Hendrix Leads Alabama Over Missouri State, 81-73
12/22/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA ?? Richard Hendrix scored 30 points, making 13 of 15 shots attempted in the game, to lead the University of Alabama basketball team to a 81-73 win against Missouri State in the third round of the Findlay Toyota Las Vegas Classic.
Alabama, 8-3, has won all three of its games in the four-game-event, hosting the first two rounds in Tuscaloosa and defeating first Wofford on Monday night then Texas Pan-American on Wednesday night before moving to Las Vegas and Orleans Arena for the final two games. Alabama will play the winner of Saturday night’s late night match up between Iowa State and Purdue in the championship game on Sunday, December 23 at 9:30 p.m. CT.
“It was a great game,” said Hendrix who coupled his 30 points with nine rebounds. “I have to give all the credit to my teammates. They were giving me the ball and I was making it happen down low. And when the defense adjusted, they made the defense pay by knocking down big time shots in the clutch.”
The Tide trailed by as many as eight in the first half, but held Missouri State without a field goal for seven minutes in a 10-1 run to take a 19-18 lead with 7:47 to play in the half. Alabama shot 75 percent in the second half, scoring 50 points in the final 20 minutes. Hendrix keyed the outburst with four of his 12 first-half points, while Riley connected on a 3-pointer and Mikhail Torrance made a pair of uncontested lay-ups.
Missouri State made seven of its first eight shots in the second half, including 3-pointers from Ryan Jehle and Shane Laurie, to open a 49-41 lead with 14:23 to play, but the Bears didn't have an answer for the 6-foot-9, 255 pound Hendrix, who made 13-of-15 field goals and helped Alabama rally for a 58-56 lead with 8:08 left.
Gee keyed the comeback with three straight baskets. The teams traded points until the final two minutes when Gee had a put-back dunk on a Hendrix miss for a 72-71 Alabama lead. The Crimson Tide's Mykal Riley then hit a 3-pointer with 43 seconds to play to extend the lead to five.
Hendrix was one of four Alabama players who scored in double digits against the Bears, who dropped to 7-4 with the loss and will play the loser of the Iowa State vs. Purdue game on Sunday at 7 p.m. CT. Alonzo Gee had 18 points and six rebounds. Mykal Riley had 13 points. Alabama was leading by two, 73-71, before he made the basket that put Alabama ahead 76-71. Missouri State’s Drew Richards followed with a tip-in on the ensuing possession to put the Bears within three at 76-73 with 36 seconds remaining in the game, but Richards followed the play with a foul against Mikhail Torrance on the throw in. Torrance then made both free throws to put Alabama safely ahead for good at 78-73 with 36 seconds remaining. He ended the game with 10 points.
“We’re not very good, and we know it, but we’re going to slug you out. That’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to find a way,” said Alabama head coach Mark Gottfried. “We might be oh-for-twenty from the foul line but we’re going to find a way to overcome it. That’s what we’ve got to do. We are who we are. So we’re going to play really hard. And whether we play Purdue or Iowa State, we’re just going to try to slug it out again and keep getting it one by one.”
Alabama shot 59.6% from the field, making 31 of 52. It was 6 of 13 from 3-point range and 13 of 22 at the free throw line. It outrebounded Missouri State 28 to 26. Missouri State shot 56.9% against the Crimson Tide, making 29 of 51 from the field and 7 of 16 from 3-point range. It was 8 of 23 from the free throw line. Two of its players fouled out of the game, including Drew Richards and Deven Mitchell. It had 19 fouls while Alabama was called for 16, including four on Demetrius Jemison in his 21 minutes of play. Two Missouri State players scored 13 points to lead the team, Shane Laurie and, off the bench, Chris Cooks.
Alabama started Rico Pickett at the point guard position. He played 15 minuts and had three assists, a steal and two points. Torrance came off the bench and played 26 minutes at the point, scoring the 10 points which included making 3 of 4 from the field and all four of his free throws. He had one assists. Brandon Hollinger, who has also shared time at that position, continued as he has in Alabama’s last few games, to play the wing. He came of the bench and had six points and two assists in 30 minutes on the floor.
“We’re getting good play out of our point guards,” said Gottfried. “Rico’s doing a great job and I think Mikhail Torrance is as well. So the combination of the two, I think they’re playing solid for our team right now. I think playing Brandon Hollinger a little bit at the wing coming in as a perimeter player has been good for our team, so we’re figuring things out with our team.”
