Alabama men’s basketball doesn’t have to play its A-game to win games this season.
The Crimson Tide might not even have to play its B-game. Heck, even the C-game might be even get the job done against some teams.
That showed at times Monday night in Huntsville during the Rocket City Classic exhibition game between the Crimson Tide and Memphis. Alabama’s offense struggled out of the gate, but the Tigers couldn’t do anything with it. The Crimson Tide just played stifling defense instead. When Alabama’s offense struggled again in the second half, Memphis still couldn’t take control of the game.
Then the game, without the ability for players to foul out, turned into an absolute foul fest. Alabama outlasted Memphis 96-88 at Propst Arena, one week away from the regular-season opener.
Alabama did it all without some key players such as Grant Nelson and Latrell Wrightsell, both of whom are expected starters and are still week-to-week with injuries. Chris Youngblood and Aiden Sherrell also missed the game with injuries.
Here are our takeaways from the game between the Crimson Tide and Tigers.
Buy stock in Labaron Philon now
The freshman is a playmaker, plain and simple.
Philon can score. He can create offense. He can get stops on defense. If or when Alabama needs something done, Philon can seemingly handle it.
If he’s not starting, he’s going to be one of the first players off the bench this season. Alabama won’t want to keep him off the floor much if he keeps playing like this.
After 13 points, four rebounds, five assists and three triples in the first exhibition game against Wake Forest, Philon reached double-digits again in the matchup with Memphis. And then he improved on his stat line. Philon had 17 points, five rebounds and seven assists.
A foul-fest
Each team got plenty of work at the free-throw line Monday. The officials made sure of it.
Both teams had the opportunity to attempt almost 50 free throws on the night. It led to what felt like a never ending game. Players couldn’t foul out, so some picked up their fifth, sixth and even seventh fouls and kept playing.
It led to a game that spanned more than 2.5 hours. It reached a point late where an Alabama fan in the crowd late offered a free eye exam to an official.
The two teams combined to shoot almost 100 free throws in the game. Alabama went 30 of 48 and Memphis went 29 of 48.
The more Mo, the better
Perhaps no player on the roster better embodies blue collar than Mo Dioubate.
His game isn’t near as flashy as some of the returners or some of the additions. But the way he plays, there’s going to be a role for him. No, minutes won’t be easy to distribute on this team with all the elite talent. But Dioubate’s grit will almost always be welcomed.
He put that on display in the first half. Dioubate made the most of his 11 minutes before the break; he scored eight points, grabbed six rebounds (three on each end of the floor) to go with a steal. And oh by the way, Dioubate also knocked down a triple. He finished the day with 11 points, eight rebounds and an assist. He made 6 of 8 free throws, too.
Nick Kelly is an Alabama beat writer for AL.com and the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X and Instagram.
