🏀 GAME THREAD 🏀 Players Era Festival- Las Vegas: Bama closes out tournament with 105 - 72 win over Maryland

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[Brandon Van de Graaff]

@Brandon Van de Graaff - what happened to Bristow?

No idea. Just a guess, but he's (mostly) fine and they are just resting him. 3 games in 3 days... holding Wrightsell out who was hurt there last year (and still working his way back), and holding Bristow (who has been limited this season already) out of a meaningless game 3 makes sense.

 

[Bammerboy321]

I will say, Sherrell has actually improved some this tournament. He got bullied a bit vs Gonzaga, but did do a good job. Last two nights, he's been a lot tougher and made stronger moves to the basket.

 

[Bammerboy321]

What a freaking move by Philon

 

[Bammerboy321]

Our quickness is killing Maryland

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

UA with 10 assists already... just 1 turnover.

 

[Bammerboy321]

I fucking love London Jemison

 

[Bammerboy321]

Playing Noah Williamson at any capacity is a waste. He is downright awful

 

[Bammerboy321]

We have got something special with these freshman. Once Hannah develops his jump shot, he is going to be a star.

 

[Bammerboy321]

Playing way too sloppy after getting up 20+. Bad turnovers

 

[Bammerboy321]

Need to reset on offense and start making better decisions. Way too many turnovers.

 

[Bammerboy321]

Bol Bowen cannot shoot

 

[Bammerboy321]

Biz is lighting it up

 

[Bammerboy321]

Sherrell has been a man tonight

 

[Bammerboy321]

Amari Allen, Jemison, and Hannah are such a fun group of freshman.

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

I think Buzz left the arena to go finish the night off dealing cards at the faro table.

 

[Bammerboy321]

I think Buzz left the arena to go finish the night off dealing cards at the faro table.

Would love to see your thoughts on this team so far.

 

[Bammerboy321]

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

Would love to see your thoughts on this team so far.

Honestly, yours would weigh more heavily than mine... I love basketball, but I have a much better, deeper understanding of the other sports. What I lIke though is the guard play on this team. Deep, talented, and seasoned. We all know what wins in the NCAA tournament. Adding to that, looking forward to Bethea returning very soon.. maybe early December? Like you, love the freshmen. Looks like Oats nailed it with them. Will be fun watching them improve. Big fan of Allen, but the upside on all 3 is promising. Hate that Oats whiffed on Williamson... the analytics company owes Bama a partial refund on that one, but my hope is he can at least be serviceable on defense some when needed.

I haven't tracked it yet, but I'm pretty sure turnovers are down from last year and assists are up (I think). That's a good sign if so.

Like last year, there's going to be games where Bama gets bullied in the paint and it's gonna be frustrating. The Oats broken record of "we have to play hard..." is going to be on repeat all season in terms of the defensive play. I also worry a bit about the guys staying healthy, which is why I'm ok with the precautionary stuff right now. Really hope Wrightsell can have a full. healthy year, but that seems like a pipe dream. And as much as we love Oats' style of play, it lends itself (in games and practices) to more frequent injuries. But that's a side effect worth living with, you just hope they are smart about it.

In the end, I think they'll be right in the thick of it for the SEC regular season title... I haven't seen much of UF, but I know they'll be good. Have seen a good bit of the Vols, and they look really good again. Not real sure what to make of Kentucky yet, but it almost feels like they are on the next tier with teams like auburn. I just hope Bama is playing their best basketball in March... sitting in the weeds and being ranked #10 'ish all season would be just fine with me as long as they are improving. But man it looks like as a whole, this season is pretty top heavy with some really, really good teams.

Lastly, Mallette might be my favorite player on this squad. Not the most skilled by any means, but he plays his ass off and obviously has a deep love for the team. I'm glad they got his knees fixed up because the guy is a spark on and off the court this season.

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

 

[TerryP]

Honestly, yours would weigh more heavily than mine...

A small point of contention here; not at you directly.

Impressions of any team at this point? It's November.

Yes, there are things we can take away from Nov and Dec and the "exhibition" games teams play. But, it's also like reactions to week one in football. There, we know more in week four. Here, we get a really good idea of what we have to look forward to in a season come the second week, maybe third, if January.

I'll say that 90% of the people who follow CBB and have made comments about his Bama team may be right. I just don't see a big enough sample size to make a judgment.

As one example. Out of the 105 scored last night, 48% of those points were scored in the paint. That's a good sign, but it is FAR from something you can draw an accurate assessment from.