Alabama Guard Houston Mallette Bids Redshirt Goodbye, Debuts Against North Carolina

Houston Mallette, a transfer from Pepperdine, made his debut in an Alabama uniform on Wednesday night.

Will Miller | Dec 4, 2024

Alabama guard Houston Mallette (95) in a game against North Carolina. / Alabama Athletics

A lot can change over the course of a season. In college basketball, wherein the most successful teams play in more than three dozen games over the course of a campaign, this holds true.

However, it took only nine games for 10th-ranked Alabama (7-2) to send transfer guard Houston Mallette to the floor for the first time- despite the fact that head coach Nate Oats said just prior to the season opener on Nov. 4 that the Pepperdine transfer would redshirt, along with teammate Naas Cunningham.

A change in those plans was necessitated starting on Nov. 30, when fellow guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. sustained a season-ending Achilles rupture in the Players Era Festival championship game against Oregon. Thus, one of the best long-range shooters in the transfer portal last offseason, was pressed into action for his final season of eligibility on Wednesday (in a true road game at No. 20 North Carolina, no less). The Crimson Tide defeated the 20th-ranked Tar Heels (4-4) 94-79 in Chapel Hill.

Mallette checked in after the under-12 media timeout of the first half, officially burning his redshirt as the program opted to insert him into the picture for the much-anticipated ACC-SEC Challenge game and beyond. Oats said this week that this development was possible. Alabama's depth has been affected by the injuries to Wrightsell and South Florida transfer Chris Youngblood at the guard position. The latter of the two has still not played in a game but is expected back this month.

In nine minutes of action, Mallette scored six points on two attempts from beyond the arc. He was perfect from the field and added three rebounds with two steals. Before assessing his own performance postgame, he was sure to acknowledge Wrightsell.

"My prayers are out there with Latrell," Mallette said. "I talked to him a lot because he played at Cal State Fullerton, and that was close to where I went to school. We kind of kept in touch. He's a big reason why I came here, and obviously this isn't the way I wanted to play... I'd love Latrell to play."

Oats praised Mallette's decision to step up for his fallen teammate, as well as his effort in the game itself. He pointed not just to Mallette's shooting efficiency, but his defensive play creating opportunities for the team on the other end as well.

"In my opinion, a lot of times in society, we have 'What's best for me,'" Mallette, who initially came to the decision to redshirt after consultation between himself, his father and the coaching staff, said. "I feel like what's best for me in my life is what's best for the team. Anything I can do help impact people, impact the team, that's what I'm willing to do."

Mallette converted on 42 percent of his attempts from three-point range in 2023-24, and despite his previously expected impact on the 2025-26 team now being rendered a moot point, he adds a new offensive dimension to a very deep roster which now needs it. During a glimpse of what he brings to the table Wednesday, he showed poise and hustle (as well as his range) in the face of one of the fiercest environments in all of college basketball.

"Super happy... Houston, unselfish enough to come off his redshirt," Oats said. "He was great."

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