No. 2 Alabama Takes Down Memphis in 2024 Rocket City Classic

Alabama’s renowned fast-paced offense struggled early and turnovers and sloppiness were common themes with the quick tempo throughout the night.

Alabama men's basketball guard Mark Sears vs. Memphis / Obtained from Alabama Basketball's X/Twitter

HUNTSVILLE, Ala.— The No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team defeated the Memphis Tigers 96-88 in Monday night’s 2024 Rocket City Classic charity exhibition.

This was Alabama’s second and final preseason scrimmage and it clearly appeared like the Crimson Tide was treating it like a regular season matchup from start to finish.

Guards Mark Sears and Labaron Philon were the heavy offensive producers for Alabama as the two combined for 37 points and 11 assists.

Alabama big man Clifford Omoruyi scored the game’s first basket and the Tide never gave up the lead from there. Nevertheless, Alabama’s renowned fast-paced offense struggled early and turnovers and sloppiness were a common theme with the quick tempo throughout the night.

But despite the troubling start offensively, the Tide defense held Memphis to just 5-of-18 from the field midway through the first half. Whether it was inside, midrange or downtown, the Tigers couldn’t buy a bucket due to Alabama’s pressure.

Once the Tide’s offense started to roar, with the backcourt duo of Sears and Philon leading the way, Memphis was able to stay in the game late in the first half after making 9-of-18 free throw attempts. Leading 35-25 with under four minutes remaining in the opening period, Philon and Sears took over, leading Alabama to a much more comfortable 49-29 lead (14-4) run at the break.

That said, the momentum swing helped on the offensive end to start the second half as Sears, Philon and Houston Mallette hit from deep, but last year’s Crimson Tide defense started to show flashes as the Tigers were able to stay into it with constant conversions from all over the floor.

When Alabama’s scoring finally cooled down midway through the second half, Memphis kept its foot on the pedal while the Tide went seven minutes without a field goal, as free throws were the only answer. The Tigers pulled within 11, but a big three-pointer by Jarin Stevenson followed by a Memphis turnover put the Tide offense back on track.

From there, both teams traded turns at the charity stripe, which kept the game at a relatively even score for the final several minutes. Memphis even pulled within six points due to a few more trips to the line than the Crimson Tide.

If there’s any stat to take away from this game, it’s the baffling numbers from the charity stripe by both teams. Alabama went 30-of-48 from the line while Memphis converted on 29-of-48 attempts. In total 96 free throws were attempted on Monday night!

Nevertheless, the Crimson Tide were able to survive until the clock hit zero.

Alabama’s next game will count as the Crimson Tide plays its first regular season game of the 2024-25 season on Nov. 4 at home against UNC Asheville at 8 p.m. CT on ESPNU.

How it Happened (Most Recent Events On Top)

• Timeout with 3:33 remaining: A big three-pointer by Jarin Stevenson followed by a Memphis turnover put the Tide offense back on track. However, the Tigers offense continued to make its way to the free throw line, maintaining a similar deficit as before. Alabama 88, Memphis 76.

• TV Timeout with 7:55 remaining in the second half: Memphis is inching towards a single-digit deficit as the Tigers are converting on fastbreak layups and some free throws due to three steals since the last TV timeout and didn't allow an Alabama field goal conversion (0-for-3) in that span. Alabama 75, Memphis 61.

• TV Timeout with 12:00 remaining in the second half: Alabama and Memphis go stride for stride with three-pointers and free throws by both teams. Houston Mallette made his third shot shot of the night from downtown and is 3-of-5 from the area overall. Alabama 69, Memphis 50.

• Timeout with 15:31 left in the second half: It's raining threes in Huntsville! Labaron Philon, Mark Sears and Houston Mallette each hit from beyond the arc, feeding off of the momentum created at the end of the first half. However, Memphis made 6-of-6 field goal attempts to keep their deficit the same. Alabama 63, Memphis 43.

Alabama vs. Memphis Halftime Stats pic.twitter.com/jjSnUjVdwK

— Hunter De Siver (@HunterDeSiver) October 29, 2024

• HALFTIME: Alabama 49, Memphis 29. The Tide explodes for a 14-4 run to close the half. Sears and Philon were big factors in the run.

Alabama Stat Leaders:
Points: Mark Sears 13 on 4-of-7
Rebounds: Cliff Omoruyi and Mo Dioubate - 6 each
Assists: Labaron Philon - 3 (also has 7 pts and 2 oreb)

• TV Timeout 3:48 left in first half: Mo Dioubate and Houston Mallette's makes from downtown are the fourth and fifth threes of the night for the Crimson Tide. However, while the defense has been relatively stout, Memphis continues to get to the line as the Tigers are 9-of-18 from the stripe. This percentage is obviously low, but it's kept Memphis in the game. Alabama 35, Memphis 25.

• TV Timeout 7:50 left in first half: Both teams trade buckets mostly from inside the paint or the charity stripe. Memphis' field goal percentage received an uptick but Alabama's stout defense is still holding them to 5-of-18. Alabama 26, Memphis 15.

• TV Timeout 10:58 left in first half: Holloway hits an and-1 layup and converts from the line. Naas Cunningham and Dioubate come in for Sears and Omoruyi. The offense began to click for Alabama over the last five minutes as Jarin Stevenson and Sears each made one from behind the arc and multiple Tide players scored inside. Alabama 18, Memphis 8.

• TV timeout with 15:47 left: Alabama's fast-paced offense hasn't led to field goal makes just yet, especially due to turnovers but the Crimson Tide defense went roughly four minutes without giving up a field goal with Derrion Reid and Labaron Philon each blocking a shot. Alabama 5, Memphis 4.

• After two offensive rebounds by the Crimson Tide, Cliff Omoruyi scores the first basket of the night.

Alabama Starting Lineup

Mark Sears
Labaron Philon
Aden Holloway
Derrion Reid
Cliff Omoruyi

Memphis Starting Lineup

Jared Harris
Nick Jourdain
PJ Haggerty
Tyrese Hunter
Dain Dainja