Alabama's Miller trying to rebound from scoreless game
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Brandon Miller was in a playful mood and feeling good physically, too.
A day after being limited by a groin injury and held without a point, Miller insisted Friday he's just fine for top overall seed Alabama's secondround NCAA Tournament game against No. 8 seed Maryland on Saturday night.
“I'm 100 percent right now. You want to play 1 v. 1?” the 6-foot-9 Miller joked with a much shorter reporter.
Miller played only 19 minutes in a first-round mismatch against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, sitting out most of the second half after telling coach Nate Oats his injured groin was bothering him. The All-American and potential NBA lottery pick came into that gooseegg game averaging 20 points.
“I think he just took a nice night off. Well deserved,” cracked Terrapins coach Kevin Willard, who compared Miller to NBA star Paul George.
Oats was more cautiously optimistic about Miller's health, but said he's still pretty good even when playing through injury. He said Miller was limited in practice a day before the game for Alabama (30-5).
“It obviously wasn’t one of his better games to open, but I think knowing Brandon and how tough he is, physically, mentally, I think he’ll be ready to go (Saturday),” Oats said.
Teammates praised Miller for how he handled the game. It was only the second time he hadn't reached double digits, with fellow No. 1 seed Houston holding him to eight points on Dec. 10.
“He handled it like a true professional,” point guard Jahvon Quinerly said. “I told him, look, we’re going to need what you’ve been bringing us all year (Saturday) night. I’m 100 percent confident he’s going to bring what he’s been bringing us all year.”
Alabama flashed its depth with back-ups like Nick Pringle and Nimari Burnett stepping up when Miller was having an off game. That led Willard to compare this Tide team to Rick Pitino's uber-talented Kentucky teams in the mid1990s.
“I think this is the most talented roster I’ve seen in college basketball since the '93-94 Kentucky team,” said Willard, the only Maryland coach to reach 20 wins in his first season. “This team reminds me of that team with the length, athleticism, how unselfish they play, very similar point guards.”
As for Oats, he had suspicions that Willard was “trying to talk our team up. I don't know if we're quite that good, but we'll see.”
Maryland had a much tougher first-round challenge, moving on with a 67-65 win over West Virginia. The Terrapins, who are seeking their 15th Sweet 16 trip but first since 2016, are giving up 63.2 points per game, their lowest yield since 1981-82.
Alabama and Maryland’s last meeting was in the second round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament, before Willard or Miller were on the scene.
The Tide made 16 3-pointers in a 96-77 win. Quinerly is one of the few holdovers from that game on either team. Maryland has Donta Scott and Hakim Hart still around.