Alabama
Stillman
Alabama Defeats Stillman 104-50 in Exhibition Play
11/10/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By Chris Woodfin
The University of Alabama men's basketball team welcomed home former Crimson Tide All-American Leon Douglas back to Coleman Coliseum on Wednesday night as UA hosted cross-town Stillman College. The game marked Alabama's first exhibition game of the year as well as Douglas' debut as Stillman's head basketball coach.
The Tide scorched the nets offensively all game long, shooting a robust 72.4 percent offensively in the first half and 65.5 percent in the second half. Alabama never trailed in the game, scoring the game's first nine points en route to a 104-50 win over the Tigers.
Alabama placed five players in double-figures. Senior Earnest Shelton led the way with 14 points followed by Kennedy Winston and Justin Jonus with 13 each and 11 from both Chuck Davis and Jermareo Davidson. Shelton and Jonus paced 'Bama's perimeter attack combining to go seven-for-seven from three-point range.
The Tide also played unselfish ball, with nine different players dishing out assists and 12 players scoring overall.
Alabama head coach Mark Gottfried was pleased with the way the Tide played but still saw room for improvement.
"Well, we tried to ignore the scoreboard," Gottfried said. "Obviously it was a big margin win. We tried to pay attention to more of the little things throughout the game, both offensively and defensively. There were a lot of positive things, obviously, but we've still got to learn what a good shot is. Some of our new players have got to learn what a good shot is. But overall, I thought it was a pretty good night."
The Tigers were led by Wayne Bender with 15 points on six-of-12 shooting from the field.
Douglas appreciated the warm reception he received when he walked onto the court for the first time.
"It made me feel really good," Douglas said. "It makes me feel like I did something good while I was here. As far as the students cheering for me, most of those kids weren't even born when I was here so somebody has been doing some good story telling."
"I'm coaching at Stillman, but Alabama is still my alma mater," Douglas added.
Alabama returns to action Saturday, Nov. 13 when the Tide plays host to Athletes in Action in its final exhibition game of the season. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m. Alabama opens the regular season on Friday, Nov. 19 against Western Carolina at 7:00 p.m.
