Alabama's Second-Half Struggles vs Michigan

0:00On March 28, Alabama's Crimson Tide fell short against Michigan's Wolverines and coach Nate Oates broke it down after the buzzer. The team was flawless from the free-throw line at halftime, sinking all 10 shots, but they only got to the striped four times after the break. That drop off hurt big time as the game slipped away. The plan was smart pool. Michigan's big men away from the paint with outside looks, especially since their center can stretch the floor. But the Wolverines swatted away, five shots total, clamping down hard inside. Alabama still made decent calls early, converting 9 to 15 close-range tries for the game. Fans and analysts are buzzing about the second half-fade, where the tie jacked up way too many threes and bricked most of them. They hit 9 of 24, from deep before break, but cratered to 5 of 23 after, shooting just over 20%. That forced a deficit they couldn't climb out of. Oates owned it, saying they needed to attack the basket more aggressively in crunch time, create better chances inside against that physical defense.

1:03Michigan's length and switches made it tough, turning dries into traffic jams. Bottom line, lessons learned on shot selection. The ties got the pieces to bounce back if they mix it up smarter next time.