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'It hasn't been easy': Alabama players talk Miles, how they've managed

Alabama guard Jahvon Quinerly (5) and Alabama guard Dom Welch (10) return to the bench after making a contribution during the game with Mississippi State at Coleman Coliseum. Alabama came from behind to defeat Mississippi State 66-63. Photo |  Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News / USA TODAY NETWORK
Alabama guard Jahvon Quinerly (5) and Alabama guard Dom Welch (10) return to the bench after making a contribution during the game with Mississippi State at Coleman Coliseum. Alabama came from behind to defeat Mississippi State 66-63. Photo | Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News / USA TODAY NETWORK

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — For the first time since the win against LSU on Jan. 14, Alabama's players were made available to reporters.

It also marks the first time that the players were directly asked how they were handling the aftermath of Darius Miles' arrest. Miles, who was charged with capital murder on Jan. 15, was removed from Alabama's roster in the hours after he was arrested. Despite going through an unimaginable situation, Alabama's Noah Gurley said the news brought the team closer together during Friday's press conference.

"It's been a tough couple of weeks, but we've been leaning on each other," Gurley said. "We're still focused on playing games and winning."

Alabama did just that on its road trip to Vanderbilt. The Crimson Tide picked up its 24th win at Memorial Gymnasium a place where it had won just five times since 2000.

After the 78-66 win, Alabama head coach Nate Oats said players "broke down" after the game as the Miles news was just 48 hours old at that point. On Friday, Oats addressed how the Miles situation has become a lesson in adversity that the team continues to work through daily.

"I just think guys have faced some adversity and I said it before, sometimes God puts you in situations that maybe don't look like there's any good could come out of it — there's definitely a lot of bad involved in this situation — but God can use bad situations to help other situations," Oats said. "I think the guys maybe have grown a little closer and had to wade through some adversity. They're really the only ones that know what type of adversity they're going through and it kind of pulled together to fight through that."

Alabama went from Nashville to another building it didn't have much success in, Mizzou Arena. Coming into its lone trip to "CoMo," the Crimson Tide failed to win in three-straight attempts with its last win in 2019 under former head coach Avery Johnson. Once again, the team found a way to win, downing the Tigers 85-64 on Jan. 21.

"We still have a goal in mind," Nimari Burnett said. "Obviously it hasn't been easy but that's why we have each other. That's why you have the coaching staff to rely on. We're growing."

As the season passes the halfway mark, Alabama will continue to face questions regarding Miles and how the team continues to respond. Despite that Gurley maintained that the team will continue to lean on each other for however long the questions or the comments last.

"Everybody's looking out for each other in this situation," Gurley said. "We established that no one's strong enough to handle this on their own. We're just making sure we're focused. That's the main part."

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