Alabama Basketball Loses Big to Kentucky 70-48

The Kentucky Wildcats are the best men's basketball team in the nation.  It's not just a ranking, they are far and away more talented than any other school that fields a team.  It's one thing to hear that and look at stats, but it's another to see it in person.  Alabama got a glimpse, and paid for it dearly.  The Crimson Tide faithful packed Coleman Coliseum, but all they got to see was Alabama lose 70-48 to the best team in the land.

Alabama only managed 17 points in first half.  The big blue machine had 35 points in each half.  Down low, Kentucky owned the Tide.  The Wildcats out-rebounded Bama 30-21 and had ten 2nd chance points.  Foul trouble also bit the Tide again as big men Michael Kessens and Jimmie Taylor had four fouls each which limited their collective minutes.  Aside from a brief 4-2 lead early on, Bama trailed for almost the entire 40 minutes.

Levi Randolph and Rodney Cooper were the only Tide players to score in double figures.  Randolph had 13 and Cooper scored 10.  No Tide player had more than four rebounds (Kessens and Shannon Hale).  Normal starting point guard Ricky Tarrant was replaced by Retin Obasohan in the openning lineup.  After the game, head coach Anthon Grant said that a lower leg injury Tarrant suffered against South Carolina limited him in practice this week.  Tarrant would end up playing 26 minutes and scored five points.

The loss drops Alabama to 12-5 on the season and 2-2 in SEC play.  Their 48 points were the lowest output for the Tide all season.  Alabama has another tough road test on Thursday when they travel to Fayetteville to take on the 19th-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks.  The Tide return to Coleman Coliseum on Saturday, January 24th to host the Auburn Tigers.