#8 Alabama will be #1 Houston’s toughest test to date. It will be Houston’s first-ever home game matching top-10 opponents.
All eyes will be on Marcus Sasser’s new sports goggles that he says he’ll wear in the game.
Marcus Sasser says he’s “definitely playing” against Alabama on Saturday despite his eye injury and will wear goggles (not these sick shades) to protect his eyes. @gocoogs1 pic.twitter.com/Qr6k8j6wfO
— Starns Leland (@StarnsLeland) December 9, 2022
Following Thursday’s practice, it appeared he was still getting used to the goggles. But after missing two of three three-pointers from the corner, he hit the next ten of 11.
Last Saturday’s win over South Dakota State was Alabama’s only game since their 4-OT win vs. then-No. 1 UNC in Portland on November 27. The Tide had a 20-point lead vs. SD State in the first half, but the Jackrabbits fought back and led by one with 11.5 minutes to play. So Bama called timeout, subbed out the entire rotation, and went on to win by 13.
Bama loves to run, and this year’s team has been taking more three-pointers in transition than before. Last year, Alabama used their quickness to attack the rim repeatedly against UH in transition. Nate Oates’ squad gets the ball up the floor to the corners this season to shoot threes. They’ve been their best off the rebound.
The Cougars must keep forward Brandon Miller (#24) and guard Mark Sears (#1) from catching outlet passes and hitting threes. Instead, UH wants to get them into a half-court set, allowing Jamal Shead to control the point of attack. UH struggled with giving up open three-point looks this year, and it was the only glaring issue in the North Florida game.
The bitter end to the 2021 game should mean the Fertitta crowd is aggressive from the first tip.
Alabama Notes
Miller is a five-star athletic freshman, and the matchup between him and Houston’s athletic five-star freshman, Jarace Walker, should be fun…Last year, Alabama had a week off before the UH game, but it came after a trip to Seattle to play Gonzaga (they beat the #3 Zags)…The Tide has gone with the same starting lineup all year – three freshmen and two sophomores…An Alabama win would give them two wins over two different #1-ranked teams in the same regular season. That’s only happened once in the AP Poll era (OU did it in 1990)…After leaving Fertitta, Bama gets Memphis (Tuesday – home) and Gonzaga (Saturday – Birmingham). UH hosts North Carolina A&T Tuesday before another massive Saturday afternoon game, this one at #3 UVA.