Alabama basketball’s torrid run continued earlier this week as it took down LSU 105-75 to record its third straight win by 20 points or more. The No. 18 Crimson Tide is currently riding an eight-game winning streak and is 7-0 to start conference play for the first time since the 1986-87 season. Alabama will put both of those streaks on the line Saturday as it hosts Mississippi State inside Coleman Coliseum. The Bulldogs are coming off a 64-46 loss to Ole Miss.
Here’s all the information you need to know about Saturday’s game.
How to watch
Who: Alabama (12-3, 7-0 in the SEC) vs. Mississippi State (9-6, 4-3)
When: 5:00 p.m. CT, Saturday, Jan. 23
Where: Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Watch: SEC Network (play-by-play: Mike Morgan, analyst: Mark Wise)
Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network (play-by-play: Chris Stewart; analyst: Bryan Passink; sideline Roger Hoover)
Alabama projected starting five
Herb Jones: 6-foot-8, 210 pounds, senior
Stats: 12.6 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 2.1 apg, 48.1% FG, 47.8% 3-pt
Jaden Shackelford: 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, sophomore
Stats: 13.1 ppg., 4.1 rpg, 2.4 apg, 38.9% FG, 35.7% 3-pt
John Petty Jr.: 6-foot-5, 184 pounds, senior
Stats: 14.3 ppg., 5.2 rpg, 2.2 apg, 49.0% FG, 42.4% 3-pt
Joshua Primo: 6-foot-6, 190 pounds, freshman
Stats: 8.6 ppg., 3.4 rpg, 1.1 apg, 41.3% FG, 38.3% 3-pt
Alex Reese: 6-foot-9, 230 pounds, senior
Stats: 4.3 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 0.6 apg, 31.6% FG, 24.6% 3-pt
Mississippi State projected starting five
Iverson Molinar: 6-foot-3, 190 pounds, sophomore
Stats: 17.4 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.3 apg, 49.1% FG, 51.4% 3-pt
D.J. Stewart Jr.: 6-foot-6, 205 pounds, redshirt sophomore
Stats: 17.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.5 apg, 44.1% FG, 38.1% 3-pt
Jalen Johnson: 6-foot-6, 210 pounds, redshirt senior
Stats: 7.1 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 0.6 apg, 40.0% FG, 40.7% 3-pt
Tolu Smith: 6-foot-10, 245 pounds, redshirt sophomore
Stats: 13.5 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 1.0 apg, 57.9%
Abdul Ado: 6-foot-11, 255 pounds, redshirt senior
Stats: 5.8 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 0.8 apg, 52.4% FG
Injury report
During his Friday Zoom call with reporters, Alabama basketball head coach Nate Oats provided an update on forward Jordan Bruner who has missed the last two games after sustaining a meniscus injury to his right knee against Kentucky on Jan. 12. Bruner underwent a procedure on his knee last week and was given a prognosis of about 4-6 weeks until he can return to action.
“He's been on the treadmill, getting some walking in,” Oats said. “He's actually able to get some shots up yesterday. He was shooting after practice a little bit, not anything game-speed or anything like that. He looks good. He was riding the bike after practice. He’s right there during practice on the side doing his treatment and everything. … The 4-6 they gave me initially, I'm hoping is closer to four than it is to six because we could certainly use him soon.”
In other news, point guard Jahvon Quinerly was asked how he is feeling after missing three games due to a medical condition. The redshirt sophomore has played in Alabama’s last two games and recorded 22 points while shooting 6 of 7 from 3 against LSU last time out.
“I do feel like I’m getting back to playing at a high level again,” Quinerly said. “After the Tennessee game, I was feeling real comfortable, and things were just coming a lot easier for me. Then I got hit with the medical condition, and I had to sit out three games. It’s just like Coach said, trying to get my legs out under me and letting things come to me again. I feel like I’m getting to 100 percent. I’m pretty close.”
Notes and quotes
— Alabama was one of only six teams in the nation to rank inside the top 15 in both offensive and defensive efficiency according to KenPom.com. The Tide is currently ranked No. 13 in adjusted offense and No. 10 in adjusted defense. The only other schools to rank in the top 15 in both are Gonzaga (2/15), Baylor (4/1), Michigan (7/9), Virginia (11/10) and Texas (14/7).
— During Monday’s media session, Oats said there has been a friendly competition between assistants Antoine Pettway and Charlie Henry. Pettway coaches the offense while Henry coaches the defense.
“They both always look at our postgame analytics to see who did a better job,” Oats said. “They’re always looking at KenPom to see who has the upper hand. Pettway’s got our offense up to speed because our offense isn’t quite to the level of our defense. They kind of joke around about that.
“Shoot, I think they’re both playing pretty well right now. To say our offense isn’t quite at the level of our defense after we hit 23 3s is kind of an absurd statement, but those guys have a little fun going back and forth like that.”
— Joshua Primo hit a career-high six 3-pointers against LSU while matching his career-high of 22 points. It was the freshman’s third double-digit performance in his past four games. Friday, Primo said his role has been “pretty easy” due to the number of scorers Alabama has on the floor.
“With all the weapons that we have, it’s easy to slide in and contribute,” Primo said. “The guys give me a lot of confidence to shoot whenever I’m open, and they get me in open positions. So I’m always ready to shoot. The coaches have been working with me on staying ready, staying well and making sure I’m in a position where I can make shots and help the team score.”
Quinerly spoke highly of Primo on Friday, stating the freshman has progressed a lot over the last few months.
“He’s come along,” Quinerly said. “When he first got here, he was a nervous little freshman just how I was when I was a freshman. There’s a lot of older guys on this team. We try to give him confidence every day and just give him the little pointers ever now and then. But he’s a fast learner. He’s really been learning a lot.”
— Alabama is looking for its ninth straight win which would mark its longest streak since the 2002-03 season when it recorded nine consecutive victories en route to reaching No. 1 in the nation before losing.
— Alabama is also looking for its eighth straight SEC win. That would be the Tide’s second-best start to conference play, tying the 1986-87 and 1974-75 teams which also started SEC play 8-0. Alabama’s 1955-56 “Rocket 8” team finished the year with a perfect 14-0 mark in league play.
— Alabama ranks No. 10 in the NET rankings, the metric used by the NCAA tournament selection committee. The Tide has the second-highest ranking among SEC teams, trailing only No. 6 Tennessee. Alabama is 4-1 against Quad 1 teams and 5-1 against Quad 2 opponents. Mississippi State ranks No. 78 in the NET rankings, making it a Quad 3 opponent for Saturday’s matchup in Coleman Coliseum.
— Mississippi State leads the SEC with an +8.9 rebounding margin (39.7-30.8) which ranks No. 17 in the nation. The Bulldogs feature the SEC’s top rebounder in 6-foot-10 forward Tolu Smith who averages 8.8 boards per game.
“Mississippi State obviously offers some different challenges than what we’ve seen in conference play,” Oats said. “They’ve got some real bigs that we’re going to have to keep off the glass. They’re always one of the best rebounding teams in the country. They play hard. They’re well-coached, well-disciplined.”
— While Mississippi State doesn’t shoot as much as Alabama from beyond the arc, the Bulldogs lead the SEC shooting 37.2 percent from 3. Sophomore Iverson Molinar leads the team, making 51.4 percent (18 of 35) of his shots from deep.
