Alabama kept it close but could not overtake No. 11 Wichita State Tuesday night, as the Shockers surged out of Coleman Coliseum with a 72-67 victory.
“[Wichita State] did a good job of getting to the free throw line and rebounding the basketball,” coach Anthony Grant said. “Those two areas were the difference tonight.”
The Shockers could not miss from the free throw line, shooting 93 percent (25-27) from the charity stripe.
Wichita State forward Cleanthony Early, who led all scorers with 26 points and was a perfect 11-of-11 on free throws, said he and his teammates work on free throws all the time.
“I always want a wide open shot, and that’s a wide open shot,” Early said.
The Crimson Tide drops to 5-5 on the season, while the Shockers kept their undefeated 11-0 season alive. Alabama is now 0-5 in games decided by 10 or less points.
Wichita State was the second highest ranked non-conference opponent to ever play in Coleman Coliseum. But Alabama hung tough throughout the game, matching shots and holding the Shockers to a 33-32 lead at halftime.
“I expected it to be a one-possession game,” Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall said. “I was hoping we could get the last stop or score the last basket. You look at the numbers, they’re hard to beat up here.”
Junior guard Rodney Cooper was one of two Alabama players to score double-digit points with 14 points off the bench.
Senior guard Trevor Releford was the other, scoring a team-high 22 points and pacing the Crimson Tide offense with six assists.
“I don’t think anyone’s ever questioned Trevor’s toughness,” Grant said. “I thought he gave us a great effort.”
But Wichita State capitalized when it needed to, scoring 11 second-chance points, as well as 12 points off of fast breaks.
The Shockers won the game down low, outrebounding the Crimson Tide 38-26 and overwhelming Alabama with 36 points in the paint.
“I’ll look at the film,” Grant said. “I’m sure we’ll look at it and see a lot of opportunities that had we been able to make plays that we’re capable of making, we could have had a different outcome tonight.”
Releford (hip) and Nick Jacobs (shoulder) were starters for Alabama despite nagging injuries. Releford did not play in the Crimson Tide’s last game against Charleston Southern.
“My hip’s feeling good, [sitting out] was just for precautionary reasons,” Releford said. “It was a little tight, but today it felt good. I just thank the trainers and staff for just working on it and giving treatments and stuff to get on the floor”
Alabama will host Xavier Saturday Dec. 21 in Coleman Coliseum. The game will tip at 6 p.m. CT and will be televised by CSS.
