Finding ways to win

[randy]

#17 Alabama St - 72, Alabama A&M - 51

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 16, 11, 1, 3 tos
Moore 12, 16, 2, 3 stls, 3 blks (*)
Scott 11, 8, 0, 2 stls
Wise 9, 9, 1
Walker 9, 1, 0
Meeks 9, 0, 3
Claxton 2, 4, 0
Clark 2, 1, 1
Collins 2, 1, 0
Forbes 0, 1, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 38-32%
REB: +22 (+14 off)
TO: -2
Pts in paint: +20
2nd chance: +17 (17-0)
Fast break: +12
[/INDENT]



Alcorn St - 45, #23 Alabama St - 78

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 20, 7, 7, 2 stls (*)
Walker 18, 6, 0
Scott 17, 3, 1
Moore 10, 3, 3
Clark 9, 1, 0
Wise 4, 1, 1
Claxton 0, 5, 2
Warhank 0, 2, 1
Collins 0, 1, 0
Forbes 0, 0, 4
Meeks 0, 0, 2
Payton 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 52-31%
REB: +5
TO: -12
Pts in paint: +28
2nd chance: -2
Fast break: +4
[/INDENT]



#23 Alabama St - 84, Northwestern St - 58

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 26, 13, 9 (*)
Walker 16, 0, 0, 2 stls
Scott 15, 5, 2
Moore 13, 6, 1, 2 stls
Claxton 6, 7, 1
Wise 6, 1, 0
Forbes 2, 2, 2
Clark 0, 3, 0
Meeks 0, 2, 2
Collins 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 44-44%
REB: +9
TO: -13
Pts in paint: +38
2nd chance: +10
Fast break: +19 (21-2)
[/INDENT]



#16 Alabama St - 77, Arkansas-Pine Bluff - 76
We trailed by 14 at the half

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 31, 5, 8, 3 stls, 4 blks, 3 tos (*)
Wise 17, 4, 2, 2 stls
Moore 13, 9, 2, 2 blks, 6 tos
Scott 6, 2, 1, 2 stls
Walker 4, 4, 1
Clark 2, 2, 1
Forbes 2, 2, 1
Claxton 2, 0, 0
Collins 0, 1, 1
Meeks 0, 0, 2
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 54-43%
REB: -2
TO: +2
Pts in paint: +16
2nd chance: -7
Fast break: +5
[/INDENT]



McNeese St - 46, #16 Alabama St - 90

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 35, 4, 6, 3 stls (*)
Scott 13, 6, 3
Moore 10, 9, 1
Walker 9, 2, 0
Wise 8, 5, 1, 3 blks
Collins 4, 2, 1
Warhank 4, 1, 0
Forbes 3, 1, 2
Claxton 2, 5, 1
Clark 2, 2, 0
Meeks 0, 1, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 54-32%
REB: +15
TO: -9
Pts in paint: +34
2nd chance: +12
Fast break: +22 (24-2)
[/INDENT]



#13 Alabama St - 91, Austin Peay - 61

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 21, 7, 5, 3 tos (*)
Scott 15, 3, 0
Moore 12, 6, 0
Walker 12, 3, 2
Forbes 12, 1, 3, 2 stls, 5 tos, 4-6 3PT
Wise 10, 6, 1
Claxton 5, 4, 1
Clark 4, 2, 2, 3 stls
Meeks 0, 1, 4
Warhank 0, 0, 0
Collins 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 56-40%
REB: +9
TO: -3
Pts in paint: +18
2nd chance: +4
Fast break: +10
[/INDENT]



#13 Alabama St - 75, Texas Southern - 52

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 35, 4, 2, 2 stls, 2 blks, 8 tos 6-12 3PT (*)
Scott 12, 4, 1, 2 stls
Moore 11, 19, 0, 4 blks, 4 tos
Claxton 4, 10, 1
Wise 4, 8, 0, 2 stls, 2 blks
Clark 4, 0, 0
Forbes 3, 1, 3
Collins 2, 1, 0
Walker 0, 2, 2
Meeks 0, 1, 3
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 40-33%
REB: +23 (+11 off)
TO: +1
Pts in paint: +24
2nd chance: +13 (15-2)
Fast break: +19 (25-6)
[/INDENT]



Prairie View - 45, #6 Alabama St - 65

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 19, 6, 5 (*)
Moore 17, 15, 0, 4 blks
Scott 10, 3, 2, 4 blks
Walker 5, 4, 2, 3 tos
Wise 4, 2, 1
Clark 4, 2, 1
Claxton 2, 8, 0
Meeks 2, 0, 0
Collins 2, 0, 0
Forbes 0, 0, 2
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 44-35%
REB: +10
TO: -6
Pts in paint: +18
2nd chance: +7
Fast break: +2
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Mississippi Valley St -55, #6 Alabama St - 74

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 20, 0, 9, 3 stls (*)
Walker 12, 2, 0, 2 stls
Scott 12, 1, 2, 3 tos
Clark 9, 0, 0
Moore 8, 7, 1, 2 stls
Wise 4, 10, 1, 2 blks
Meeks 4, 3, 1
Forbes 3, 1, 2
Claxton 2, 10, 0
Payton 0, 1, 0
Collins 0, 0, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 44-34%
REB: -7
TO: -8
Pts in paint: +26
2nd chance: -1
Fast break: +11
[/INDENT]



#6 Alabama St - 96, Jackson St - 55

Box Scores
[INDENT]Scott 27, 5, 2 (*)
Moore 14, 10, 1, 4 blks
Walker 14, 1, 0
Lewis 13, 11, 7, 3 stls, 2 blks
Wise 11, 10, 4
Claxton 8, 1, 0
Clark 3, 3, 0
Meeks 2, 2, 3
Forbes 2, 1, 0
Warhank 2, 0, 0
Collins 0, 0, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 52-33%
REB: +15
TO: -12
Pts in paint: +32
2nd chance: +11
Fast break: +18
[/INDENT]



Grambling - 44, #6 Alabama St - 82

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 34, 8, 5 (*)
Scott 18, 6, 3
Moore 8, 6, 2, 4 stls
Clark 8, 1, 0
Forbes 5, 2, 1
Warhank 3, 1, 0
Wise 2, 5, 1
Walker 2, 2, 1
Collins 2, 1, 0
Claxton 0, 3, 1
Meeks 0, 1, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 48-36%
REB: +19 (+15 off)
TO: -15
Pts in paint: +28
2nd chance: +17 (19-2)
Fast break: +14
[/INDENT]



Alabama A&M - 70, #6 Alabama St - 90

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 40, 8, 2, 3 stls, 5 tos (*)
Scott 26, 5, 2
Wise 7, 5, 0
Moore 5, 5, 1, 4 stls
Claxton 4, 4, 1
Forbes 3, 1, 1
Meeks 3, 0, 2
Walker 2, 1, 0
Collins 0, 1, 1
Clark 0, 1, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 54-47%
REB: +6
TO: -9
Pts in paint: +26
2nd chance: +4
Fast break: +14
[/INDENT]



#6 Alabama St - 81, Alcorn St - 64

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 36, 6, 7, 5 tos (*)
Moore 14, 10, 2, 2 blks
Scott 12, 3, 2
Wise 8, 7, 1
Clark 5, 2, 0
Walker 2, 0, 3
Forbes 2, 0, 1
Collins 2, 0, 1
Claxton 0, 3, 4, 2 stls
Meeks 0, 1, 2
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 60-43%
REB: +16
TO: +1
Pts in paint: +34
2nd chance: +1
Fast break: +9
[/INDENT]



Northwestern St - 56, #6 Alabama St - 79

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 33, 3, 5, 2 stls, 2 blks, 3 tos (*)
Moore 13, 8, 2, 2 blks
Scott 12, 6, 2, 3 tos
Claxton 9, 7, 0
Wise 4, 5, 2
Walker 4, 3, 2
Meeks 2, 2, 3
Forbes 2, 0, 3
Collins 0, 1, 1
Clark 0, 0, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 51-39%
REB: +8
TO: -1
Pts in paint: +26
2nd chance: +11
Fast break: +9
[/INDENT]



Arkansas-Pine Bluff - 37, #6 Alabama St - 70

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 25, 6, 5, 4 stls (*)
Moore 14, 6, 0, 2 blks
Scott 9, 1, 1
Wise 6, 7, 2
Walker 6, 2, 0
Claxton 4, 6, 0
Clark 2, 2, 0
Collins 2, 1, 0
Forbes 2, 0, 1
Meeks 0, 2, 5
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 44-29%
REB: +7
TO: -16
Pts in paint: +28
2nd chance: +5
Fast break: +11
[/INDENT]



#4 Alabama St - 87, McNeese St - 66

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 40, 7, 4, 4 stls, 5 blks (*)
Moore 16, 3, 2, 2 stls
Clark 13, 3, 1
Wise 7, 3, 1, 2 blks
Scott 5, 1, 2
Walker 3, 0, 2
Claxton 2, 9, 1
Forbes 1, 2, 1
Meeks 0, 0, 0
Collins 0, 0, 0
Payton 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 52-49%
REB: +4
TO: -9
Pts in paint: +4
2nd chance: +4
Fast break: +10
[/INDENT]



SWAC Final Standings

1. Alabama St, 16-0
2. Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 10-6
3. Alabama A&M, 9-7
4. Alcorn St, 8-8
5. Jackson St, 8-8
6. Austin Peay, 8-8
7. Prairie View, 8-8
8. Mississippi Valley St, 7-9
9. Texas Southern, 7-9
10. Northwestern St, 6-10
11. Grambling, 5-11
12. McNeese St, 4-12

[randy]

(8) Mississippi Valley St - 62, (1) #4 Alabama St - 88

Box Scores
[INDENT]Walker 22, 3, 1
Lewis 21, 2, 5, 2 blks (*)
Scott 17, 3, 0, 2 stls
Moore 15, 9, 1, 3 tos
Forbes 6, 2, 9, 2 stls
Clark 5, 1, 2
Claxton 2, 4, 1
Meeks 0, 3, 1
Wise 0, 3, 1
Collins 0, 1, 2
Payton 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 55-36%
REB: -6 (-10 off)
TO: -12
Pts in paint: +14
2nd chance: +1
Fast break: +5
[/INDENT]



(5) Jackson St - 77, (1) #4 Alabama St - 80
We were trailing by as many as 16 pts in the 1st half, as JKST were draining lots of 3s.

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 26, 5, 6 (*)
Scott 18, 4, 0
Meeks 9, 1, 3
Moore 8, 6, 1
Walker 7, 2, 1, 3 tos
Wise 6, 12, 1, 3 stls, 4 tos
Claxton 4, 2, 2
Warhank 2, 0, 2
Clark 0, 1, 0
Collins 0, 1, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 51-48%
REB: +15
TO: +2
Pts in paint: +24
2nd chance: -1
Fast break: +1
[/INDENT]



(3) Alabama A&M - 67, (1) #4 Alabama St - 90

Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 31, 2, 6, 2 stls, 3 tos (*)
Moore 12, 10, 2, 2 stls, 2 blks
Warhank 12, 3, 3
Scott 10, 4, 1
Claxton 9, 5, 2, 3 stls
Clark 7, 3, 1, 2 stls
Wise 6, 3, 1
Walker 3, 0, 1
Meeks 0, 2, 1
Collins 0, 1, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 52-45%
REB: +10
TO: -9
Pts in paint: +22
2nd chance: +14 (21-7)
Fast break: +26 (30-4)
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Our RPI is 5, and ranked #4

We're in the West Regionals (Boise)

1st round matchup:
(4) #4 Alabama St vs (13) American

Teams in the West Regionals

• (1) #6 Oklahoma St, 3 Nat'l Titles, 7 Final Fours
• (2) #11 Seton Hall, 1 Nat'l Title, 7 Final Fours
• (3) #18 St John's, 6 Final Fours
• (4) #4 Alabama St
• (5) #15 Temple, 4 Nat'l Titles, 7 Final Fours
• (6) Maryland, 4 Final Fours
• (7) Nebraska
• (8) St Joseph's
• (9) Louisville, 4 Nat'l Titles, 6 Final Fours
• (10) Texas A&M
• (11) Brigham Young, 1 Final Four
• (12) Texas-Arlington
• (13) American
• (14) Cal St. Bakersfield
• (15) Furman
• (16) Pacific

Other Ranked Teams

East

• (1) #1 Iowa
• (2) #3 Gonzaga
• (3) #16 Michigan St
• (4) #14 Butler
• (5) #24 Pepperdine
• (6) #23 Xavier

Midwest

• (1) #7 Michigan
• (2) #2 Memphis
• (3) #21 Florida
• (4) #19 Syracuse
• (5) #25 Wake Forest
• (6) #12 Wagner
• (7) #22 Toledo

South

• (1) #9 Minnesota
• (2) #8 Pittsburgh
• (3) #17 Creighton
• (4) #13 Southern Illinois
• (5) #5 UNLV
• (6) #10 Jacksonville

On Probation

• #20 UCLA

[randy]

Mar 17, 2005: (11) American (19-10, 11-3) vs (4) #4 Alabama St (29-1, 16-0)

Pregame Notes

• Key Players
  
  1. Sr PF Antonio Evans (13.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg)
  2. Sr SG Perry Smith (11.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 44% 3PT)
• How they got here
  
  1. Finished 1st Patriot League; Champion, Patriot Tournament
• Strengths
  
  1. Defense, allowing only 39.5% opp FG (#15 nat'l)
• Weaknesses
  
  1. They don't score a lot, despite their fast-pace offense, shooting only 42% FG. Two good defensive teams facing each other. We need to knock down our outside shots

Tip off

We scored on 3 triples early, and raced down to a quick double-digit lead,
16:02, Up 13-2

Nothing going right on AMU's offense, 12% FG and 8 turn overs.
7:54, Up 21-6

Can't be complacent on this game, as we're not shooting the ball also at 32% FG. AMU's more anemic offense (13% FG) allowed us to have this lead


Halftime, Up 27-14
Another area of concern is that AMU already with 10 offensive rebounds. We need to correct this in the 2nd half.


Start of 2nd half

SF Rashad Scott (13 pts) scoring our 1st 8 pts of the 2nd half. AMU starting to get inside pts consistently with PF Antonio Evans, scoring his 1st 4 pts of the game.
16:55, Up 35-22

SG Joe Lewis hits a couple of 3PT shots, and SG Drew Walker adding another. Pace has picked up a bit, and so has the scoring for both teams.
10:06, Up 44-29

SG Drew Walker scoring 8 of his 10 pts here in the 2nd half, and has helped us pull away with a more comfortable lead at this stage.
5:17, Up 53-33

After SG Joe hit back-to-back 3s, I decided to pull out my key players and rest them for the next game.


Final Score: American - 36, Alabama St - 67
Great defense, and just enough outside shooting in the 2nd half to win this one comfortably. Even though our big men found it hard to score inside against AMU's 2-3 zone, they contributed significantly in other areas.

AMU's PF Antonio Evans had 8 pts, 12 rebs. SG Perry Smith also finished with 8 pts, 3 asts.


Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 20, 5, 1, 2 stls, 6-11 3PT (*)
Scott 13, 6, 1
Walker 12, 0, 0
Wise 6, 7, 0, 3 blks
Forbes 5, 1, 4
Claxton 4, 7, 1
Warhank 3, 1, 0
Moore 2, 6, 1, 3 stls, 4 blks
Collins 2, 0, 0
Clark 0, 1, 0
Meeks 0, 0, 2
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 39-22%
REB: -9 (-8 off)
TO: -8
Pts in paint: +2
2nd chance: -3
Fast break: +6
[/INDENT]

[randy]

(16) Pacific scored one of the biggest upsets in NCAA history, defeating (1) Oklahoma St. (12) Texas-Arlington also nipped (5) Temple, and they are the team we will face next.

[randy]

Mar 19, 2005: (12) Texas-Arlington (23-7, 12-2) vs (4) #4 Alabama St (30-1, 16-0)

Pregame Notes

• Key Players
  
  1. Jr PF Keith Brown (16.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 53% FG)
  2. Jr SG Tyler Stephens (11.8 ppg, 3.0 rpg)
• How they got here
  
  1. Finished 1st Southland; Champion, Southland Tournament
  2. (Round 64) Def Temple, 55-42 (TEMP: 27% FG, 5% 3PT)
• Strengths
  
  1. As they have shown in their last game, they can shut down the opposing shooters as Temple shot only 1-19 3PT. Temple's star player, SG Shea Pettaway , had a miserable day shooting 3-30 FG, including 1-14 3PT. TXAR has a defensive efficiency of 39.6 (#10 nat'l)
  2. TXAR does not shoot a lot of 3PT shots, hence they have a decent FG shooting of 45.8%
• Weaknesses
  
  1. Rebounding: 29.7 rpg (#252 nat'l). We need our big men to dominate the paint, in case our outside shooting gets shut down

Tip off

SG Joe Lewis with 7 pts, 3-4 FG. UTA is 0-5 FG
13:52, Up 10-2

We were challenging TXAR to shoot from the outside, and they started to make them now, including a couple from downtown.
7:53, Up 24-14

If TXAR's game plan is to deliberately slow down and shorten the game, then it must be working for them. TXAR took only 19 FG attempts, but made more than half of them (53%). The only thing that kept us in the lead was TXAR's 11 turn overs.


Halftime, Up 29-25
Our big men are again a non-factor on offense so far, with C Robbie Wise and C Marcus Moore combining for only 2 pts. We need to convert TXAR's turn overs into more fast break pts (we only had 6 transition pts in the 2nd half). We'll go with more m2m defense in the 2nd half.


Start of 2nd half

Pace has slightly increased, as dictated by our tight m2m defense. TXAR adding 6 more turn overs during the 1st 4 mins of the 2nd half.
13:24, Up 48-35

TXAR already with 21 turn overs. Our shots may not be falling in lately, but we're showing good effort on defense and crashing the offensive boards (12 off rebounds). TXAR alerady in the penalty
7:53, Up 54-41

We continue to dominate the boards, but the resulting buckets still very few. TXAR is still relatively close, and game is far from being decided.
2:51, Up 57-47

We maintain our 10-pt lead, with about a minute-and-half left, after both teams exchanged a mini 4-0 run. SG Joe Lewis scored another bucket to hike our lead to 12. TXAR had 3 turn overs on their next 4 possessions to wipe away any chances they had.


Final Score: Texas-Arlington - 51, Alabama St - 67
Not the best offensive game on our part by any means (only 10 asts, 13 trun overs). But we did what we wanted to do in the 2nd half, and those are to force turn overs and score on the break, and dominate the boards. C Marcus Moore scored 16 of his 18 pts in the 2nd half.

TXAR's PF Keith Brown had a good game with 18 pts, but none of his team mates scored in double figures.


Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 22, 6, 1, 2 stls, 3 tos (*)
Moore 18, 9, 0, 3 blks
Scott 13, 6, 2, 3 tos
Claxton 5, 4, 1, 2 stls, 2 blks
Walker 5, 1, 1, 3 stls
Forbes 3, 2, 1
Wise 1, 5, 1
Meeks 0, 0, 3, 2 stls
Clark 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 41-44%
REB: +7 (+11 off)
TO: -11 (TXAR: 24)
Pts in paint: +14
2nd chance: +2
Fast break: +12
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Mar 24, 2005: (4) #4 Alabama St (31-1, 16-0) vs (9) Louisville (20-12, 10-6)

Pregame Notes

• Key Players
  
  1. Sr SG Marc Wheat (15.2 ppg, 46% 3PT)
  2. So PG Ken Sola (12.4 ppg, 4.0 apg, 41% 3PT)
• How they got here
  
  1. Finished 5th Big East; Semi Finalist, Big East Tournament
  2. (Round 64) Def St Joseph's, 70-68 OT (Sola: 9 pts, 11 asts)
  3. (Round 32) Def Pacific, 68-60 (Sola: 11 pts, 5 asts)
• Strengths
  
  1. Outside shooting: 39.2% 3PT (#1 Big East)
  2. Passing: 15.6 apg (#2 Big East)
• Weaknesses
  
  1. Rebounding: 28.4 rpg (last Big East)
  2. Similar to our last game with Texas-Arlington, we should take the advantage on rebounding.

Tip off

As expected, we're getting off rebounds. LVILLE made their 1st 3 FG attempts.
13:31, Up 10-9

SG Drew Walker and C Robbie Wise, 2 remaining players of the team that made the Sweet 16 3 years ago, have combined for 17 pts.
7:51, Up 27-16

SG Joe Lewis heated up in the latter part of the 1st half, to lead all scorers with 13 pts. We have effectively forced the ball out of the hands of LVILLE's PG Ken Sola and SG Marc Wheat, who only combined for 7 FG attempts.


Halftime, Up 48-27
We had 8 steals in the 1st half.


Start of 2nd half

Big men C Robbie Wiae and C Marcus Moore dominated the start of the 2nd half. Our shooters followed suit, as we continue to blow this game wide open. We're shooting 58% FG
10:46, Up 67-39

It was over early, and everybody got a taste of Sweet 16 action.


Final Score: Alabama St - 78, Louisville - 58
Any coach would be happy to see the following "effort numbers" from their team: 16 off rebs, 11 blks, 9 stls.


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wise 22, 11, 2, 2 blks, 11-15 FG (*)
Lewis 15, 3, 4
Walker 15, 0, 1, 3-3 3PT
Moore 10, 10, 3 2 stls, 3 blks
Scott 8, 4, 4, 3 stls
Claxton 4, 6, 2, 3 blks
Forbes 4, 1, 3, 5 tos
Meeks 0, 1, 2
Collins 0, 1, 0
Clark 0, 0, 0
Warhank 0, 0, 0
Payton 0, 0, 0
Brown 0, 0, 0
Thompkins 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 51-43%
REB: +10
TO: -4
Pts in paint: +30
2nd chance: +12 (22-10)
Fast break: +24 (32-8)
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Mar 26, 2005: (2) #11 Seton Hall (24-9, 14-2 vs (4) #4 Alabama St (32-1, 16-0)

Pregame Notes

• Key Players
  
  1. Fr C John Toliver (17.8 ppg, 10.9 rpg - #3 nat'l, 3.5 bpg - #1 nat'l)
  2. Fr walk-on SG Aki Brooks (14.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 44% 3PT)
  3. Sr PG Kyle Dewitt (11.5 ppg, 4.6 apg)
• How they got here
  
  1. Finished 1st Big East; Champion, Big East Tournament
  2. (Round 64) Def Furman, 70-34 (Toliver: 24 pts, 16 rebs)
  3. (Round 32) Def Nebraska, 69-46 (Toliver: 23 pts, 9 rebs, 7 blks)
  4. (Sweet 16) Def Maryland, 76-57 (Toliver: 15 pts, 8 rebs, 5 stls)
• Strengths
  
  1. Rebounding: 37.2 rpg (#4 nat'l)
  2. Inside game: 46.4% FG (#1 Big East)
  3. Interior defense: 4.8 bpg (#1 nat'l)
  4. All of their strengths above is due mainly on Toliver
• Weaknesses
  
  1. Turn overs: 14.8 topg
  2. We need to pressure their guard, to prevent them from setting up their half court game

Tip off

We are forcing SH's John Toliver (5 pts, 3-9 FT) to receive the pass outside the shaded area. But Toliver has the ability to take the ball on the floor and drive, resulting in a lot of fouls on our big men (we're early in the penalty).
13:40, Up 8-5

Our 7 turn overs have hurt us, esp from our PGs. The 4 3PT shots that we made were the only reasons why were still slightly ahead.
5:11, Up 21-20

We eventually went down 21-24, but we were shot down SH in the last 4 mins of the 1st half. SF Rashad Scot has been our most consistent player on offense with 11 pts. SH's John Toliver also with 11 pts, 6 rebs.


Halftime, Up 28-24
If we can minimize our turn overs (9 in the 1st half) in the 2nd half, we'll have a good chance


Start of 2nd half

SF Rashad Scott (19 pts) continues to wax hot, scoring our 1st 8 pts in the 2nd half. SH with 4 early turn overs. C Marcus Moore doing a good job defending SH's John Toliver, as we force SH to call an early timeout
15:44, Up 43-26

SG Joe Lewis (14 pts) got himself more involved on the offense. SHs John Toliver (21 pts, 8 rebs) trying to will his team to get back in this game, but he can't do it alone.
6:13, Up 56-41

We were able to answer any small momentum that SH makes.


Final Score: Seton Hall - 47, Alabama St - 69
Our defense was consistent the entire game. SF Rashad Scott did a great job, taking off a lot of pressure offensively on SG Joe Lewis.

SH's C John Toliver (23 pts, 12 rebs, 5 stls, 4 blks.) got his numbers, but had to extremely work hard for it. No other SH player scored in double figures, as PG Kyle Dewitt and SG Aki Brooks combined for just 10 pts on 3-15 FG.


Box Scores
[INDENT]Scott 26, 8, 2, 2 blks, 3 tos, 4-6 3PT (*)
Lewis 16, 4, 5, 3 tos
Walker 11, 4, 3
Wise 6, 7, 1
Moore 5, 9, 2, 2 stls, 4 blks
Meeks 3, 0, 1, 3 tos
Forbes 2, 0, 3
Claxton 0, 5, 0, 4 blks
Meeks 0, 1, 0
Collins 0, 0, 0
Clark 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 45-29%
REB: Even
TO: +1
Pts in paint: -8
2nd chance: +1
Fast break: -1
[/INDENT]

[randy]

Apr 1, 2005: (4) #4 Alabama St (33-1, 16-0) vs (1) #9 Minnesota (27-6, 13-5)

Pregame Notes

• Key Players
  
  1. So SG Nick Greenwalt (13.0 ppg, 43% 3PT)
  2. So C Malik Prato (10.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 52% FG)
  3. Sr SF Ali Collum (10.0 ppg, 3.7 spg - #4 nat'l)
• How they got here
  
  1. Finished 4th Big 10; Semifinalist, Big 10 Tournament
  2. (Round 64) Def Western Illinois, 63-49 (Prato: 14 pts, 8 rebs)
  3. (Round 32) Def Villanova, 62-49 (Collum: 14 pts, 6 rebs)
  4. (Sweet 16) Def #13 Southern Illinois, 66-55 (Backup SG David Norvell: 21 pts, 6-7 3PT)
  5. (Elite 8) Def Kansas, 69-48 (Collum: 24 pts, 5 asts)
• Strengths
  
  1. Effective in slowing down the game: 54.7 opp ppg (#1 nat'l)
  2. 3PT shooting: 41.1% 3PT (#9 nat'l).
• Weaknesses
  
  1. Turn overs: 15.2 topg (#7 Big 10), which is relatively high considering MINN plays slow pace
  2. We need to speed up the game, and hope MINN will turn the ball over more
  3. During our 4 tournament games, our opponents only made 14 3PT shots combined, on less than 30% 3PT shooting. We need to sustain this kind of perimeter defense, and not let MINN's shooters get hot.

Tip off

The faster pace of the game must have affected MINN's half court game, as they have 7 turn overs already. HOwever, we also committed 3 turn overs, and all of which MINN scored on transition (6 pts).
13:18, Down 8-9

Good game plan so far, as MINN already with 12 turn overs. We just need to improve our 28% FG shooting, with SG Joe Lewis and SF Rashad Scott combining for just 2-10 FG. We'll try to go more inside.
7:06, Up 12-11

We still can't buy a basket, esp from the perimeter (0-8 3PT). We racked up fouls, and MINN able to hit 8-8 FT, which was enough for them to take the lead at the break.


Halftime, Down 22-24
Shooting aside, we're doing enough to possibly win this game. We just hope we can knock down some shots in the 2nd half.


Start of 2nd half

We had 4 turn overs early in the game. MINN's C Malik Prato starting to assert himself inside, with 7 of his 9 pts scored in the 2nd half. We would have been in a deeper hole, if not for PG David Meek's 2 jumpers, including our 1st 3PT basket of the game. We'll go back to a more balanced offense, as MINN is effectively shutting down our passing lanes with their 1-3-1 zone, making it difficult to get the ball inside.
13:35, Down 31-38

MINN has 21 turn overs, but we're not far behind at 17 and most of them were very costly. MINN also hitting their 3PT shots here in the 2nd half. We need to go all out on attack.
7:19, Down 39-56

SG Drew Walker, in what could be his final collegiate game, scored our next 7 pts. But MINN able to respond with 2 3PT shots, again stopping any momentum we were gaining.
5:11, Down 46-62

SG Drew Walker sinks another 3, but MINN answering back again. We forced 2 more MINN turn overs which we converted to transition baskets. One final push
2:02, Down 55-67

We couldn't get it down to below 12, until SG Joe Lewis hit a meaningless 3 in the end.


Final Score: Alabama St - 62, Minnesota - 71
How a team with 27 turnovers able to win this game, is amazing. Our offense improved in the 2nd half, but we can't make enough stops on the defensive end, allowing MINN to shoot 9-16 3PT. Most of MINN's 3PT shots were very timely, during times when it appears we're starting to make a major run.

MINN's SF Ali Collum had a consistent game with 15 pts, 3-4 3PT. C Malik Prato came alive in the 2nd half, to finish with 11 pts.

Still a good season for us, culminating with the school's 1st ever Final 4 appearance.


Box Scores
[INDENT]Lewis 17, 3, 6, 2 stls, 2 blks, 3 tos (*)
Walker 14, 2, 0, 3 stls (L)
Meeks 7, 1, 3, 3 tos
Claxton 6, 3, 0
Moore 6, 2, 1, 2 stls
Wise 4, 3, 2 (L)
Scott 4, 2, 3, 3 stls, 4 tos
Clark 4, 1, 0 (L)
Forbes 0, 2, 1, 5 tos
(L) - last collegiate game
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 42-58%
REB: -5 (+6 off)
TO: -10 (MINN: 27)
Pts in paint: +6
2nd chance: +11 (11-0)
Fast break: +6
[/INDENT]