The 3-pointer: Takeaways from Alabama basketball’s charity exhibition

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Following an alarming wake-up call earlier this month, No. 20 Alabama basketball looks to be rolling in the right direction heading into its season opener. The Crimson Tide wrapped up its preseason with a solid performance against Southern Illinois on Saturday, downing the Salukis 73-64 during their charity exhibition inside Foster Auditorium.

Alabama’s win came after a 99-66 defeat in a closed scrimmage at TCU earlier this month. Following that loss, the Crimson Tide held a players-only meeting to refocus itself and right the ship heading into the regular season. Whatever was said seemed to work.

Debuting its revamped roster in front of a student-only attendance, Alabama wasn't its sharpest but still provided plenty to cheer about. The Crimson Tide shot just 3 of 23 from deep but made up by outmuscled Southern Illinois down low. Alabama outrebounded Southern Illinois 46-29 while holding a 44-28 advantage in the paint.

Alabama sent out a starting five featuring four newcomers in transfer guards Mark Sears (Ohio) and Dom Welch (St. Bonaventure) and freshmen forwards Brandon Miller and Noah Clowney in addition to graduate forward Noah Gurley. However, Nate Oats rotated heavily through his roster, getting all his available players plenty of action.

With its preseason slate in the books, Alabama will prepare for its season opener against Longwood on Nov. 7 inside Coleman Coliseum.

Here are three takeaways from Saturday's charity exhibition.

Alabama is hoping to get injured starter Charles Bediako back in time for its season opener. However, if the Crimson Tide has to play a few games without its big man, it should be able to manage just fine. All of Alabama’s bigs put in solid performances Saturday as Clowney, Gurley and JUCO transfer Nick Pringle combined for 28 points and 22 rebounds.

"I thought all three of those guys gave us really good minutes, played hard rebounded the ball well," Oats said. "They're getting better. We've got a good frontcourt right now, but once we get Charles back, I feel like we'll be able to protect the rim and rebound the ball fairly well."

Starting in place of Bediako at the center position, Clowney made a strong first impression, chipping in six points and two rebounds during Alabama’s first rotation over the opening four minutes. The 6-foot-10, 210-pound forward served finished the game with six points and eight rebounds while earning the team's hard-hat award given to the play with the most blue-collar points.

Gurley led the way down low, scoring 12 points while coming down with six rebounds. The 6-foot-8, 215-pound graduate student was able to use his blend of size and savvy to his advantage, drawing multiple fouls while driving down the lane. He finished the afternoon 6 of 9 from the line

Pringle provided plenty of athleticism off the bench, showing off his hops with a pair of second-half dunks. The 6-foot-9, 220-pound junior nearly netted a double-double, scoring 10 points to go with eight rebounds.

"I thought his energy was great," Oats said. "He had five offensive boards. We scored off second-chance points, we had 14 of them. He was a big part in that. He brings some athleticism to the table.

"We're going to continue to work with him. I think he's got a lot of upside, and he's got a lot of basketball to learn yet, but I was happy with his play."

Alabama’s five-star freshman will have flashier performances moving forward. However, Saturday was a solid first impression from Miller. After starting the game a bit passively, the McDonald’s All-American flipped a switch in the second half, finishing with a team-high 14 points on 5 of 13 shooting to go with six rebounds.

"Sometimes your shot drops, it gets you going a little bit," Oats said. "We had the closed scrimmage against TCU. He wasn't as aggressive in the first half either and came out more aggressive in the second half. We have to try to get him a little more aggressive earlier in the game moving forward, but he's obviously a talented player. I think he'll play a little better than he did today, but he wasn't bad today."

Miller never got things going from beyond the arc, missing all five of his 3-point attempts. The 6-foot-9, 200-pound forward did show off his athleticism in the transition game, including a powerful dunk off a steal in the first half. He also played solid defense, recording a pair of steals.

Alabama’s new point guard was pulling all the strings. Sears was arguably the Crimson Tide's most effective scorer, recording 13 points on 6 of 11 shooting while tallying four rebounds and a pair of assists. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound junior showed plenty of athleticism, driving to the lane and dishing out passes to his teammates.

Sears did have a team-high four turnovers which were a product of his aggressive play on the court. He’ll need to take care of the ball better moving forward, but his hustle and distribution up the court should go a long way for the Crimson Tide as Jahvon Quinerly continues to recover from his ACL injury.

"I liked his play," Oats said of Sears. "I thought he created some offense for us, got our guys some shots. Him and Jaden Bradley both gave us pretty solid minutes at the one. They both got to do a better job taking care of the ball. When we get Quinerly back, we'll play some of them together at times, too. We'll have some breakdown guys who can break the defense down and get the ball in the lane."