Alabama plays well in win over Tennessee

TUSCALOOSA – As the minutes ticked away, and Alabama continued to make hustle plays and defensive stops, it slowly dawned on the 12,988 in Coleman Coliseum that the Crimson Tide was going to defeat Tennessee.

The reaction to Alabama’s 62-50 victory was almost surreal. The building went from waiting for a dramatic Tennessee run, to appreciating the effort the home team gave them, to enjoying a postgame Rammer Jammer that, frankly, seemed unlikely coming into Saturday’s matinee.

After all, the short-handed Crimson Tide had lost two straight and the suspensions of its top two scorers – JaMychal Green and Tony Mitchell – remain in place. And Tennessee came into the game with a four-game winning streak.

But inspired efforts by a pair of 7-foot sophomores - Moussa Gueye, who earned his first career start, and Carl Engstrom, who played 23 minutes off the bench – along with some much-needed offense from freshman guard Trevor Lacey – Alabama preserved the victory for a team starved for some positive results to accompany its hard work.

“Tremendous effort tonight,” Alabama coach Anthony Grant said. “I thought we had a great week of practice preparation and it paid off today. Our guys were able to play through mistakes. We were there for each other. The communication on the floor was really good.

“We beat a good team today. Our guys are certainly excited about what happened today on the court. I’m very, very proud of the effort.”

Alabama improved to 17-9 overall, 6-6 in the SEC. Tennessee is now 14-13 and also 6-6 in the league.

A day after Grant expressed concern about Tennessee’s ability to field a big, physical team against the short-handed front line, the tandem of Gueye and Engstrom held their own.

Gueye played 16 minutes and had six blocked shots. Engstrom scored seven points and grabbed seven rebounds – four on the offensive glass – before fouling out late in the game.

“They were great teammates,” said Lacey, who led Alabama with 18 points, including 9-for-12 shooting from the foul line. “They weren’t making plays to look for themselves to score. They were setting great picks and helping teammates to score and rebounding. Little things that some people overlook, they did that, too.”

Engstrom, from Ystad, Sweden, said he and Gueye, a 7-foot sophomore from Dakar, Senegal, both benefit by going against each other in practice. Gueye nearly didn’t play this season after undergoing knee surgery last year.

“Me and Moussa, we switched around pretty good,” the 7-foot-1 Swede said. “He (Gueye) gets better every day. When his knees get better …”

Engstrom, a sophomore who Grant said is playing just his third full year of basketball, has gone from a long-term project to a fast-track post player with the suspensions of Green and Mitchell. He likes the challenge.

“I’m looking forward to every game,” he said. “I’m just trying to get better every day, every practice, every game.”

His teammates say he’s not kidding.

“He’s one of the hardest workers on the team,” said Andrew Steele, who scored 10 points and had seven assists, five rebounds and five steals. “Every single day he tries to make himself better. It was good to see it pay off for him.”

The game turned on a long shooting drought by Tennessee, a combination of sound Alabama defensive pressure and poor shooting by the Vols (7-for-22 in the second half).

Jarnell Stokes made a conventional three-point play with 17:14 remaining that tied the game 32-all.

The Vols did not make another field goal until Stokes’ inside shot went in with 5:02 left. By then, Alabama had led by as many as 17 and that basket made it 52-39.

Alabama’s pressure defense unnerved the Vols, who last Saturday defeated Florida on the road. Tennessee had 17 turnovers – 15 of which came on Alabama steals.

“I felt like our defense was creating offensive opportunities for us,” Grant said. “The press impacted the game. We were able to dictate tempo.”

Vol coach Cuonzo Martin said Alabama was “a very hungry team.” The Vols were just 4-for-20 from 3-point range, too.

“The surprising part is I thought we were a little careless with our passes,” Martin said. “They got some steals on our end from us not making shots at the three-point line. We had some open looks and those shots didn’t fall down. That made us a little hesitant on the perimeter.”

In addition to Lacey’s 18 points, Trevor Releford, limited with a head injury in practice this week and by foul trouble in the first half, scored 13 points in 27 minutes.

Tennessee’s Jeronne Maymon led all scorers with 20 points. Trae Golden added 12. However, those players combined for 11 turnovers, too.

Alabama next visits Arkansas on Thursday night.