Nate Oats' Joe Mazzulla-inspired tactic plays key role in Alabama's win over Kentucky
Yesterday at 11:35 AM
Orcas are considered most dangerous when they are either injured or experiencing frustration. Now you may be asking yourself why the heck I’d be starting a news article about Alabama’s win over Kentucky at Rupp Arena with an anecdote about this large oceanic predator, and here’s the answer… following a mid-week loss to the Ole Miss Rebels, the Alabama Crimson Tide were licking their wounds and clearly pissed off. And on Saturday, the Kentucky Wildcats learned that the hard way.
What’s also relevant here is the manner in which orcas hunt. As sports fans learned last year thanks to an unexpected National Geographic lesson from Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla, when orcas hunt seals, they do so in schools. Hunting together yields better results than hunting alone, and on Saturday afternoon, just as the Celtics did on their way to an NBA Title last June, the Alabama Crimson Tide went hunting for ‘seals’ against Kentucky.
“Early on against No. 8 Kentucky, Crimson Tide coach Nate Oats started communicating to his players on the floor who in blue he deemed the seal, a term for a weaker defender. It's a metaphor Oats picked up from Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla,” writes CJ Moore of The Athletic. “The lesson is that one guy cannot just attack the seal — it takes five guys hunting together.”
In particular, Alabama attacked a trio of Kentucky guards — Koby Brea, Jaxson Robinson and Travis Perry — and had a great deal of success doing so. Wildcats head coach Mark Pope noticed it, but there wasn’t much he or his team could do about it.
"They were pretty diligent," Pope said after the 102-97 loss. "They went at the guys that you would expect, and then they adjusted as the game went on. I thought they were pretty smart about how they went about it."
In a crowded and historically loaded SEC, the Crimson Tide will need to bring this Killer Whale mentality on a nightly basis. If they do, there is very good reason to believe they could end up winning their first National Title on the hardwood in less than three months.
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