Alabama Set to Welcome Southern Illinois for Charity Exhibition Contest

Alabama Set to Welcome Southern Illinois for Charity Exhibition Contest

10/14/2022 11:57:00 AM | Men's Basketball

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Proceeds from the game between the Crimson Tide and Salukis will go to the Community Service Programs of West Alabama

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama men's basketball team will partner with Southern Illinois on Saturday, Oct. 29, for a charity exhibition game that will be played inside Foster Auditorium at 2 p.m. CT. Proceeds will benefit the Community Service Programs of West Alabama's Alberta Head Start Program as a social injustice initiative supporting the local community.

The contest will be the Crimson Tide's first of the year in the United States after embarking on a foreign tour during the summer, playing once in Barcelona followed by a pair of games in Paris. Alabama finished the tour with a perfect 3-0 record, earning wins over the Chinese National Team, the Spain Select Team and Lithuania B National Team. Freshman Brandon Miller led the Tide in scoring, averaging 22.0 points per contest.

Charity Exhibition Game Notes vs. Southern Illinois

This will mark the third time under head coach Nate Oats that Alabama has participated in an exhibition game for charity (def. Georgia Tech 93-65 on Oct. 27, 2019, def. Louisiana 73-68 on Oct. 24, 2021)
The NCAA approved that an institution may use one of its possible two exhibition games against a Division I institution for the purposes of raising funds for a catastrophic event, COVID-19 relief efforts, and/or social justice initiatives
The two teams will play a regulation 40-minute game
Alabama is 2-0 all-time against Southern Illinois, with the two teams last meeting on March 18, 2004

About Alabama

Preseason Top 25 ranking for the Crimson Tide by Blue Ribbon College, Yearbook (No. 13), The Field of 68 (No. 17), CBS Sports (No. 23), Andy Katz, Preseason Power 36 (No. 30), Lindy's Sports College Basketball (No. 30) and the Rothstein 45 (No. 36)
Alabama's returns five letterwinners from last season's 19-14 campaign, including three starters who helped the Tide advance to consecutive NCAA tournaments for the first time since 2006
Senior Jahvon Quinerly, the Tide's second-leading scorer from the 2021-22 campaign and the 2021 SEC Tournament MVP, will return later in the season after coming off an injury sustained in the NCAA Tournament
Charles Bediako returns after being named to the SEC All-Freshman team and led the Tide in blocks during the season with 51, averaging 1.6 blocks per game
Noah Gurley returns after averaging 6.8 points, 3.5 rebounds and 18.2 minutes per contest
Darius Miles returns to Alabama for his third season after averaging 5.8 points, 3.e rebounds and 17.4 minutes per contest
Head Coach Nate Oats has assembled the highest-ranked recruiting class in program history, including a pair of McDonald's All-Americans in Jaden Bradley and Brandon Miller, along with four-star prospects Rylan Griffen and Noah Clowney
Alabama's freshman contingent is led by Bradley and Miller, who became just the second pair of Alabama signees to be named McDonald's All-Americans in the same year
- Bradley is a consensus five-star prospect, ranked by 247Sports as the No. 1 point guard and No. 17 overall prospect in this year's class
- Miller, the 2021 Tennessee Gatorade Player of the Year, is also a consensus five-star prospect, ranked by 247Sports as the No. 3 small forward and the No. 11 ooverall prospect in the 2022 class
Alongside Miller and Bradley, Rylan Griffen and Noah Clowney also join the freshman class
- Griffen joins the Tide as the No. 3 shooting guard and No. 49 overall player in the 2022 class, according the 247Sports
- Clowney was rated the consensus No. 1 prep player in the state of South Carolina, considered by Rivals as a 4-star player
To go along with the No.3-ranked signing class in the country, Oats also welcomes transfers Dom Welch and Mark Sears to the Capstone
- Welch comes to the Tide after a standout career at St. Bonaventure, where he finished his four years ranked third in program history for three-pointers (257) and with 1,198 career points
- Sears, joining UA after two seasons at Ohio University, is a two-time All-Mid-American Conference performer and a 2022 finalist for the Lou Hensen Award, presented annually to the top mid-major player in the nation
Alongside the seven newcomers, redshirt sophomore Nimari Burnett will be eligble to suit up for the Tide after a season-ending knee injury early in the 2021 season
- Burnett, a Texas Tech transfer, was rated as a five-star prospect out of high school by ESPN and played in the 2021 McDonald's All-American game

Abiut Southern Illinois

Southern Illinois returns seven letterwinners and four starters from last year's campaign, where they earned a 9-9 conference record and finished 16-15 overall
The returners are led by the senior duo of Marcus Domask and Lance Jones, who both earned all-conference honors in 2022
The Salukis welcome six newcomers to this year's roster, adding two freshman and four transfers
Redshirt freshmen Foster Wonders and Scottie Ebube will also be eligible to suit up this season

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