The University of Alabama men’s basketball team announced its full 2017-18 non-conference schedule Friday, highlighted by high-profile games that include a Dec. 9 road trip to face Arizona – projected as a preseason top-five team nationally – and games against Big 12 teams Oklahoma and Texas.
Six teams on the schedule reached last year’s NCAA Tournament or NIT, while eight of UA’s 13 non-conference opponents finished in the top three of their respective leagues a year ago.
Alabama will open the season Nov. 10 in a neutral-site game against the Memphis Tigers in Annapolis, Maryland.
Nine of the UA non-conference will be played in the state of Alabama. In addition to playing seven games at Coleman Coliseum, the Crimson Tide will also play Mercer in the Rocket City Classic at Huntsville’s Von Braun Center on Dec. 19, followed by a matchup against Texas in the Vulcan Classic at Birmingham’s Legacy Arena on Dec. 22.
The Crimson Tide will return home for three games, hosting Lipscomb on Nov. 14, Alabama A&M on Nov. 17 and Sun Belt regular-season champion Texas-Arlington on Nov. 21.
Following the home contests, the Crimson Tide will travel to Brooklyn, New York, to participate in the Barclays Center Classic where it will play two games over Thanksgiving weekend (Nov. 23-25). Joining Alabama at the event will be BYU, Minnesota and UMass. Matchups will be determined at a later time.
Alabama will begin another home stand following its trip to New York when it welcomes three teams who are expected to contend for conference titles during the upcoming season: Conference USA contender Louisiana Tech on Nov. 29, American Athletic Conference favorite Central Florida on Dec. 3 and Atlantic-10 perennial power Rhode Island on Dec. 6. The final non-conference game of the regular season will take place on Jan. 27 when Alabama hosts Oklahoma in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.
The Crimson Tide will play an exhibition game prior to the start of the regular season, but the opponent and date of that game are still being finalized.
The 2018 SEC game dates, as well as all start times and television carriers, will be revealed at a later date. The league office announced the Tide’s 2018 league opponents in early June.
Reach Cecil Hurt at cecil@tidesports.com or 205-722-0225
