There are times when preseason basketball exhibitions, especially against teams that are not in NCAA Division I, get out of hand.
Then there was Sunday.
The University of Alabama’s preseason exhibition game against Auburn-Montgomery didn’t so much “get out of hand” as it escaped custody altogether, stole a car, rode to the border and adopted an assumed identity. The final score was Alabama 105, AUM 16.
There’s no need to dwell on the endless list of one-sided statistics except to note Alabama led 57-11 after the first half and that was AUM’s good half. The Crimson Tide finished on a 41-0 run that lasted through the entire fourth quarter.
“It was good to see a different color jersey,” said Alabama coach Kristy Curry, settling on the AUM uniforms in a strong effort to find a compliment to give the overmatched visitors. “It was good to stop playing against ourselves and to go through our game-day routine. You can’t simulate that.”
Sophomore guard Brittany Davis, a transfer from Gulf Coast (Fla.) Community College, led all scorers with 19 points.
None of the 14 Alabama players who saw action played for more than 19 minutes.
“We feel like we have the most depth we’ve had in our tenure,” Curry said.
As with all coaches, Curry also found at least one area of concern.
“I was disappointed in the offensive boards (where Alabama grabbed only 11 rebounds),” she said. “We’ve got to create possessions, especially in the conference games, and one way to do that is to get those 50-50 balls off the offensive glass.”
The Crimson Tide opens its regular season on Nov. 6 with a home game against Hampton University.
Reach Cecil Hurt at cecil@tidesports.com or 205-722-0225.
