Alabama back in action after week off

Alabama, which did not play a midweek game this week, tried to administer some self-help in advance of tonight’s home game against Ole Miss (7 p.m., ESPN2).

The Crimson Tide (14-7, 3-4 SEC) snapped a season-long four-game losing streak last Saturday against visiting Arkansas.

“Obviously, coming off a win certainly helps,” UA coach Anthony Grant said. “For us, this week it’s been really about us – offensively and defensively, just worrying about us.”

The Tide’s slide was accompanied with a noticeable drop in production by front-court veterans JaMychal Green and Tony Mitchell. Junior guard Andrew Steele said getting that pair going is a priority for the team.

“The things we try to focus on help us be successful,” Steele said. “Going inside through Tony and JaMychal gives us our best chance to win. … We understand playing to our strengths.”

When Green and Mitchell have struggled offensively, Alabama has had a difficult time finding ways to win.

“You guys have made a lot of about the scoring end of things, but I’ve never made that something I’ve focused on with any of our guys,” Grant said. “The thing that we talk more about is doing the things that affect winning.

“Obviously, scoring is a big part of that, but I think we’ve got guys that are capable of providing that for us. Certainly we need Tony, we need Mike, we need Trevor (Releford), we need all of our guys to be aggressive, hunt good shots and do the things we need to do. I would not put that on one individual in terms of having to do one thing. There are a lot of ways to affect the game.”

Releford, the Tide’s sophomore point guard, has led Alabama in scoring of six of the last 10 games. He’s averaging 14.4 points per game in that stretch. Green still leads the team overall with 13.7 ppg.

Grant just wants to make sure that, even if the shots aren’t falling, his most experienced players stay engaged in the action.

“It takes about 2-to-3 seconds to take a shot,” the coach said. “If you’re on the court, what are you doing the rest of the time that you’re out there? There’s a lot more to do than just shoot the basketball.”

Ole Miss (14-7, 4-3) has won three of its past four games. The Rebels have four players averaging in double figures, led by Terrence Henry’s 12.1 points per game on 47.3 percent shooting. Murphy Holloway nearly averages a double-double for the squad with 10.4 points and 9.4 rebounds per game.

“They have size, physicality, rebounding and experience,” Grant said. “They’re defending well, have done a very good job and are a team that’s really playing well.”

Steele noted that Alabama-Ole Miss games have been close as long as he’s been playing against them.

“We understand they’re a team coming in that will be real confident,” Steele said.