Alabama Men’s Basketball defeats Lamar, 75-47

 The Alabama men’s basketball team beat Lamar 75-47 Tuesday night at Coleman Coliseum. Sophomore guard Rodney Cooper came off the bench to lead the Crimson Tide with 17 points to go with eight rebounds and three assists.

“It’s always going to be about our team getting better and understanding what we have to do in terms of where we want to be as a basketball team,” UA Head Coach Anthony Grant said. “I’ve got to do a better job as a coach making sure we get that across. We’ve got to do a better job in terms of understanding how we need to play for 40 minutes.”

Freshman guard Retin Obasohan had a career-high 13 points while going 2-4 from behind the three-point line and a team-high three steals. Cardinals forward Stan Brown provided his team with 14 points, nine rebounds, and three steals.

Alabama trailed by three, 19-16, halfway through the first half, but went on a 20-8 run to take a 36-27 lead into the half.

“I thought in the second half our defensive intensity picked up,” Grant said. “Offensively, we have to get better in some areas in terms of understanding what allows us to have success. I thought the intensity from the defense, the focus in terms of what we need to do in the press, being matched up in the press and being effective with the style of play was good the second half.”

The Alabama bench had a season-high 35 points, with Cooper scoring 17 and Dakota Slaughter having a career-high 10 points. Sophomore guard Levi Randolph also scored in double figures, dropping in 10 points.Alabama outscored the Cardinals 39-20 in the second half to put the game away.

Alabama returns to action this Saturday, Dec. 1, against Cincinnati in Fifth Third Arena inCincinnati,Ohio, looking to improve on its 6-0 start. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. CT and will be televised by ESPN2 with the radio broadcast available through the Crimson Tide Sports Network on 99.1 WDGM.