5:16 remaining it allowed Richmond to end the game on a 10-3 run.
Next up
The loss is a disappointing end to a frustrating season for Alabama. No matter what the Tide did this year, it was unable to find any kind of rhythm. That inconsistency haunted Alabama until the very end, as the Tide couldn’t capitalize on the positive momentum it built during its run in the SEC Tournament over the weekend.
With 19 wins, Alabama has one more in its second year under Johnson than it did in his first season. However, the Tide’s record is not the best indicator of how much progress Alabama since Johnson took charge.
Alabama will now have long wait until next season when it brings the nation’s No. 4 recruiting class to Tuscaloosa. With incoming freshmen such as Colin Sexton (five-star, No. 7 overall) and John Petty (four-star, No. 28 overall) joining the team, Alabama will expect much more success next season.