Men's Basketball Prepares to Host Mississippi State
2/24/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Alabama Basketball Preview - Alabama vs. Mississippi State
Alabama (18-9, 7-6 SEC) vs. Mississippi State (19-9, 6-7 SEC)
Crimson Tide Basketball Central
Basketball Home | Season Statistics | Roster | Media Guide | TideTV - Watch the games online! | SEC Basketball | NCAA BasketballFeb. 24, 2012
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -
The University of Alabama men's basketball team plays its next-to-last home game of the season on Saturday evening when its hosts Mississippi State in Coleman Coliseum. Tipoff on ESPN and the radio affiliates of the Crimson Tide Sports Network is scheduled for 5 p.m.
The Crimson Tide will be playing another home game in front of an energetic crowd as all public tickets for Saturday's contest have been sold by the UA athletics ticket office. Student tickets are available with a valid Action Card on a first-come, first-served basis on Saturday. That support has made Coleman Coliseum one of the toughest home courts in the nation as the Tide has won 30 of its last 33 games in the building.
The Crimson Tide comes into Saturday as winners in five of its last seven games to improve to 18-9 on the season and 7-6 in SEC action. In its last outing, a 79-68 road win at Arkansas, the Tide shot 55.1 percent from the field and 54.5 percent from three-point range. The win was the Tide's third SEC road win, the second most in the conference and its eighth win off campus this season. UA is one of only four SEC teams with more than one SEC road win.
Mississippi State comes to Tuscaloosa with a four-game losing streak, including a pair of overtime losses. MSU won the first meeting this season, 56-52, behind Arnett Moultrie's 25 points and 13 rebounds.
"We played them so early, so I think it's almost like playing them for the first time again," UA head coach Anthony Grant said of his team's second meeting with the Bulldogs. "We've changed and they've changed. They are good, but obviously they have struggled here lately with a losing streak, but they've been right there in every game they've played with chances to win in all those games. I think our guys understand that we are facing one the best teams in our league, and certainly a team that is very dangerous, so we've got to make sure we are ready to go."
Mississippi State will face an Alabama defense that remains one of the top in the nation by allowing a just 58.4 points per game this season, the 12th best average in the nation and the second best in the SEC. Offensively, UA's bench has provided a scoring spark by holding an 81-23 advantage in bench points in the last three games and outscoring its opponent in each of the last eight games.
Andrew Steele leads the Tide in scoring over the last three games after recording a career-high 15 points at Arkansas. Against Tennessee, he finished with 10 points, five rebounds, a career-high seven assists and a career-high five steals.
"With Andrew, the biggest thing is his leadership," Grant said of the veteran. "He does a great job out there communicating with the guys and being that voice on the court that our guys need. I think that just providing leadership is the biggest thing."
Arnett Moultrie leads MSU with 16.4 points and 10.8 rebounds per game while Dee Bost averages 16 points and 5.1 assists per game.
Following Saturday's contest, the Tide will remain at home to host Auburn in the home finale on Feb. 29 at 7 p.m.
