Tide may face MSU without Steele

A heel injury to senior point guard Ron Steele threatens to make Alabama’s shortest road trip of the season a long drive home.

The Crimson Tide plays Mississippi State in Starkville tonight at 7 p.m. Alabama (11-4 overall, 1-0 SEC) hasn’t won at State since 2005.

The Bulldogs (11-5 overall, 1-0 SEC) started conference play with an impressive 70-56 road win at Arkansas. State has gone stretches in games with four guards on the floor. But Alabama’s best floor leader is doubtful, according to coach Mark Gottfried.

“He may not play at all. If he’s healthy, we’ll see how it goes,” the coach said when asked about Steele’s playing time.

The senior, who red-shirted last year coming off several knee surgeries, had limited mobility in Sunday’s victory over LSU.

Brandon Hollinger, Mikhail Torrance and Anthony Brock have spent time running the offense early in the season.

“Brandon will start if (Steele) can’t play,” Gottfried said. “After that, we need to figure it out, to be honest. Mikhail can (play), and we need to think about Anthony Brock as well.”

Gottfried was peppered with questions about Steele’s injury and its prognosis.

“I’m not a doctor, so some of these questions, I don’t know all of the answers just yet,” he said. “As we gather more information, we’ll make a decision that’s best for him as well as what’s best for our team.”

The Bulldogs present enough of a challenge on their own, let alone facing them short-handed.

“They’re a great team and we’ve always had great battles with Mississippi State over there in Starkville and in Tuscaloosa. We anticipate the same thing,” Gottfried said.

The coach said State freshman guard Dee Best has had an immediate impact.

“He’s been terrific. He has played very well for a young player,” Gottfried said. “He’s extremely talented, and the way they’re playing with the four guards really makes all of their guards difficult to defend.”

Best and Barry Stewart scored 17 points in State’s win over Arkansas. Jarvis Varnado leads the team with 13 points and 9.8 rebounds per game. He also leads the nation with 5.4 blocked shots per game.

Ravern Johnson shoots 48 percent from 3-point range and averages 12.1 ppg for the Bulldogs.

Gottfried said State’s perimeter shooting — 36 3-pointers in the last three games — “catches your attention.”

Still, he said Alabama will continue to look inside as freshman JaMychal Green and sophomore Justin Knox continue to gain experience.

“We’re not going to change the way we start the game,” Gottfried said. “I like the development of both Justin and JaMychal. They’re improving weekly. Those two guys are going to keep improving. We’re comfortable with that (lineup).”

Senario Hillman comes into the game after a career-high 24-point effort against LSU. Alonzo Gee, who leads Alabama in scoring (14.5 ppg) and rebounding (7.7 rpg) had his third double-double of the season against the Tigers with 14 points and 13 boards.

Gottfried and Mississippi State head coach Rick Stansbury, in their 11th season with their teams, are the two longest-tenured coaches in the SEC West.
Alabama hasn’t been 2-0 in the SEC since 2002.

“Our next game is our most important game and it’s in Starkville,” Gottfried said. “But when you win, that breeds some confidence.”