Chris Stewart Sports

Nov. 15, 2008

Tuscaloosa, Ala. -

The Alabama men’s basketball team will open its regular season on Sunday, November 16, against the Mercer Bears. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. at Coleman Coliseum. The Crimson Tide is coming off a 97-43 win in its exhibition finale against the Belhaven Blazers. Mercer is opening its regular season against Piedmont College tonight.

Who to Watch

Alabama sophomore guard Senario Hillman concluded exhibition play on the right track. Hillman poured in a team-high 21 points in a lopsided win against Belhaven on Thursday night. Hillman was 8-for-12 from the floor, 3-for-5 from beyond the arc and a perfect 2-for-2 from the charity stripe. In the two exhibition contests, the Irwinton, Ga. native averaged 16.5 points and five rebounds per game. Hillman shot at 48 percent clip and was second on the team with seven steals.

Last Time Out

The Alabama men’s basketball team concluded exhibition play with a 97-43 victory over Belhaven at Coleman Coliseum Thursday night. The Tide defense set the tone, holding the Blazers to 29 percent shooting and forcing 31 turnovers that led to 40 points. Eleven Tide players broke into the scoring column led by sophomore guard Senario Hillman who scored a game-high 21 points. Hillman scored 15 of his 21 in the second half when he was a perfect 6-6 from the field including 3-3 from behind the arc. Three more Tide players scored in double figures with Alonzo Gee tallying 18 points and six rebounds and freshman JaMychal Green adding 14 points and a team-high seven boards. Yamene Coleman chipped in 12 points off the bench. Alabama dished out 26 assists on 34 field goals with Ronald Steele racking up eight assists to lead the team. On the defensive end, Alabama came up with 20 steals led by Green with five while Hillman and Coleman added four swipes a piece.

Scouting Mercer

The Bears enter its first season under the direction of head coach Bob Hoffman. Mercer enters Tuscaloosa after splitting its two exhibition contests. The Bears defeated LCC International, 117-77 and then fell to Georgia College and State by the score of 75-72. Mercer returns eight players, including three of its top five scorers, from last year’s squad that posted an 11-19 overall record, while notching a 6-10 Atlantic Sun Conference record. Junior guard James Florence started 28 contests and was the team’s top scorer at 19 points per game, good enough for second in the conference. The squad’s lone senior and reigning A-Sun Defensive Player of the Year, Calvin Henry, started all 30 games for the Orange and Black last season. The 6-foot-7 forward was first in the A-Sun in blocked shots (1.93/g) and ranked third in rebounding, collecting 7.7 caroms a contest. Returning sophomore guard Mark Hall started nine games a year ago, including the final seven contests. The Los Angeles, Calif., native scored a career-high 30 points against Loyola Marymount last season while draining a University Center record 15-of-17 free throws. During the final seven games he averaged nearly four assists per game and shot 88.9 percent (16-of-18) from the charity stripe.

Alabama vs. Mercer: The Series

For the second straight season Alabama will face Mercer early in the non-conference schedule. Sunday’s meeting will mark the seventh matchup between the two programs with the Crimson Tide holding a 5-1 all-time advantage. Alabama has yet to lose in Tuscaloosa to Mercer as UA sports a perfect 4-0 record at home. The two squads met last season in Macon, Ga., on Nov. 13, 2007, where the Crimson Tide earned a 90-83 victory. The lone loss against the Bears came on a neutral court in 1923 by the score of 28-23.

Exhibition Play

Alabama went 2-0 in its exhibition play, earning a 99-53 win over Faulkner and a 97-43 victory against Belhaven. The Crimson Tide outscored its opponents by 50 points per game and shot at a 45 percent clip while holding its opposition to 29 percent shooting. Four Alabama players averaged double-digits in points. Alonzo Gee paced all UA scorers with 19.5 points per game. Senario Hillman followed with 16.5 per game while JaMychal Green (11.0) and Mikhail Torrance (10.5) rounded out the Tide scorers. Demetrius Jemison led Alabama with 7.0 rebounds per outing. Ronald Steele handed out 11 assists and only turned the ball over once.

Key Game Notes

• Alabama returns 2007-08 starters Alonzo Gee (14.5 ppg/5.8 rpg), Demetrius Jemison (5.6 ppg/5.3 rpg) and Brandon Hollinger (started 10 of 32 games, 6.3 ppg/3.2 apg) and, after a redshirt season in 2008, Ronald Steele (a starter in 2005, ‘06 and ‘07) returns at point guard.

• Alonzo Gee and Ronald Steele were named to the Preseason All-SEC Second Team, as selected by the conference coaches.

• Mark Gottfried is two wins away from 200 at Alabama (198-123, .617 winning percentage).

• Mark Gottfried has had eight straight winning seasons at Alabama; the record is nine, co-held by Hank Crisp (1929-37) and C.M. Newton (1972-80).

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.

Alabama Basketball: A Historical Perspective

• 7 SEC regular season championships

• 6 SEC tournament championships

• 19 NCAA Tournament Appearances (2004 NCAA Elite 8)

• 5 NIT Final Four Trips

• 40 NBA Players (5 current NBA players)

• 19 First-team All-Americans

• 48 Academic All-SEC players

• Ranks 20th in NCAA in number of NCAA tournament appearances in the last 25 years with 16

• 126 All-SEC players

• Ranks second all-time in SEC wins behind Kentucky

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 Sports Maui Invitational

Alabama will head to the Hawaiian Islands to participate in the 25th EA Sports Maui Invitational. Alabama will open 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 Nov. 24-26 at Lahaina Civic Center in Maui, Hawaii, features Texas playing St. Joseph’s on Nov. 24 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.

Game Day Promotion

The game against Mercer will be a family fun night. The Crimson Tide is offering 4 tickets to the game, 4 Bryan Hot Dogs, 4 Golden Flake Chips and 4 Coca-Colas for only $56. (regular value $88). Family packs can be purchased in advance at www.rolltide.com or by calling 1-877-TIDETIX.

Next Time Out

Alabama will continue its non-conference schedule with a mid-week contest against Florida A&M. The Crimson Tide will face the Rattlers on Wednesday, Nov. 19 at 8:00 p.m. Alabama will then head to the Hawaiian Islands for the EA Sports Maui Invitational. UA will open against Oregon on Nov. 24 at 11:00 p.m.