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Alabama’s recent focus on defense pays off in blowout win over Kent State

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Alabama’s recent focus on defense pays off in blowout win over Kent State


TUSCALOOSA, Ala.Nate Oats started his postgame press conference explaining why Alabama would have a much better winter break after its 81-54 win over Kent State. According to Oats, a happy holiday hinged on the Tide’s defensive performance against the Golden Flashes.

“Much better defensive effort so it’ll be a lot better Christmas break for us,” Oats said with a smile at the podium. “We did make a big point of emphasis on defense, especially after that debacle up in North Dakota with [Fighting Hawks guard Treysen Eaglestaff].”

It was far from a perfect offensive display for the Tide against Kent State. Alabama’s lingering turnover issues reared its ugly head for a second straight and the Tide continued shooting poorly from 3-point range.

However, after defensive letdowns nearly sprang an upset in Grand Forks, North Dakota, Alabama got back to the basics over the next few days at practice. The team worked on defensive fundamentals rather than solely focusing on film study.

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That extra emphasis paid off as Alabama equaled its lowest points allowed in a game this season with 54. Tide forward Grant Nelson swatted a shot attempt by Kent State’s leading scorer VonCameron Davis in the opening few minutes, which helped set the tone the rest of the way.

“I think that [block] and just really everyone loading in the gaps, helping each other out,” Nelson said of Alabama’s defensive performance. “I thought that was huge. I think we kept them to six points in the first three media timeouts, that was huge for us. We emphasized that like I said and just a lot of credit to our guys for carrying it over on the court.”

While Alabama didn’t shoot the ball well, it made sure Kent State’s shooting was even more ineffective. Alabama communicated well on switches and contested shots from beyond the arc. It honed in on Davis, who averages 14.9 points per game but was limited to under 10 points for just the second time this season. Davis scored nine on an inefficient 4 of 15 from the field and had a minus-31 box plus-minus rating.

Coming into the game, Oats also felt like Kent State guard Jalen Sullinger (9.7 points per game) could be a dangerous weapon against Alabama’s defense with the potential to do the same thing Eaglestaff did for North Dakota. The Fighting Hawks guard scored a career-high 40 points, single-handedly pulling them back into the game late.

After missing the mark severely on guarding Eaglestaff, the Tide understood the assignment when it came to Sullinger and locked down the Kent State senior.

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“He ended up shooting 1 of 14 and didn’t score in the second half,” Oats said. “So I think we did a little bit of a better job being locked in to a perimeter guy. We held them to a pretty good field goal percentage, they only shot 28%. Traditionally, this has been one of the hardest playing teams — I was in the MAC for six years and they get all of the O Boards. We gave up too many second-chance points but I thought for the most part our first-shot defense was good.”

Alabama continued to play effective post-defense in spite of the offensive rebounds. The Tide finished with six blocks as a team. Center Clifford Omoruyi won the Hard Hat Award for the most blue collar points and grabbed 12 rebounds while Nelson had 14. Off the bench, Derrion Reid had a pair of steals while Mouhamed Dioubate chipped in with two blocks.

Following the win, Alabama jumped from No. 57 to No. 42 in adjusted defensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com. As the Tide looks to build on its defensive momentum, better play on offense will have to follow. Alabama’s defense is much improved from last season when it was at its best, but it won’t be able to win games on defense alone when league play tips off on Jan. 4.

“We struggled a little offensively, and we’re gonna have to figure some stuff out here before SEC play,” Oats said. “The turnovers have been really just way too many — 13 in the first half. We did the same thing two games in a row. We only had one the second half against North Dakota. We ended up with six in the second half here. So we’ve got to do a better job at turnovers. I don’t have an answer for the free throw problems, but the only way to fix that is get in the gym and work. The good thing for us is we don’t have any school for a few weeks here, so after they get back from Christmas break, we’ll be in the gym and putting some time in.”

Alabama will conclude non-conference play against Summit League side South Dakota State. The Tide and Jackrabbits will tip off at 2 p.m. CT Dec. 29 inside Coleman Coliseum. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network+.

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Top-30 overall recruit Jaxon Richardson commits to Alabama

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Top-30 overall recruit Jaxon Richardson commits to Alabama


Jaxon Richardson, the No. 27 overall recruit in the 2026 class per the Rivals Industry Ranking, has committed to Alabama.

The 6-foot-6 four-star small forward out of Southeastern Prep (FL) ultimately chose the Crimson Tide over USC, Creighton, and Ole Miss. He also received offers from Miami, Cincinnati, Michigan, Florida, Villanova, and others.

Richardson, a McDonald’s All-American, becomes the Crimson Tide’s third commitment of the 2026 cycle. He joins four-star shooting guard Qayden Samuels (No. 28 NATL) and four-star small forward Tarris Bouie (No. 54 NATL).

He’s the son of NBA veteran and two-time NBA Dunk Contest champion Jason Richardson. His older brother, Jase, played for Michigan State last season before being selected 25th overall in the 2025 NBA Draft by the Orlando Magic.

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Rivals’ National Recruiting Analyst Jamie Shaw says Richardson is one of the most explosive players in the 2026 class:

Jaxon Richardson is able to combine fluid athleticism with explosive burst in a way no other player in this class can. He uses his athleticism to his advantage on the floor. He fills the outside channels with a purpose in transition, he is aggressive in the passing lanes, and he plays as a vertical floor spacer in the dunker spots and lob plays. Last summer, playing with the Florida Rebels on Nike’s EYBL Circuit, the 6-foot-6 wing averaged 12.8 points on 54.0 percent shooting and 10.5 attempts per game. Last high school season, he averaged 12.9 points on 61.0 percent shooting on 8.9 attempts per game. He is a highly efficient player, as 84.4 percent of his makes last high school season were at the rim.



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Alabama Baseball Ties Stolen Base Record In Win Over Hornets

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Alabama Baseball Ties Stolen Base Record In Win Over Hornets


Alabama baseball cruised to a win over Alabama State on Wednesday night, beating the Hornets 13-4 to complete the season sweep. The Crimson Tide tied a program record with nine stolen bases in one of the stranger contests that will be played this season.

The tone was set for a tumultuous night on the basepaths in the opening minutes of the game. Leadoff batter Bryce Fowler, who exited Tuesday’s game after getting beaned in the head, was walked, and promptly took second base. He advanced to third on a wild pitch in Justin Lebron’s at-bat, paving the way for Lebron to steal second when he was ultimately walked as well.

The successful baserunning instantly paid off, as Brady Neal drove both in with a double to left-center field before John Lemm walked two at-bats later. Both runners stole their respective bases on the same pitch in Jason Torres’ plate appearance, meaning that four of the first five batters of the game stole a base.

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Alabama has been exceptional on the basepaths, sitting at 30-for-30 on the season. Lebron, who swiped two bags on Wednesday, leads the team with 12. The junior had an up-and-down night, hitting his eighth home run of the season, but also committing an error at shortstop for the fourth consecutive game.

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“Get those things out of there now, baby. The dude is unbelievable,” an unconcerned Rob Vaughn said on Tuesday of Lebron’s errors. “We’re going to look up at the end of the year, and that guy is going to have five or six errors, which one he’s got right now, and we’ll be like, ‘Man, that guy is the best of all time to do it.’”

Wednesday’s game was a very prototypical midweek contest with no shortage of quirks and oddities throughout its nearly four-hour runtime. Fifteen Alabama batters were walked, falling just one shy of the program record, and the hit by pitch record was tied as seven batters were plunked.

The game was never competitive from an on-field standpoint. After barely escaping with a 2-1 win in the first matchup with the Hornets two weeks ago, this was a far more accurate representation of what these games typically look like, as Alabama now leads the all-time series 15-0.

Freshman Joe Chiarodo made his first career start, allowing two hits and one walk over two scoreless innings. He was named the winning pitcher. Luke Smyers, Connor Lehman, Anthony Pesci and Tate Robertson were the other pitchers to take the mound. Lehman allowed a three-run blast in the sixth inning, and those were the only runs until the incredibly-named Skywalker Mann drove in a run off Robertson in the ninth.

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Perhaps the most shocking figure from the game was that Alabama had 19 runners left on base. The Crimson Tide left the bases loaded in four different innings. As stated, this was just a bizarre baseball game across the board. With the midweeks out of the way, the Crimson Tide gets to prepare for its final weekend tune-up before SEC play as North Florida heads into Tuscaloosa on Friday.



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New Alabama law to set screen time limits for kids in day care, pre-K and kindergarten

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New Alabama law to set screen time limits for kids in day care, pre-K and kindergarten


The Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act was signed on Wednesday, March 4, by Governor Kay Ivey to introduce limits on children’s screen time access in Alabama.

The Act is one of Ivey’s 2026 legislative priorities.

“Video screen access in classrooms can boost learning skills among our young children, but too much screen exposure can also be detrimental, harming critical social and cognitive development,” Ivey said. “The Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act ensures our youngest students are provided a healthy balance of screen time and traditional learning in order to protect social and emotional development.”

Under the Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act, the Alabama Department of Early Childhood Education will be required to work with the Department of Human Resources and the State Department of Education to develop guidelines for screen-based media.

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Guidelines will be implemented in early childhood education programs like day care centers, day care homes, night care facilities, pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and group day care homes. The Act was sponsored by Representative Jeana Ross and Senator Donnie Chesteen.

“House Bill 78 establishes clear, research-based expectations for how technology is used in early childhood settings,” said Ross. “The goal is not to eliminate technology, but to ensure its use is developmentally appropriate and never replaces the hands-on learning and human interaction young children need most. By setting thoughtful guardrails and aligning classroom practices with the best available research on early brain development, this legislation supports educators, protects the quality of early learning and reinforces our commitment to giving Alabama’s youngest students the strongest possible start.”

A training program will also be created by the Department of Early Childhood Education to create a baseline for the appropriate use of child screentime for teachers and staff members supervising children.

“The Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act represents another important step in ensuring Alabama’s youngest children grow and learn in environments that prioritize human interaction, exploration and healthy development,” said Chesteen. “Building on the progress made with last year’s FOCUS Act, this legislation continues our commitment to protecting the most formative years of childhood. I am grateful to Governor Kay Ivey and my colleagues in the Legislature for recognizing the importance of this issue and working together to support Alabama families.”

The Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act will become effective on January 1, 2027.

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