Alabama Men's Basketball Defeats LSU
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| Photo Credit: UA Athletics |
Alabama improves to 10-6 overall, 3-1 SEC while LSU fell to 9-7 overall, 1-4 SEC. It was a strong second half that propelled the Tide to victory, outscoring the Tigers by a whopping 30-12 over the last seven minutes of the game.
In addition to Collins, junior forward Riley Norris scored in double figures and a season-high 20 points in yesterday's game. Collins made a career-high seven three-pointers (7-of-11) en route to his game-high scoring output. Sophomore Donta Hall also scored in double figures adding 13 points making 6-of-7 from the floor, while freshman forward Braxton Key was the team leader in rebounds with nine in addition to seven points and three assists.
Alabama men's head basketball head coach Avery Johnson said, "Basically, it was a tale of two games for us and a tale of two halves. In our last game (vs. Florida), we threw the ball all over the gym and had 18 turnovers. Our opponents capitalized on our turnovers. We couldn't get our defense set. When we get our defense set, we feel like we're a pretty good defensive team. [Last night], especially in the second half, we did a good job of taking care of the ball. We got our defense set and executed. I thought overall we did a great job on (Antonio) Blakeney."
Last night's contest was close one pretty much from start to finish. The game featured a total of 11 lead changes and 10 ties. Neither team led by more than six points in the first half, but LSU led Bama 33-28 when the teams headed to the locker room at the half.
Johnson commented, "I'm really proud of our team. We took quality shots in the second half unlike in the first half. We rebounded in the second half unlike the first half. We got some easy baskets in the second half. It was a great team win, and I'm really proud of this young man (Collins) who you need to talk to."
Alabama will host the Missouri Tigers at Coleman Coliseum this Wednesday, January 18th. Game time is 6 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on ESPNU.
| Game Stats | UA | LSU |
|---|---|---|
| FG% | .397 | .426 |
| 3FG% | .357 | .313 |
| FT% | .656 | .714 |
| RB | 41 | 37 |
| TO | 10 | 18 |
| STL | 9 | 7 |
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Avery Johnson Post-Game Press Conference
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| Click HERE to watch press conference Courtesy of Tide TV |
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ESPN's Herbstreit Picks Tide & Seminoles
Two Best Teams Of 2017 Season
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| ESPN Football Analyst Kirk Herbstreit Photo Credit: ESPN |
ESPN football analyst Kirk Herbstreit has picked who he believes to be the two best college football teams in America for the upcoming 2017 college football season. When asked this weekend which team he thought was the favorite to win it all next year, Herbstreit responded with two teams: The University of Alabama Crimson Tide and Florida State Seminoles.
Both the Crimson Tide and Seminoles are expected to rank in the preseason top five for 2017, and many believe the top two spots. The thing is, both teams will face one another in the very first football game of the season in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia on September 2nd. And according to Herbstreit, that first game of the season could very well be the most important game of the year.
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Crimson Tide Football Opens 2017 As Favorite
Alabama 3.5-Point Favorite Over Florida State Seminoles
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| Fisher & Saban Photo Credit: Getty Images/Stacy Revere |
Even though we're still over seven months before the kickoff of the first college football game of the 2017 season, odds for the matchup between the Alabama Crimson Tide and Florida State Seminoles have already been selected. That's right, coming up on September 2nd what could be the most important game of the 2017 college football season, according to ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit, will be played in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Atlanta, Georgia between the Tide and Seminoles.
The fact that this game is already getting so much play, talk and hype so soon after the 2016 national championship was settled says loads about how much this game could set the tone for the entire 2017 college football season. The initial spread for the contest is Alabama by 3.5.
Both teams are expected to start the 2017 college football season in the top five in preseason rankings. Some are picking the two teams as No. 1 and No. 2.
Though both programs will lose valuable players from their teams, both will return their starting quarterbacks for the 2017 seasons. Jalen Hurts will return to the Alabama Crimson Tide and Deondre Francois will return to the Seminoles.
The fact that this game is already getting so much play, talk and hype so soon after the 2016 national championship was settled says loads about how much this game could set the tone for the entire 2017 college football season. The initial spread for the contest is Alabama by 3.5.
Both teams are expected to start the 2017 college football season in the top five in preseason rankings. Some are picking the two teams as No. 1 and No. 2.
Though both programs will lose valuable players from their teams, both will return their starting quarterbacks for the 2017 seasons. Jalen Hurts will return to the Alabama Crimson Tide and Deondre Francois will return to the Seminoles.
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Bama's Lupoi To Cal Not A Done Deal
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| Tosh Lupoi Photo Credit: 247Sports |
TUSCALOOSA, Alabama - There's a little update to the story of the University of Alabama linebackers coach Tosh Lupoi possibly heading to Cal. It appears that that the deal isn't quite complete for Cal in regard to head coach-hopeful Justin Wilcox.
No deal can be made with Lupoi from Wilcox if the deal between Wilcox and Cal isn't even in place yet. Add to that the fact that Cal is notorious for its low pay of assistant coaches, especially when one takes into account the high cost of living in the Bay area. Lupoi earned approximately $550,000 last season with the Crimson Tide, and it is not a given that Cal can, or is willing to, beat that price tag.
The main attraction that Wilcox has for Lupoi is his ability as a recruiter. In 2010 when at Cal, Lupoi was named National Recruiter of the Year.
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It should be noted that Cristobal is considered one of the country’s top recruiters, ranking in the top 10 of 247Sports coach rankings two years in a row. He has been instrumental in helping Alabama head coach Nick Saban and the University of Alabama achieve the top recruits and hold the No. 1 spot in the recruiting wars in recent years.
Mario Cristobal Reportedly Headed To Oregon
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| Mario Cristobal Photo Credit: USA TODAY Sports/Mark J. Rebilas |
It would appear that University of Alabama offensive tackles coach Mario Cristobal will be joining Willie Taggart at Oregon, according to ESPN.com and 247Sports.com. It is being reported by SB Nation's Steven Godfrey that Cristobal will be co-offensive coordinator and run game coordinator.
It is also being reported that Cristobal was offered the position prior to the national championship game, but he waited to talk about the offer with Alabama football head coach Nick Saban.
It is also being reported that Cristobal was offered the position prior to the national championship game, but he waited to talk about the offer with Alabama football head coach Nick Saban.
Cristobal previously was head coach at Florida International for six years before joining Saban at Alabama four seasons ago.
It should be noted that Cristobal is considered one of the country’s top recruiters, ranking in the top 10 of 247Sports coach rankings two years in a row. He has been instrumental in helping Alabama head coach Nick Saban and the University of Alabama achieve the top recruits and hold the No. 1 spot in the recruiting wars in recent years.
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Offensive Analyst Mike Locksley
May Remain With The Crimson Tide
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| Mike Locksley could be getting on-field gig with Tide Photo Credit: Getty Images/Matthew Holst |
There is an awful lot of coaching rumors concerning the football staff for the University of Alabama Crimson Tide. Head coach Nick Saban lost offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin the week before the national championship game, said to be a mutual decision, and Mario Cristobal is pretty much on his way to Oregon as the co-offensive coordinator. A couple of assistants are supposedly going to FAU with Kiffin and then it was recently learned that Tosh Lupoi was probably on his way to Cal.
Good news, please. Enough of the departures. It was once rumored that offensive analyst Mike Locksley was departing for an on-field coaching gig at Florida for Jim McElwain, but that appears to be dead and stinking. ESPN's Brett McMurphy is reporting that Locksley is expected to stay in Tuscaloosa in some sort of on-field coaching position for the Tide. No real information exists as to what that position may be, but once it is known it will be shared.
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Alabama Track & Field Teams
Commodore Invitational
Alabama Track & Field Teams
Commodore Invitational
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| Photo Credit: UA Athletics |
NASHVILLE, Tennessee – The University of Alabama track & field teams posted 23 top-10 finishes on the final day of competition at Vanderbilt's Commodore Invitational on Saturday afternoon.
Track & field head coach Dan Waters commented, "This was a very good opening weekend for us. We had a number of personal bests and top-10s
and saw several freshmen get their first taste of college competition.
All in all, this is a good base to build on as we move forward."
All-Pro and former University of Alabama wide receiver Julio Jones headed to the Atlanta Falcons locker room twice on Saturday. The first time was in the third quarter, but he later returned to the field. The second time came in the fourth quarter of the Falcons' 36-20 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL playoffs.
Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Quinn termed the injury to Jones as an "aggravation" of a previous injury. Jones missed two games in the month of December because of a sprained toe.
Quinn further commented that Jones could have continued to play should the game have been closer. Quinn further commented, "No concern at the moment. We'll have more information on that later. It'll be sore, but he's certainly somebody that's able to battle through it, so I anticipate him being ready to rock next week."
Jones caught six passes for 67 yards during yesterday's game.
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Julio Jones Injury Update
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| Julio Jones Photo Credit: ajc.com via Bing |
All-Pro and former University of Alabama wide receiver Julio Jones headed to the Atlanta Falcons locker room twice on Saturday. The first time was in the third quarter, but he later returned to the field. The second time came in the fourth quarter of the Falcons' 36-20 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL playoffs.
Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Quinn termed the injury to Jones as an "aggravation" of a previous injury. Jones missed two games in the month of December because of a sprained toe.
Quinn further commented that Jones could have continued to play should the game have been closer. Quinn further commented, "No concern at the moment. We'll have more information on that later. It'll be sore, but he's certainly somebody that's able to battle through it, so I anticipate him being ready to rock next week."
Jones caught six passes for 67 yards during yesterday's game.
