TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The No. 24/24 Alabama men’s basketball team defeated Morehead State 105-73 Monday night in Coleman Coliseum in the season opener for both teams.

 

The Crimson Tide had four players finish with double digits, led by Grant Nelson with a game-high 24 points and seven rebounds. He was joined in double figures with Aaron Estrada (16 points, Mark Sears (13) and Jarin Stevenson adding 12 points in his collegiate debut.

 

The Eagles were led by Riley Minx scoring 19 points and collecting five rebounds.

 

Head Coach Nate Oats Postgame Comments

“I thought it was a great start to the season. We started well tonight and jumped out of gate. I was pleased with where our heads were at to start the game. I did think we had a little bit of a letdown at various points, but we were able to turn it back up. There's plenty of stuff we need to work on, particularly on the defensive end. I thought we got the ball moving, we had 16 assists tonight. A few too many turnovers but we were able to turn them over a little bit as well. That's a good team. They were picked to win the Ohio Valley Conference. It’s a good team with good players and I thought our guys played well.”

 

TEAM STATS

• The Tide scored 100 points in a season opener for the first time since scoring 107 points in the opening game of the 2001-02 campaign vs. Mississippi Valley State
• Alabama outrebounded Morehead State, 40-29
• In addition, UA held a 23-5 edge in fast break points and a 38-15 advantage in bench points
• For the game, the Tide shot 56 percent (32-of-57) from the field and connected on 10 three-pointers
• In comparison, the Eagles connected 43 percent (27-of-62) from the field and 30 percent (7-of-23) from beyond the arc

 

FIRST HALF

• The Tide came out of the gate on fire, going 7-of-7 from the floor, cashing in on two three-pointers to take a 17 -5 lead
• Alabama didn’t look back, draining eight treys by six different players to help take a 20-point lead (55-35) into the locker rooms
• Aaron Estrada led the Tide with 14 first half points
• Alabama converted on 58.6 percent of its first half field goals (17-of-29 and eight threes (8-of-15)
• UA was a perfect 13-of-13 from the charity stripe

 

SECOND HALF

• Alabama continued its dominance, outscoring Morehead State 50-28 in the second stanza
• Grant Nelson scored 13 of his 24 points and grabbed all seven of his rebounds after halftime
• The Tide dominated the glass, owning a 27-12 rebounding advantage including a 10-4 edge on offensive boards

 

UP NEXT

• Alabama will face the Indiana State Sycamores Friday night in Coleman Coliseum
• The game will tip-off at 7 p.m. CT and air live on SEC Network+

 

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