Aaron Estrada hitting his stride as Alabama begins conference play

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama basketball team emerged from a difficult non-conference slate with an 8-5 record but won two in a row before beginning SEC play this weekend.

After a brutal three-game stretch away from Coleman Coliseum against Purdue, Creighton and Arizona, all ranked in the top 10 at the time, the Crimson Tide dismantled Eastern Kentucky and Liberty to conclude the out-of-conference portion of its schedule. Alabama learned a lot about itself over the last 13 games, and several players have room to improve.

One of those was guard Aaron Estrada, who like many on the team, struggled in the losses to the Boilermakers, Bluejays and Wildcats. However, the Hofstra transfer has elevated his game over the last two outings and finished one assist shy of a triple-double against Liberty.

“I thought it was the best game he’s played,” said Alabama head coach Nate Oats. “I think he’s starting to figure out where to attack, where to get the assist playing with these guys a little more. We knew he could be good. Obviously, he showed how well he could score it in the first half of the first game here, but I think he’s figuring a lot of other things out. 

“Hopefully, we can get a triple-double this year with the amount of shooting and players he has around him. Hopefully, he gets more games where he gets double-digit assists. But he’s also a guy that gets in there, puts his nose in there and rebounds it. So I think his overall game – playmaking, defense, rebounding, all of it – I think he’s playing his best basketball of the year so far right now.”

Estrada has been in the starting lineup for all 13 of Alabama’s games leading up to the league opener at Vanderbilt on Saturday, Jan. 6 (2:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network). The graduate student is averaging 13.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game while shooting 45.3 percent from the floor. Estrada leads the Crimson Tide with 52 assists and is the team’s second-leading rebounder behind fellow transfer Grant Nelson, who is a 6-foot-11 forward. 

Over his last three games, Estrada has seen an uptick in his assist totals. He established a new season-high in the loss to Arizona (6) and increased that number each subsequent game – with seven against Eastern Kentucky and nine against Liberty. He also only turned the ball over a combined three times in the last two contests before the start of conference play.

“I think it’s just me kind of finding my role on this team within the game,” Estrada said. “As you guys know, I was just pretty much a scorer at Hofstra for the last two years. Here, that’s not really the case. I feel like I’m just making winning plays at this point, and it doesn’t have to necessarily end with a shot every time.”

Alabama’s losses, while against quality opponents, exposed some weaknesses early, which is what Oats wants – and why he schedules the way he does. Veterans on the team, like Estrada, believe if the Tide can clean up its shortcomings, it can make some noise in the SEC. 

“I think we’re starting to learn each other more, as far as on the court,” Estrada said. “I still think the thing that’s really just not (allowing) us to put it all together is probably what Coach said, just competing every single possession and not taking any plays off. I feel like once we get that together, though, we’re going to be the best team in the country.”

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