Men's Basketball Set to Close Exhibition Slate
11/12/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 12, 2008
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Alabama men's basketball team will close its exhibition slate on Thursday, November 13, against the Belhaven Blazers. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at Coleman Coliseum. The Crimson Tide is coming off a 99-53 win in its exhibition opener against the Faulkner Eagles. Belhaven is 2-0 and is coming off an 81-46 victory over Wesley College.
Who to Watch: Alabama senior guard Alonzo Gee looks to be in midseason form after he tallied a game-high 21 points in 22 minutes against Faulkner to open the exhibition season. Gee was efficient from the floor, connecting on seven of his 13 shots while adding a 6-for-8 clip at the charity stripe. The Palm Beach, Fla., native also grabbed five rebounds and shot 1-for-3 from beyond the arc. Gee recorded a double-double (20 points, 10 rebounds) in the Crimson and White game.
Last Time Out: Alabama took to the hardwood for the first time this exhibition season and earned a 99-53 victory over Faulkner on Nov. 6. Alabama's defense was a large part of the story, forcing 27 Eagle turnovers, including 18 steals that led to 41 fast break points. Faulkner shot 28 percent from the field for the game compared to 45 percent for Alabama. Four Tide players scored in double figures led by Gee's 21. Mikhail Torrance and Justin Knox gave the Tide production off the bench with 19 and 10 points, respectively. Senario Hillman narrowly missed a double-double with 12 points and eight rebounds. The eight boards tied for most on the team with Demetrius Jemison.
Scouting Belhaven: The Blazers enter Tuscaloosa with a 3-0 record after earning wins over Wesley College (81-46) and Blue Mountain College (100-73), (78-61). In two games thus far Korey Whiting paces the team with 14.5 points per game. Whiting also leads the team in rebounds with 7.5 per game. Four Blazers currently average double-digits in points. In 2007-08, the Blazers compiled a record of 16-16 and 7-11 in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference. As a team last year, the Blazers averaged 77.9 points per game while giving up 77.6 points per contest. Belhaven has three players returning to this year's team who averaged over 11 points per game last season. Blazer guard Dax Miller is back for his senior season after being limited to just three games and a redshirt season a year ago. In those three contests, Miller was very productive averaging 16 points per game while shooting over 45 percent from the field. In 2006-07 Miller averaged 18.5 point per game, 5.5 rebounds per contest, and dished out a team leading 83 assists. Whiting is coming off a season in which he pulled down 8.8 rebounds per game and averaged over 15 points per contest. Rounding out the double digit scorers is Iman Walcott who is entering his senior season as well. Last year, Walcott averaged over 11 points per game and averaged five rebounds a night.
Alabama Ties: For the second straight game the head coach of the opposing squad enters Coleman Coliseum with an Alabama connection. Belhaven head coach Tom Kelsey is entering his third season at the helm of the Blazers but prior to a stint at the Greater Atlanta Christian School, Kelsey served as an assistant for Alabama head coach Mark Gottfried from 1998-2001. During his three seasons at Alabama, the team advanced to the NCAA Tournament (2000) and the NIT Tournament (1999, 2001). The 2001 squad played in the NIT championship game, en route to compiling an overall record of 25-11 and spending 15 consecutive weeks in the Top 25 in both the Associated Press and Coaches' polls. Additionally, Coach Kelsey was named one of the Top 20 recruiting coaches by Hoop Scoop magazine, during his time with the Crimson Tide. Last week Faulkner head coach Jim Sanderson returned to Tuscaloosa. Jim is the son of legendary Alabama head coach Wimp Sanderson.
The Return of Ronald Steele: Alabama senior guard Ronald Steele returns to the floor for the first time since March 8, 2007 (a First Round SEC Tournament game vs. Kentucky in Atlanta). Steele missed all of last season to recover from successful knee surgery. He was a 2007 AP and Playboy Preseason All-America selection. Before being sidelined, Steele started 70 consecutive games for the Crimson Tide, dating back to his freshman campaign.
Veteran Squad Returns: Head Coach Mark Gottfried returns a veteran squad as eight of the 12 members of the Crimson Tide are upperclassmen. The eight upperclassmen have played in a combined 450 games in a Crimson Tide uniform. Senior Alonzo Gee leads all players with 96 games played, starting in 72. Senior Brandon Hollinger follows with 94 games played. Robert Horry (1989-92) holds the career games played record with 131.
Gee Scoring Watch: Alabama senior guard Alonzo Gee eclipsed the 1,000-point barrier last season and is rapidly climbing up the all-time scoring list. A total of 41 current and former members of the Crimson Tide are in the prestigious scoring club while Gee ranks 36th overall with 1,156 points. Rickey Brown (1,195 from 1974-77) and Jim Farmer (1,197 from 1984-87) are next on the list.
Steele Record Watch: Alabama senior guard Ronald Steele has etched his name prominently in the Crimson Tide record book. Steele has made his mark in the assist categories where he ranks eighth in career assists (397), first in assists in a single game (18) and fifth in assists per game in a career (4.46 average) The Birmingham, Ala., native is first in free throw percentage for a career (.868) and a season (.892), and ranks third in career three-point field goal percentage (.421) with head coach Mark Gottfried (1985-87) holding the all-time mark with a .485 clip.
Gottfried Among Winningest SEC Coaches: Alabama head coach Mark Gottfried, entering his 11th season at the Capstone, has had great success while directing the Crimson Tide. Gottfried is one of only two coaches to have taken his SEC squad to the NCAA Tournament five times since the 2001-02 season. At Alabama, Gottfried has averaged 20 wins per season to rank second behind only Wimp Sanderson (22.3 in 12 seasons) in the UA record books. Throughout his 13-year coaching career Gottfried has averaged 21 wins per season. With 267 career victories, Gottfried ranks second among coaches who have been on the bench 13 years or less in Division I, trailing only the 305 wins of Tom Izzo of Michigan State.
Home Court Advantage: The Alabama basketball team has been very comfortable over the years on the Tuscaloosa campus. The Crimson Tide sports an 869-201-1 (.812) overall record and an impressive 447-98 (.820) mark at Coleman Coliseum. Under the direction of head coach Mark Gottfried the Crimson Tide has posted a 132-24 (.846) home record. The Tide is currently riding a four-game winning streak at Coleman Coliseum.
Alabama Picked to win the West: In a poll by both national and SEC media the Crimson Tide were selected to win the SEC's Western Division as selected by a 30-member voting panel. Alabama received 11 first-place votes and earned a total of 151 points. LSU had 147 points and also received 11 first-place votes. Tennessee was selected to win the conference.
Gee and Steele Garner Preseason Honors: University of Alabama senior guards Alonzo Gee and Ronald Steele have been selected to the Second Team of the 2008-09 Preseason Southeastern Conference All-Conference team as voted by the league's coaches. Gee was third on the team with 14.5 points per game and second on the team with 6.8 rebounds per game. He led the Tide in scoring in 10 games last season. Steele was a Preseason All-American in 2007-08 before an injury forced him to sit out the 2007-08 season. Alabama's all-time leader in free-throw accuracy (.868), Steele has started 88 of 89 games he has been in a Crimson Tide uniform.
Green Brings Lofty Credentials: Alabama freshman JaMychal Green enters his first season for the Crimson Tide. After compiling a very impressive prep resume. The Montgomery, Ala. native was named a McDonald's All-American and played for the USA National U18 Team in Argentina at the 2008 FIBA Americas U18 Championship. The St. Jude high school standout was named "Mr. Basketball" for the State of Alabama.
Gottfried Nears 200 Wins: Alabama head coach Mark Gottfried is two wins away from earning his 200th career victory while at the helm of the Crimson Tide. Gottfried enters the season with a 198-124 (.615) record over the course of 10 seasons. With two more wins Gottfried will join an exclusive club of 200 game winners at Alabama. Wimp Sanderson (267), Hank Crisp (264) and C.M. Newton (211) are the only coaches in school history to reach the 200 win mark.
EA Maui Invitational: Alabama will head to the Hawaiian Islands to participate in the 25th EA Sports Maui Invitational. Alabama will open its tournament play at 11 p.m. CT against Oregon in the first round on Monday, November 24. It will play the winner or the loser of North Carolina vs. Chaminade on Tuesday, November 25. Game one of the tournament, which is hosted by Chaminade University on November 24-26 at Lahaina Civic Center in Maui, Hawaii, features Texas playing St. Joseph's at 2 p.m. CT. The winner/loser plays Notre Dame or Indiana who play one another in Game 2 at 4:30 p.m. CT on November 24. The North Carolina vs. Chaminade game will be Game 3 played at 8:30 p.m. CT. Six of the eight teams participating were 2008 NCAA tournament participants, including 2008 Final Four team North Carolina and Elite 8 team Texas. ESPN's networks will combine to televise, live, all 12 of the tournament's games. ESPN360.com will provide live simulcasts of the games televised on ESPN and ESPN2.
Next Time Out: Alabama will conclude its exhibition schedule with a matchup against Belhaven. The Crimson Tide will face the Blazers on Thursday, Nov. 13, at 7 p.m. at Coleman Coliseum. The Tide will play its first official game of the season on Sunday, Nov. 16, against Mercer at 6 p.m.
