Tech’s rally falls short against Alabama

Tuscaloosa, Ala. — It didn’t matter who was guarding him.

Senior point guard Ronald Steele, continuing his comeback from three knee surgeries that kept him out all last season, dissected Georgia Tech in Alabama’s 88-77 victory Saturday.

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AP

Alabama’s Ronald Steele passes the ball around Tech’s Gani Lawal. Steele lead the Tide attack with 23 points and 10 assists.

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The Crimson Tide surged to a 19-point halftime lead as Steele penetrated at will, assisted on eight baskets and buried four 3-pointers.

Tech led 10-6, then Steele ignited a 19-2 run.

When Lewis Clinch bounced an entry pass to Gani Lawal, Steele swiped it and hit the gas. He passed behind his back to Senario Hillman, who laid it in for a 20-10 lead.

Steele was just getting started. He went behind the back again to free himself for a 3-pointer and pulled up for another before the defense reacted.

“When you have breakdowns, he’s going to make you pay,” Tech coach Paul Hewitt said of Steele, who finished with 23 points, 10 assists and two steals.

“You can’t allow him to come down and just run the show because he’s too good.

The lead swelled to 30 with 8:39 left before the Jackets finally made a run. Trapping full court and giving hard fouls at the rim, they scrapped the rest of the way, closing on a 34-15 run.

The deficit got as low as 10 with 53 seconds left.

“The thing we have to do is realize that’s the level of intensity and the effort we have to play with the whole time,” Hewitt said.

“It was a very disappointing afternoon, but if we take anything out of it, if we take that 10-minute stretch and carry it throughout the rest of the season I think we’ll be a good team.”

Tech (8-5), which has lost three of four, concludes its nonconference schedule by hosting Georgia at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Alabama (10-3) has won five straight. The Tide shot 57 percent in the first half, and five players finished in double figures.

“They were knocking down shots left and right,” said forward Alade Aminu, who scored 21 himself on 9-of-10 shooting.

“In the first half we weren’t playing physical enough, and we were getting beat to loose balls. The second half we played with a lot of fight, but we put ourselves in too big a hole to come back.

“If we come out with that same fight and intensity for our next game,” Aminu added, “I think we’ll be able turn this thing around in a big way.”

Lawal led the Jackets with 23 points, Iman Shumpert had 12 points and 10 assists, and Clinch scored 10.

Clinch is 4-for-17 from the field in the past two games after averaging 18 points over his first three.

Steele, meanwhile, was unstoppable.

“Early in the game, it was as good as I’ve seen him in a couple years. He was quick, aggressive,” Alabama coach Mark Gottfried said.

“Today maybe was a breakthrough. I don’t know that he has to do that every night, but tonight he was an exceptional player.”