Full-Court Press: Takeaways From Alabama Basketball at Houston

Blake Byler's thoughts and takeaways from Alabama basketball's massive win.

HOUSTON — Alabama basketball did the unthinkable on Saturday, beating No. 1 Houston by a final score 71-65 in front of a record attendance crowd at the Fertitta Center. 

Here are a few of my takeaways from the game:

1. Noah Clowney does a little bit of everything.

Simply put, he was incredible.

From the opening tip to the final buzzer he was everywhere. He scored 16 points to lead Alabama, including the opening 3-pointer and the go-ahead offensive rebound and putback late in the second half. 

He has steadily emerged as potentially Alabama's most important player, from his recently consistent scoring output to his defense. He knows exactly where to be on the defensive end, and has the versatility and athleticism to make insanely impressive plays like this one:

This is such an impressive defensive play by Noah Clowney. UH ran a double ball screen and it seems Clowney was expecting the switch with Bradley but instead, Bradley stayed on ball. Noah quickly recognized and was able to recover and make the block on the roll man. pic.twitter.com/Otlez05QX2

— Drew Gooden's Suit (@drewgoodenssuit) December 10, 2022

2. Jaden Bradley showed his maturity.

Alabama's offense was completely out of sorts for the majority of the first half and only scored 27 points in the half in total. 

After Houston's run to open the second half, Alabama needed to find some consistency on offense and it found just that with Bradley running the show. He scored 12 points and added four assists while remaining calm and collected despite a raucous Houston crowd. 

He's only 19, but he played like a veteran Saturday.

3. Bradley and Burnett were x-factors defending the perimeter.

Houston's best scorers come from its dynamic backcourt duo of Marcus Sasser and Jamal Shead. Sasser is traditionally the leader of the two, averaging nearly 17 points per game on the season, but he was stymied nearly all game being primarily defending by Nimari Burnett.

Shead got his, scoring 19, but when it mattered down the stretch Bradley and Burnett were guarding the duo and keeping them from making any more of an impact after the comeback.

Perimeter defense was one of the biggest issues Alabama had all of last season, but this year the Crimson Tide possesses two of the better perimeter defenders in the entire SEC.

4. This team has so much resiliency. 

This game was the second time this season that Alabama has shown a ton of fight when things looked to be going against it — coincidentally both times against a No. 1-ranked team.

Whether it's down eight against North Carolina or down 15 on the road against Houston, this Alabama team never gives up. The team guards hard when shots aren't falling, works hard on the glass, and has shown multiple times already in this young season that it can find ways to gut out close wins. 

That's a quality you want to have when March rolls around.

5. Miller's strong start has slowed, but that's not slowing Alabama.

Ever since the Michigan State game, Brandon Miller hasn't quite looked as dominant. Whatever the reason may be, he has not broken 20 points since that game and has shot just 8-for-27 since then from 3-point range. 

Despite that, Nate Oats was complimentary of Miller for nailing the game sealing free throws, which is well-deserved.

Luckily for Alabama, the team has the capabilities to overcome slow nights from Miller and still come away with very strong wins, i.e. North Carolina and Houston.

When Miller is on, the country needs to watch out.

6. Rylan Griffen had one of his best games yet.

The stat sheet may not reflect that claim, but it's entirely true.

Griffen scored six points, grabbed four rebounds and dished out two assists, and his impact felt even bigger than that. With Oats having to shuffle lineups around to get a spark going, Griffen stepped up in a big way with solid defense as well as a huge 3-pointer and a very athletic finish at the rim in the second half.

He's going to continue to grow and is going to be a really, really good player for Alabama one day.

7. The scope of this game cannot be understated.

No sugarcoating it, this was one of the biggest games in Alabama basketball history.

The game was on ABC. Jay Bilas on the call. Alabama's first top-10 matchup since 2002. The second time ever that a team has beaten two No. 1-ranked teams in the same regular season.

Not to mention the huge names that were in attendance. Hakeem Olajuwan, Andre Johnson, Jalen Green, Jabari Smith.

This game was huge, it was important, and Alabama made a statement to the college basketball world. 

8. A few more things...

• After recording 12 first half turnovers, Alabama only turned it over three times in the second half. Bradley turned it over zero times in 25 minutes.

• 20-for-32 from the free throw line has to improve. 

• Outrebounding a very physical Houston team 44-39 is very, very impressive. 

• The schedule never lets up. Tuesday's opponent, Memphis, just beat No. 11 Auburn and might be ranked come next week. And Gonzaga is Gonzaga.  

See also:

Unlikely Heroes Stepped Up in Alabama's Win Over No. 1 Houston

Instant Classic: No. 8 Alabama Basketball Topples No. 1 Houston on the Road, 71-65

What Alabama Basketball Remembers About Previous Matchup With Houston

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