Mark Pope: Alabama -- 'one of the top offensive teams in the country' -- has improved since Kentucky win

Alabama scored 102 points with five different players scoring in double figures and two going for 20-plus — Grant Nelson went for a season-high 25 points while Mark Sears added 24. As a team, they shot 44.8 percent from the field (30-67), 38.2 percent from three (13-34) and 85.3 percent from the line (29-34). Kentucky played well offensively, scoring 97 points with seven in double figures on 48/41/80 splits, but the Crimson Tide had just a little more firepower inside Rupp Arena back on January 18.

If you ask Mark Pope, the version of Alabama the Wildcats will see in Tuscaloosa may be better than the version that came to Lexington.

“I think they’re a little more cohesive. I think they’re more creative within the structure of the actions that they’re running. I think they’ve gotten better,” Pope said of the Tide’s growth since that first matchup.

They’ve lost two straight, but before that, they won 15 of their last 16 and seven in a row, starting with that trip to Kentucky. What makes them so dangerous — especially when they’re hungry to get back in the win column?

They’re not ranked No. 1 nationally in scoring and No. 3 in offensive efficiency by accident. Even with the Wildcats boasting a top-15 defense in the country over the last two weeks, the Tide belong in their own category when it comes to offense.

“Well, Alabama is a whole — that’s a whole new situation right there,” Pope said of Alabama. “They’re one of, if not, the most explosive offensive team in the country. They challenge you in so many different ways. And it’s the ultimate challenge for your defense. Individually and team-wise, it’ll challenge us in new ways.”

Pope takes pride in running a read-and-react offense that’s incredibly difficult to game plan against, quickly establishing a reputation as one of the brightest minds in basketball. Kentucky is pretty darn good on that end of the floor and has been all year.

Nate Oats took Alabama to the program’s first-ever Final Four doing it last year, though. He zigged while other big-name coaches zagged over the years, making a name for himself with a polarizing brand of basketball and getting the last laugh after taking some early criticism.

No gimmicks in Tuscaloosa.

“Their schemes offensively are — they’ll have some play-calling, for sure, but they mostly work out of actions. Then they stack actions. … They’re just stacking actions that are really familiar to them and playing free,” Pope said of the Crimson Tide. “That’s what you do with veteran guys on a well-coached team. It makes it difficult to guard. It’s not like you have a play sheet where you’re like, ‘Okay, this player is going here at this moment.’ That’s mostly basketball right now.

“Alabama has taken that to a great level, though — certainly one of the top offensive teams in the country.”

Oh, and it helps having the reigning SEC Player of the Year on the roster, bringing back Mark Sears for his final season of eligibility.

“(Mark) Sears is an incredibly talented player. He’s a veteran player, he makes plays for himself and the guys around him,” Pope continued. “He’s coming off of a huge game — I think it’s his highest scoring game of the season. He can impact the game in so many different ways.”

Kentucky will have its hands full inside Coleman Coliseum on Saturday.