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15 things we learned from Alabama basketball’s charity exhibition against Memphis
- Story byThe Tuscaloosa News
- 15 things we learned from Alabama basketball’s charity exhibition against Memphis
HUNTSVILLE — Alabama basketball defeated Memphis 96-88 in the Rocket City Classic.
The Tigers and the Crimson Tide met in a charity exhibition supporting the Huntsville Hospital Foundation on Monday, getting in some good practice for a good cause before the regular season tips off next Monday.
Mar 22, 2024; Spokane, WA, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide forward Mouhamed Dioubate (10) reacts after a dunk during the first half in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament against the Charleston Cougars at Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Crimson Tide on top: SEC basketball order of finish for 2024-25 season projected by USA TODAY Sports Network
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Bigger than basketball: Alabama basketball's Chris Youngblood playing for something more after children's hospital visit
Here are 15 things we learned about Alabama from the returning Final Four crew's most recent outing:
Who made Nate Oats' starting five?
The starting five included Mark Sears and Aden Holloway at guard, Labaron Philon and Derrion Reid at forward, with Cliff Omoruyi at the No. 5 spot.
Four Alabama players still sidelined
Guard Chris Youngblood (ankle) was without his boot, but is still expected to be out until conference play. Returners Grant Nelson (abdomen), Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (lower leg) and freshman Aiden Sherrell (lower leg) remain week-to-week.
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Sold-out show for Crimson Tide
There are 10,000 seats at Propst Arena in the Von Braun Center. Hours before the game, tickets for the sold-out game were only available for resale in the hundreds of dollars.
What happened the last time Alabama played Memphis?
Memphis, which holds a 4-3 series lead, took down the Crimson Tide 91-88 in December 2022.
Mark Sears reclaims top scorer status
USA Today 's pick for Preseason Player of the Year was resilient once again. Assists were fewer for Sears against Memphis versus six against Wake Forest, but his presence was still felt from the perimeter. Sears led the Crimson Tide with 13 points by halftime and took back over as Alabama's top scorer with 20 points on the night after Holloway's own 20-point outing against Wake Forest a couple weeks ago.
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Quiet day for Aden Holloway
Streakiness showed up for the Auburn transfer after a lights-out performance from downtown in Birmingham. Against Memphis, Holloway was 2-for-8 compared to his 46% shooting percentage against Wake.
Cliff Omoruyi living up to hype
The Rutgers transfer was all over the rim on offense and defense. Omoruyi held on for a dunk that gave Alabama a 20-8 advantage with a little over 10 minutes to halftime. Although a personal foul followed, Alabama fans were fired up for the 6-foot-11 big man, who totaled 10 points on the night, highlighted by three made dunks on five attempts, to accompany a team-best 10 rebounds.
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Mouhamed Dioubate provides punch off the bench
Even if Dioubate doesn't make the starting five, he makes an impact. In 16 minutes versus a game-high 36 for Sears, Dioubate put up 11 points, eight rebounds, an assist and a steal against just one turnover.
Freshman Labaron Philon fills the stat sheet again
This freshman knows how to find his way to a loose ball and make the most of it. Philon's first shot of the game, a layup, gave Alabama a 10-point lead with 11:10 to go in the first period. He also showed his ability to be a significant contributor in every category of the stat sheet once again, registering 17 points, five rebounds, seven assists, a block and a steal.
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Alabama gets taste of aggressive defense
Wake Forest didn't take the physical approach that Alabama saw out of Memphis on Monday. Once it recovered from personal fouls brought on by a hungry Tiger defense, collecting four by the first media timeout at 15:47, the Crimson Tide adjusted to run up the scoreboard from where it stood at 5-4.
Rebounds help run down Memphis early
By the time the Tigers opted for a 30-second timeout with 13:59 to halftime, the Crimson Tide were up 11-4 and had already racked up 12 rebounds, four on offense and eight on defense. Holloway, Omoruyi and Dioubate each chipped in two defensive rebounds for the early effort. In the first period, Alabama had 16 second-chance points to four for Memphis.
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Pace of play still up to speed
Alabama had 85 possessions, seeing the team keep up its speedy pace of play averaging a little over two per minute against Memphis.
Sharpshooting still carrying Alabama offense
Shooting 47% (16 for 34), Alabama had already mounted a 49-29 halftime lead over Memphis. Memphis was unsuccessful from the arc throughout the night, seeing seven unscored 3-point attempts and a shooting percentage of 28% in the first 20 minutes.
The Crimson Tide did struggle from the free-throw line, missing 18.
Turnovers turn up once again
Alabama took to the locker room to study better ways to space the floor and get the ball off after 11 first-half turnovers. There were nine turnovers in the second period, allowing Memphis to fight back for a 10-point game with 8:55 to go and single-digits with 3:05 to the buzzer.
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Memphis finished scoring 25 points off of Alabama turnovers.
Is Alabama defense restored after Memphis?
Omoruyi's presence around the rim had the Crimson Tide looking back to its old ways on defense. Alas, Memphis returned just one scholarship player and an overhauled coaching staff, so the Tigers are still figuring things out. With Alabama still making mistakes like jumping on pump fakes, there's more work to be done for Oats and company.
Emilee Smarr covers Alabama basketball and Crimson Tide athletics for the Tuscaloosa News. She can be reached via email at esmarr@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: 15 things we learned from Alabama basketball's exhibition vs. Memphis
