TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Shannon Hale hit 3 of 5 from 3-point range and finished with 19 points and Alabama beat Ball State 77-59 on

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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Shannon Hale hit 3 of 5 from 3-point range and finished with 19 points and Alabama beat Ball State 77-59 on Friday night.I thought his body language was good, Alabama coach Avery Johnson said. ...What more can I say. That Shannon Hale is the one I consistently want to see.After coming off the bench to score 13 in the first half, Hale was inserted into the starting lineup for the second in place Bola Olaniyan. Reserves ArMond Davis and Avery Johnson Jr. combined to score 30 for the Crimson Tide (2-1), with 17 and 13 points, respectively, to help Alabamas bench to match the Cardinals in scoring.Davis made 5-of-7 3-pointers and Johnson Jr. made 3-of-3 while adding six assists and five rebounds.Johnson Jr. said his teammates were instrumental in his success, but he also said breaking from routine and taking a nap before the pre-game meal helped to settle his nerves.I just kind of told myself yesterday, Im not going to wait until like my fifth or my last year to turn it up, Johnson Jr. said. So I thought this was going to be a good opportunity so once I got there I did some different things in my pregame.It was close for much of the first half and scoreless for the first 4-plus minutes. Hales dunk with 15:20 left in the half was the first made field goal and gave Alabama a 4-0 lead. Alabamas offense picked up from there until it cooled off late in the second half when the team failed to make a shot from the field for nearly 7 1/2 minutes.Despite those struggles, the Cardinals (1-2) were unable to take advantage. Tayler Persons led Ball State with 15 points. Franko House, who came in averaging 22 points and 10 rebounds, finished with 10 points and seven boards.Johnson credited Wednesdays practice with the success of the bench. With three starters missing that day others had to step up.Shannon and Avery and ArMond they practically are on the same team every practice so they are getting in a good rhythm of knowing each others strengths and weaknesses, Johnson said.BIG PICTUREAlabama: The Crimson Tide bounced back from Tuesdays 77-72 loss to Dayton to avoid falling below .500.Ball State: The Cardinals held their first two opponents to exactly 64 points in regulation, but the team didnt have an answer for Alabamas offense once it got going.NEXT UPAlabama: The Crimson Tide will leave the confines of Coleman Coliseum for the first time this season to face Valparaiso in Las Vegas, Nevada.Ball State: The Cardinals will return home to face Coppin State for the chance to claim the teams first home victory of the season on Monday.STAT OF THE NIGHT: Ball State committed 21 turnovers -- 100 more than the Tide. Alabama finished the game with 14 steals and outscored the Cardinals 26-6 on points off turnovers. https://www.cheapnfljerseyschina.co/shaun-bodiford-jersey-for-sale/" class="TyTxtSmlC">Shaun Bodiford . The return match will take place next Wednesday. Udinese leads Fiorentina 2-1 in the other semifinal. Napoli staged a second-half comeback from two goals down after Gervinhos opener and a stunning strike from Kevin Strootman. https://www.cheapnfljerseyschina.co/jason-buck-jersey-for-sale/" class="TyTxtSmlC">Jason Buck . 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In the first semifinal, No. 2 Wake Forest faces undefeated No. 6 Denver.Stanford had with three ties and a loss in its first six games before winning 13 of its next 16 games to win a third straight Pac-12 championship and return to the College Cup.I think it was kind of a wakeup call seeing how hard we were going to get played and I think we adapted to that as the season progressed, said defender Tomas Hilliard-Arce, who was named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year last month.Stanford hopes to become the first team since Indiana in 2003-04 to win consecutive national championships. Coach Jeremy Gunns team is the first to return to the College Cup the season after winning the national championship since Wake Forest returned in 2008 after winning it all in 2007.Stanford lost some key players from last season, including MLS Rookie of the Year and the reigning Hermann Trophy winner Jordan Morris. But it returns six starters from last seasons team. Five of those players were named to the All-Pac-12 first team last month, and one was on the second team.We had some great players leave after last year and I think some people wanted to write us off this year, Gunn said.Stanford is led by Co-Pac-12 player of the year Foster Langsdorf. The junior forward has led the teams attack this season, scoring 15 goals, including one in each of Stanfords three tournament games. In their 10 Pac-12 games, Langsdorf scored 12 goals.North Carolina comes to Houston for its first College Cup appearance since winning a national championship in 2011. The Tar Heels also reached the national semifinals in 2009-10.Some things to know about the College Cup.H-TOWN CONNECTION: The Tar Heels come to Houston with many connections to the area. Three Houston Dynamo players, defenders Jalil Anibaba and Sheanon Williams and goalkeeper Tyler Deric, played at North Carolina, while head coach Carlos Somoano is from nearby Seabrook, Texas. The Tar Heels leading scorer, Tucker Hume, said players from the Dynamo have reached out to them and that theyll be at Fridays game.ddddddddddddMy formative soccer years and experiences were done right here in Houston, Somoano said. So for me its very special to be back here.YOUTH MOVEMENT: After losing key players from last season, including three who were selected in the top 12 of the MLS SuperDraft, North Carolina has had to rely on its youth in 2016. The Tar Heels have 12 players who have appeared in all 20 games this season, six of whom are either freshmen or sophomores. Sophomore forward Nils Bruening leads the team in goals with eight, while redshirt sophomore goalkeeper James Pyle has allowed just 10 goals this season.Theyve been a bit of a revelation for us, Somoano said. Its just fascinating to see how they evolve through the year. Theyre not the same players now than they were in August.FAMILIAR FACES: Denver head coach Jamie Franks and Wake Forests Bobby Muuss have plenty of history. Muuss was an assistant coach for the Demon Deacons during Franks freshman season in Winston-Salem and was the coach at Denver from 2007-14, with Franks serving as his assistant for three seasons. When Muuss took over at Wake Forest before the 2015 season, Franks took his place at Denver.I love Wake Forest . but at the end of the day, these are my boys, Franks said. These are my kids, and Wake Forest is standing in our way.WAKE EYES REDEMPTION: Last season, Wake Forest was the No. 1 team in the country with a 17-2-2 record before falling in the quarterfinals to the eventual national champions Stanford in overtime. This season, the Demon Deacons enter the College Cup with an 18-2-3 mark with a pair of shutouts in wins over Coastal Carolina and Virginia Tech.DOMINANCE REWARDED: Since Franks took over as the Denver head coach, the Pioneers have lost just one game, a defeat to SMU that ended the 2015 season. The team feels its 35-1-6 record under Franks it has not received enough credit, mostly because the Pioneers play in the Summit League. This is Denvers first appearance in the College Cup and the players are embracing their underdog role.Its more a historical thing than an actual thing because no one in our locker room is surprised to be here, we expected to be here, sophomore forward Andre Shinyashiki said. ' ' '