Nate Oats reacts to vintage Jahvon Quinerly performance

Alabama has one of the most stacked rosters in the country. Not many can have the likes of Jahvon Quinerly stored away on the bench. An experienced player who has played on the biggest stage for the Crimson Tide, Quinerly put on a vintage performance on Saturday against Arkansas.

Oats said Alabama was “obviously better” with Quinerly on the floor. He even had numbers to back up the thought, citing points per 100 possessions on the offensive end. In a game that required some grinding down the stretch, Quinerly was a huge difference-maker.

“I thought he was much more engaged on the defensive end this game,” Oats said. “It’s big. Because I am looking right now and we were 48 points per 100 possessions better with him on the floor than with him off the floor tonight. So, offensively, we were obviously better with him on the floor tonight. A lot better… We don’t win the game if he doesn’t play the way he did in the second half. We don’t have a chance

Only Brandon Miller scored more than Quinerly against the Hogs, going for 16 points. He provided seven assists as well, leading Alabama in that category.

Even with a performance such as that, Oats admits there are things Quinerly needs to improve. There is a reason he is still coming off the bench and not in the starting five. Size plays a part on the defensive end but Quinerly has a couple of places to tune up heading into March.

“There’s going to be teams that we play where it’s going to be a bigger difference with him on the floor than otherwise,” Oats said. “Otherwise, defensively, he’s got to get a little better for us. I think he’s been trying hard. He gives up some size sometimes when we switch. We’ve been switching a lot.”

Alabama ‘going to need’ Jahvon Quinerly heading into March

Alabama struggled offensively on Saturday, especially from the three-point line. There was still a confidence out there on the floor though, especially with Quinerly playing well.

“We needed him tonight, we’re going to need him moving forward,” Oats said. “It’s great to see him get his swagger back. Thought he looked great out there today.”

With somebody Quinerly’s age comes playing in some big games. He went through a successful season in 2020-2021, helping Alabama win both an SEC regular season and tournament championship. Slight adjustments will have the point guard back out there in big spots.

“Jahvon has been in big games,” Oats said. “He was the SEC Tournament MVP two years ago. He’s proven he can play at a high level. We’ve been trying to get him to get his defense better. His offense has been getting better and better as the weeks go on in practice.”