Alabama

Mike Bianco laments lack of Ole Miss baseball consistency after another series loss to Alabama

Published

2 years ago

April 27, 2024

Mike Bianco laments lack of Ole Miss baseball consistency after another series loss to Alabama

OXFORD — Mike Bianco has seen this Ole Miss baseball team play well. That’s what fuels his hope. It’s also the root of his frustration.

The capability is plain to see. The Rebels have secured memorable wins over Mississippi State, Georgia and even on Friday night against Alabama in the last three weeks. But Ole Miss is not playing to those capabilities often enough to meet the expectations this program has developed over 24 seasons with Bianco at the helm.

After dropping two out of three to the Crimson Tide at Swayze Field this weekend, the Rebels’ path to an NCAA Regional looks more like a lightly used foot trail conquered by prickly overgrowth.

“You go back to the ’22 team ‒ and not because we’re 7-14 or anything like that ‒ but one of the things we’ve always said about that team is they showed up every day,” Bianco said. “They were very consistent in the way they approach practice, the way they approach the game, the way they approach everything. This team’s too inconsistent.”

The Rebels (23-20, 7-14 SEC) have an unhappy tendency to get embarrassed when they lose. Eight of their 14 SEC defeats have come by at least seven runs. And those margins are often inflated by Ole Miss’ inability to get out of its own way.

In Saturday’s decisive rubber match against Alabama (28-16, 9-12), Ole Miss got a strong start from Mason Nichols, who didn’t have his best stuff after returning from an injury. He pitched four innings of one-run ball anyway.

Once he left the game, the Rebels collapsed. Their bullpen faltered, sure, but they twice missed routine fly balls in the outfield to extend innings, unable to cope with the elements on a blustery, sunny afternoon.

Offensively, they didn’t have an answer for Alabama freshman Zane Adams, who entered the game with a 4.54 ERA. Adams pitched into the eighth inning having allowed one run before Jackson Ross finally chased him with a late home run in a game that was already decided.

“We’ve got the wind blowing out 20 miles an hour and we can’t pull the ball in the air the whole day,” Bianco said.

SIMMONS: Ole Miss football dual-sport athlete Austin Simmons leaves baseball game with injury

Bianco was asked postgame why he feels this team has failed to achieve consistency, and whether there are certain traits his more dependable teams from the path have featured that this group lacks.

He said he didn’t believe it was fair to discuss culture, leadership and chemistry during the season.

“When you’re this close, you can’t really analyze that kind of stuff,” Bianco said. “…Sometimes you don’t win because you’re not good enough. You know, that’s a fact. And that’s probably more so than not. But there’s times when you don’t win because you don’t show up enough, and that was kind of the message today.”

It would be disingenuous to pretend as though these Rebels don’t have serious roster construction problems. They don’t have a true Friday night starter ‒ they haven’t won a series opener since their first SEC set of the season against South Carolina. Injuries and ineffectiveness have gradually depleted their bullpen into a unit that lacks reliability. Ole Miss’ preseason plan at catcher hasn’t worked out and its lineup isn’t the murderer’s row some hoped it might be.

Still, undeniably, Ole Miss has the talent to catch the baseball reliably. It has the talent to make basic plays on the infield. It has the talent to handle a freshman lefthander better than it did against Alabama on Saturday in a 10-3 loss.

That’s why Bianco can feel hopeful ‒ and like an opportunity is passing him and his team by.

David Eckert covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at deckert@gannett.com or reach him on Twitter @davideckert98.

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Alabama

Alabama community rallies to save Ringo, an injured dog looking for a home: ‘Full of hope’

Published

2 hours ago

December 14, 2025

Press Room

Alabama community rallies to save Ringo, an injured dog looking for a home: ‘Full of hope’

Ringo, an abandoned puppy that was dropped off at the Madison Police Department earlier this week, will get the surgery he needs thanks to an outpouring of donations from the city’s residents.

On Dec. 9, the Madison Police Department said in a Facebook post it was trying to raise $2,000 so Ringo could get an injured leg amputated.

“Citizens of Madison, we need your help. Recently, an abandoned and abused puppy was brought to us—sweet, loving, and still full of hope despite what he’s been through,” the post said.

“To give him the chance at a healthy, happy life, he needs a surgery to amputate an injured leg. Once he recovers, he’ll be ready for adoption and would make an incredible addition to a loving Madison family—just in time for Christmas.”

Just three days later, the department said in an update that they’d raised the money they needed, and Ringo would get his surgery in the middle of January.

During a vet visit, the pup was given a clean bill of health and all his required shots.

“We completely met the goal and could not have done it without the help of all our citizens here so we greatly appreciate everything you guys donated for him,” an update video said.

Now the police department is asking for the community to step up again and help get Ringo adopted before his surgery.

“Our next thing we can do is have him adopted. He is ready to go into somebody’s home so he can get acclimated and ready to go before his surgery,” the post said.

Anyone interested in adopting Ringo is asked to call Madison’s Animal Control at 256-772-5694.

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Alabama

BamaCentral Courtside From Arizona’s 96-75 Win Over Alabama

Published

14 hours ago

December 14, 2025

Press Room

BamaCentral Courtside From Arizona’s 96-75 Win Over Alabama

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — No. 12 Alabama fell to No. 1 Arizona in Legacy Arena in the fifth annual C.M. Newton Classic. The Crimson Tide held a 2-point halftime lead, but got decimated in the second half, opening the first six minutes of the second frame with just two field goals made.

The top-ranked Wildcats went on to claim a 96-75 victory and dropped the Crimson Tide’s record in the event to 2-3.

“They’re obviously a really good team,” Nate Oats said. “There’s a reason they’re number one in the country. I thought the first half we played pretty well. We were down five on the glass and needed to clean it up a little bit, and then the second half we had this issue where we just haven’t had very good starts to the second half. We came out and didn’t have a very good start, and it got progressively worse. I think they scored, shoot 39 the entire first half. They had 39 in less than 12 minutes to start the second half.

“Start of the second half was bad. Obviously, they came out of halftime ready to play; we didn’t. The toughness factor was a problem. It’s impossible – I shouldn’t say impossible. It’s nearly impossible to win a game when your opponent gets 28 more field goal attempts than you. If you look, we outshot them from the field and from the free throw line, both percentage-wise. Free throws, they made one more free throw than we did and they got 28 more field goal attempts. You can’t win games giving your opponent 28 more field goal attempts. Offensive glass we had three the whole game, they had 22. We lost the rebounds by 20 again. This has been a recurring issue for us.”

Alabama History in C.M. Newton Classic

2021 – Davidson 79, Alabama 78
2022 – Gonzaga 100, Alabama 90
2023 – Alabama 101, Liberty 56
2024 – Alabama 100, Illinois 87
2025 – Arizona 96, Alabama 75

Watch the above video as BamaCentral writers Katie Windham, Hunter De Siver, and Will Miller, provide thoughts and takeaways from the Alabama men’s basketball team’s 96-75 loss against the Arizona Wildcats on Saturday. The trio discusses the performance of the No. 12 Crimson Tide and the rebounding issues that continue to plague the program.

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Alabama

Arizona vs Alabama Prediction, Picks & Odds for Tonight’s College Basketball Game

Published

1 day ago

December 13, 2025

Press Room

Arizona vs Alabama Prediction, Picks & Odds for Tonight’s College Basketball Game

Even on a neutral floor, Alabama should feel plenty of support from the Birmingham crowd at Legacy Arena — enough to keep No. 1 Arizona on its toes.

Dec 13, 2025 • 12:25 ET

• 4 min read

Photo By – Imagn Images. Alabama Crimson Tide guard Aden Holloway (2) drives to the basket.

The Arizona Wildcats are regarded as the best team in the land once again and will put that moniker to the test when they hit the road to face Alabama in Birmingham.

Both of these teams will come into this matchup off strong wins. The Wildcats beat Tide rival Auburn by nearly 30 points, while Alabama blew out UTSA by 42.

I break down the matchup in my Alabama vs. Arizona predictions & college basketball picks for Saturday, December 13.

Arizona vs Alabama prediction

Arizona vs Alabama best bet: Alabama +1.5 (-110)

In name only, this will be a neutral site game but given the geography between the two teams and the fact that this game will be played in Birmingham, this is certainly going to be a very pro Tide crowd.

With that at the forefront, it’s enough to shift things and make Alabama my best bet to cover. I projected this number closer to three.

The Tide have the best unit on the floor: It’s offense. The Nate Oats math-ball shot profile led by Labaron Philon and Aden Holloway is kinda exactly what you want here.

Arizona’s defensive profile is more conducive to slowing down your traditional post and big to big actions, not exactly this one. What’s particularly concerning is allowing an above average scoring rate (.93 points per possession) on attacks + kicks along with 1.02 points per possession on big cuts and rolls.

These are two items that are a foundation of the Alabama offense. Their clearest edge is in transition and on the offensive glass, areas Alabama can at least partially control by taking care of the ball and keeping the floor spaced.

In a game that should be played in the 80s possession-wise with huge three-point volume, I’d rather have the side with more proven perimeter shot-making and multiple paths to scoring efficiently.

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Arizona vs Alabama same-game parlay

I started things off here with Holloway to go over his assists number. He’s the primary facilitator on the big cut-and-rolls, meaning he should benefit the most from these sets with an increase in assist volume.

This doesn’t even begin to mention how he’ll likely find some easy ones in transition.

Speaking of transition, I’ll finish our same-game parlay off with Jaden Bradley to go over his points total because of it. Alabama, somewhat a product of how they play, has one of the worst transition defenses in the country, and Bradley may be the best transition scoring option on the floor.

Arizona vs Alabama SGP

Aden Holloway Over 4.5 assists
Jaden Bradley Over 16.5 points
Alabama +1.5

Our beyond the arc SGP: Wrightsell shoots from deep

Latrell Wrightsell should get plenty of clean looks from deep given how Arizona is likely to defend Alabama, so I paired his over 1.5 threes with the game Over.

I’m close to market on the number, but with two awful transition defenses, the pace and easy-runout points make me lean higher.

Arizona vs Alabama SGP

Alabama +1.5
Aden Holloway Over 4.5 assists
Jaden Bradley Over 16.5 points
Over 178
Latrell Wrightsell Over 1.5 threes

Arizona vs Alabama odds

Spread: Arizona -1.5 (-110) | Alabama +1.5 (-110)
Moneyline: Arizona -130 | Alabama +110
Over/Under: Over 178 (-110) | Under 178 (-110)

Arizona vs Alabama betting trend to know

Arizona has hit the 1H Moneyline in 29 of their last 37 games (+21.10 Units / 1% ROI). Find more college basketball betting trends for Arizona vs. Alabama.

How to watch Arizona vs Alabama

Location	Legacy Arena at BJCC, Birmingham, AL
Date	Saturday, December 13, 2025
Tip-off	9:30 p.m. ET
TV	ESPN

Arizona vs Alabama key injuries

Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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