Alabama
Trevecca Nazarene
Men's Basketball Wins Exhibition Over Trevecca Nazarene, 87-65
11/6/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Alabama men's basketball team cruised to an 87-65 win over Trevecca Nazarene in the team's lone exhibition game on Friday, Nov. 6 at Coleman Coliseum. The Crimson Tide was good on 30 of its 58 shots from the floor. The defense was also disruptive, grabbing a total of 11 steals on the night.
"It was a pretty good night for us tonight," head coach Avery Johnson said. "Our guys were very anxious to get out on the floor and play in front of their home crowd. There was pretty good energy in the building tonight for an exhibition game. So, I want to thank everybody who came out tonight to support the team."
Alabama took an 11-point lead to the locker room at halftime, up 45-34. The Tide scored nine points off turnovers and turned six offensive rebounds into six points in the first half to build its lead. Alabama outrebounded the Trojans 19-9. Junior Shannon Hale led the team in scoring with 12 points while shooting 3-of-4, all from behind the arc.
The Tide picked up where they left off in the second half, quickly going on a 10-point run at the 18:41 mark. That was good for a 16-4 extended run when combined with the last minute of the first half. Aided by three turnovers across 2:30 and capped by dunks from freshman Dazon Ingram and junior Jimmie Taylor, Alabama opened up a 55-36 lead.
With 14:32 left on the clock, Trevecca Nazarene went 2-of-11 from the field including a 0-of-9 stretch. The Tide took advantage and went on a 20-8 run to open up a 29-point lead, its largest of the game. Alabama scored 21 points from the free throw line and finished with 18 second chance points.
The Tide saw three players finish in double digits with Hale's 18 points leading the team. Graduate transfer Arthur Edwards added 12 and sophomore Riley Norris put up 10. Junior Michael Kessens led Alabama on the boards with nine rebounds. Ingram added seven while Norris and senior Retin Obasohan each had six. The Tide won the battle of the boards, 45-24.
The Trojans also had three players reach double figures. Senior Byron Sanford led the team with 16 points while Michael Lang added 12 and Tyrell Corlew had 10. Jacob Williams led the team with five rebounds.
Alabama will officially open its season in Coleman Coliseum next Friday, Nov. 13, against Kennesaw State. Tipoff against the Owls is set for 7:30 p.m. CT and will air on SEC Network Plus. The game is part of a doubleheader with the women's team, who will take on Alabama A&M at 4:30 p.m. CT.
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