Alabama Basketball: Code Crimson in Tuscaloosa

“I have never seen such sloppy basketball in Tuscaloosa. I don't have the space to start pointing out the problems.”

“I don't see us winning more than three games in conference this year”

“Has there ever been a coach that did so little with so much, and then keeps asking for more.”

These are the sentiments that continue to circulate the Alabama Men’s Basketball team coming from the mouth of head coach Mark Gottfried.  Fans all over internet chat rooms continue to bark and moan about the Crimson Tide’s play so far this SEC Conference season. 

The Crimson Tide returned four starters this season, and a bench chalked full of experience from last season.  Short of a Ronald Steele injury, Alabama was going to be picked first in the SEC this season.  Things have dramatically changed in Tuscaloosa from that now distant thought process.

Alabama is sitting at 0-4 in the SEC, good enough to be tied for last with LSU, both overall and in the Western Division.  This is the worst start for a Mark Gottfried coached squad, and there are many reasons as to why this has happened and why fans are feeling the urge to show Gottfried the door. 

For starters, Alabama has no perimeter defense.  The team’s overall defense is fine, allowing just one conference opponent to score over 70 points a game, but its outside defense has been absolutely abysmal.

Alabama has allowed opponents to make 41 percent of their three-pointers taken so far in conference play.  That is good enough for dead-last in the conference by a full two percent.  Alabama's last two opponents, Georgia and Mississippi State, have scored at least half of their points by virtue of the three-point shot. 

Alabama isn’t helping its own cause either, because it can’t make an outside shot.  Alabama has used the three-point shot to win numerous games this season, but they just aren’t falling for the Crimson Tide lately.

Alabama is once again dead last in shots made from behind the arc, making only 25% of the 3’s that it takes. Once again, Alabama is two percent behind the next closest team after four games of conference play.

So the outside shots aren’t falling, surely free throws can make up for that, right?  Not for this Alabama squad. 

Alabama is dead last on the season in free-throw shooting in the SEC, and is second to last in conference play.  Alabama is shooting 56 percent in conference so far.  On the season, Alabama is shooting 59%, good enough for 318^th in the country. 

So with no help from free throws or perimeter defense, the offense has got to be a bright spot, correct?  Not exactly.

Thanks to big man Richard Hendrix, the Crimson Tide is decent offensively once he gets the ball.  The problem is Hendrix can go minutes without touching the ball.

Alabama lacks movement on offense.  The wings stay on the wings, the guards stays out front and dribble and the post is left to fight for a meaningless position. 

Alabama continuously waits until 15 seconds or fewer on the shot clock to institute its offense, giving the team a smaller chance for making a good shot or, much less, finding one. 

All these problems have led to the Crimson Tide faithful to start warming Coach Mark Gottfried’s seat.  However, there is still plenty of time for the Tide to right the ship.

Alabama plays in-state rival Auburn on Saturday, a team which is down to six scholarship players, but has managed two straight wins over winless LSU and Ole Miss. 

Right now, the heat is being turned on for this team, and a loss to Auburn would leave the Tide staring down the barrel of 0-5 with Tennessee on the horizon. 

A win and the Crimson Tide can begin to breathe.  A loss and those internet rumblings will start finding their way to front pages by Monday.