Alabama will look to rebound from its tough performance against Northeastern when it takes on Ball State in Charleston Classic action on Friday afternoon.
The Crimson Tide were outplayed from the opening tip in the 68-52 loss to the Huskies and could never find a rhythm on the offensive side of the court.
As for Ball State, it came up short in its Thursday’s game with a 73-64 loss to Virginia Tech.
Let’s run through what to watch for in this matchup.
Game Details
- Alabama (2-1) vs. Ball State (1-2)
- Location: TD Arena – Charleston, SC (Charleston Classic)
- Game Date: Nov. 16
- Game Time: 1:30 p.m. EST
- Watch: ESPNU
Players to Watch
John Petty (Alabama)
Petty’s overall numbers were fine in the game against Northeastern, but it still felt like he faced some struggles in a non-home game setting.
He posted 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting and made 3 of 4 attempts from the charity stripe. However, he made only 2 of 6 shots from long range, which wasn’t ideal considering that the Huskies’ played a lot of zone and tried to force Alabama to win from the perimeter.
Given what we’ve seen from the rest of Alabama’s offense thus far, the Tide’s NCAA Tournament hopes will depend on Petty’s ability to score at a high level in pretty much every game the rest of the way.
Donta Hall (Alabama)
It was a game to forget for the 6-9 senior, as Hall was held scoreless for the first time since a January 2017 game against Georgia.
He played just 19 minutes and took only a single field goal, which pretty much came out of the blue after he attempted at least seven shots in the first two games.
Hall just wasn’t a factor in Thursday’s contest, and that will need to change if Alabama wants to get back on the right track.
Taylor Persons (Ball State)
Persons is Ball State’s leading scorer through three games, which isn’t a surprise when you consider that he led the team in scoring last season (15.0 ppg).
The 6-3 senior had 21 points in the loss to Virginia Tech and played a team-high 31 minutes while going 7 of 13 from the floor.
He should certainly be on the Tide’s radar entering this particular matchup.
Key Stats
Experience was a factor in Alabama’s loss to Northeastern, and it may come into play here as well.
Ball State ranks 66th nationally in KenPom’s experience category while Alabama is at 248th.
The Tide had no answer for the Huskies’ discipline and veteran leadership, so it’s worth watching to see how they handle what the Cardinals will bring to the table.
If there’s one area that Avery Johnson’s team should be able to attack, it’s the offensive glass, with Ball State ranking 331st nationally in allowing opponents to grab offensive boards at a 42.4 percent clip.
Game Outlook
- Spread: Not yet available
- Over/Under: Not yet available
- KenPom Projection: Alabama, 58 percent chance to win
- ESPN BPI Projection: Alabama, 77.4 percent chance to win
Like I mentioned in the Alabama/Northeastern preview on Thursday, these types of games can throw you some major curveballs.
We knew Northeastern was talented, but what we didn’t know is that the Tide would come out completely flat and get outworked en route to a 16-point loss.
Just like in that game, if Alabama wants to come out victorious, it simply has to play with focused energy right from the opening tip. Both of Ball State’s losses are by single digits to top 25 teams, so this isn’t a team will back down from a challenge.
And it certainly isn’t one that will be intimidated by what it saw from the Tide in Thursday’s contest.
You would think that Alabama would come out with something to prove here after such an ugly loss, but that’s far from a guarantee.
Those concerns make this a tough game to predict, because if Johnson’s squad plays like it did yesterday, they won’t win.
I’ll give Alabama the benefit of the doubt and say that the Northeastern game will serve as a wake-up call, but this is far from a confident pick since we don’t know which Tide team will show up.
Season Prediction Record (straight up): 28-5
Game Prediction: Alabama 64, Ball State 62
For more SEC basketball coverage, follow me on Twitter @theblakelovell.