It's Time to Talk About the Elephant in the Room With Alabama Basketball: All Things CW

Nate Oats said his team hasn't played well over the past couple of weeks, and he's right. It hasn't been the same since the shooting.

The All Things CW notes column by Christopher Walsh appears in five parts each week, with the latest on the Alabama Crimson Tide. This is ...

Take 1

106-66.

Remember that score a couple of weeks ago? It was the game in which everything went right for Alabama basketball, followed by the night when everything went tragically wrong. 

That was Jan. 14 when the Crimson Tide absolutely destroyed visiting LSU, followed by the night when former teammate Darius Miles was involved in a shooting that resulted in the death of Jamea Harris, a 23-year-old mother from Birmingham. 

It's unfair that the remaining players were left to deal with the aftermath in the middle of a season, but that's the reality. Fans don't want to talk about the subject, and opponents are taking advantage of the situation.

Just consider the four games since then: 

• at Vanderbilt, W 78-66
• at Missouri, W 85-64
• Mississippi State, W 66-63
• at Oklahoma, L 93-69

Alabama ran into an emotional wall on Saturday, with head coach Nate Oats saying "We've lost our edge a little," and hadn't played well the past couple of weeks.

Like usual, he was right.

Discussing the psyche of a basketball team still seems insignificant when compared to the loss of life, but the season continues and no one's going to feel sorry for the Crimson Tide (18-3).

And now we know that it's impacting the team on the court (how could it not?) Alabama hasn't been the same, although there's been another obvious factor at work as well. 

The shooting corresponded with the Crimson Tide closing in on No. 1 in the AP Top 25. Combined with other teams suffering losses, Alabama moved up to No. 2, the program's highest ranking in 20 years, and the kind of ranking that pretty guarantees every opponents' full attention.

So the players were continually being told how good they were, while actually doing less on the court, and not putting forth the same amount of effort. 

Consequently, the Oklahoma game was probably inevitable. 

This isn't a criticism of Oats, who found himself in a horrible situation and no clear path moving forward. On the court, he backed off the team, which was absolutely necessary. The coach needed to give his players some time to cope and try to get a handle on the situation, and their emotions.

Meanwhile, the Crimson Tide seemed to forget what made it so good. 

Heading into Oklahoma, Alabama ranked first in the nation in rebounds per game and defensive rebounds. The unranked Sooners matched the Crimson Tide in the first (36-35 edge), and dominated the latter (30-20).

Alabama also led the Southeastern Conference in 3-pointers made. Yet it was 6-for-30 at Lloyd Noble Center, while the Sooners shot lights out. Oklahoma hit 13 3-pointers on 20 attempts, for 69.2 percent, and 57.6 percent overall.

It was somewhat reminiscent of the Gonzaga loss. The Zags made 74 percent from the field in the second half during their 100-90 victory back on Dec. 15, and 57.1 percent overall. 

A common denominator in all three losses, though: assists. The opponents averaged 17.0 against Alabama. In comparison, the Crimson Tide had six against Oklahoma, and averaged 9.0 in those games. 

But the most telling statistic with this team remains turnovers. 

In the four games prior to LSU, the Crimson Tide had double-digit turnovers just once. It averaged 9.25 per game during that stretch.

In the four games since, Alabama has had 14, 11, 12 and 13, respectively, for a 12.5 average.

Put it all together and hard-hat elements that the Crimson Tide had prided itself on have been lacking: Attention to detail,  focus, and effort. 

“There was a point where we kinda thought we were untouchable,” freshman guard Rylen Griffen said.

Tuesday night will bring the next barometer with this team, just three days off the failed Oklahoma trip. That's not a lot of time to make a lot of corrections, but it can be enough to start a mental turnaround. 

We already know what'll happen if it doesn't. Last year's collapse, when Alabama went winless in March hasn't been forgotten, and remains a reminder how quickly things can unravel. 

One has to believe that this team's just too good, and has too much potential for a repeat. But fundamentally, it'll be the players who determine how this season will play out over these last two months and March Madness, and be remembered. 

It's ultimately up to them. 

See Also:

No. 2 Alabama Blown Out By Oklahoma in SEC / Big 12 Challenge

Nate Oats: "We've Lost Our Edge"

Full-Court Press: Takeaways from Alabama Basketball at Oklahoma