GREENVILLE, S.C. – The No. 15./16 Alabama men’s basketball team wrapped up its second and final preseason game with a 96-71 victory over the Furman Paladins on Sunday afternoon for the first game inside the newly renovated Timmons Arena. The win marked Alabama’s second victory of the preseason.

Aden Holloway led all scorers with 18 points, hitting four from beyond the arc, along with four assists. Following him was Labaron Philon Jr. who put up 16 points, shooting 6-of-10 from the field, while dishing out five assists himself.

Furman was led offensively by Charles Johnston and Cooper Bowser combining for 28 points for the Paladins, scoring 14 points apiece. Johnston finished his afternoon with a double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in the effort.  

Head Coach Nate Oats Postgame Comments 

“I thought Furman did a really good job. I think they’ve got a good team. Coach [Richey] is one of the best coaches in the country that I have known that for a while. I thought their physicality on the offensive boards in the second half caused us some problems. They got length on the perimeter, they’ve done a great job putting together a really good roster. They came out of the gate ready to go for the first game in the refurbished arena. I thought they looked really good out of the gate and we didn’t look as ready as we needed to be. I thought after they got up 9-0, we answered the bell pretty well. I thought [Aden] Holloway’s ball pressure really helped turn things around. Give these guys at Furman a lot of credit. They’ve got a good roster, I thought they played really hard, forced us into 15 turnovers. They’re going to be a good team this year. “

Team Stats 

• Today’s matchup marks Alabama’s first trip to Greenville to face off against Furman and the fourth overall meeting between the two teams
• The Crimson Tide had four players in double figures, including Holloway (18 points), Philon Jr. (16 points), Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (12 points) and Amari Allen (11 points)
• Nate Oats‘ squad dominated the glass all game long, bringing in 50 rebounds, compared to the Paladins’ 38
• Alabama had 14 rebounds on the offensive glass, resulting in 20 second chance points throughout the afternoon
• The Crimson Tide’s bench had an efficient outing as well, scoring 43 points, compared to Furman’s 17
• As a unit, Alabama shot 34-for-63 (54 percent) from the field, 9-for-26 (35 percent) from three and 19-for-26 (73 percent) from the free throw line

First Half  

• Alabama struggled defensively to open up the game, allowing Furman to start the game on a 9-0 run
• After both squads fought back and forth for the lead midway through the period, the Crimson Tide went on a 12-2 run from 11:46 to 9:07 to take the lead (28-20) that it held for the rest of the afternoon
• The Crimson Tide outscored the Paladins 27-16 through the final 10:09 of the half 
• Aden Hollway exploded offensively in the opening frame, leading all scorers with 16 points, hitting four three-pointers
• Alabama dominated the rebounding battle as well, grabbing 29 boards compared to Furman’s 15, with seven of them coming from freshman Amari Allen
• After giving up a trio of three-pointers to Furman in the first 1:11 of the game, the Crimson Tide defense only allowed two more through the remainder of the half as the Paladins shot 5-for-16 from deep overall
• As a team, Alabama shot 19-for-36 from the field, 8-for-18 from three and 2-for-8 from the charity stripe as it led 48-36 at the break

Second Half  

• Alabama opened up the second half by getting to the line effectively, with nine of its first 15 points of the period coming from the line
• Furman was able to cut the lead down to 12 points at the 12:35 mark until a quick 11-0 run by the Tide blossomed the lead to a 23-point margin with 9:07 to go (74-51)
• Alabama stayed on the gas offensively to close out the day, outscoring Furman 15-7 in the final 6:02 of the game
• The bench unit came alive for the Tide in the second half, scoring 26 of the 48 points in the frame
• Philon Jr. and Wrightsell Jr. led the team in scoring in the half, accounting for nine points apiece
• Alabama did a better job getting to the line and making free throws in the second half, shooting 17-for-18 from the stripe compared to shooting just 1-for-8 in the first half
• The Crimson Tide defense held the Paladins to shooting just 13-for-41 (32 percent) from the field and 4-for-20 (20 percent) from three-point range in the period

Up Next 

• Alabama will begin the 2025-26 regular season schedule at home on Nov. 3 against North Dakota
• Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. CT at Coleman Coliseum and can be seen on SEC Network+