Nate Oats' eighth season as the Alabama head coach got off to an outstanding start on Tuesday night with a 96-74 win over Sam Houston at Coleman Coliseum.
Alabama's offense got off to a bit of a sluggish start with a lid on the rim for stretches of the first half, but as always, the avalanche wasn't far away. Alabama scored 54 points in the second half en route to the 22-point victory.
It wasn't perfect, and Oats will have plenty of teachable moments to take away from this game. But the Crimson Tide looked every bit like a contender in the first game.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the Alabama win:
1. Alabama's defense was outstanding and exactly what was envisioned
The final score might not show it because Sam Houston ended up hitting 15 three-pointers on a 45% clip, but Alabama's defensive effort was outstanding from the opening tip, and the length and switchability of the roster were difficult for the Bearkats to deal with.
Alabama came up with 17 steals and 10 blocked shots, forcing 23 total turnovers. The Tide was one of the worst in the country at forcing turnovers the last two seasons, so if that can sustain throughout the season, it's a huge development for Oats.
2. London Jemison looked awesome in his sophomore debut
With how good Cole Cloer looked in the first two exhibition games, many, including myself, projected that Cloer would eventually take over the starting job at the three spot for Alabama. And while that may still prove to be the case, it'll be because Cloer is incredible and not because of any issue with Jemison.
Alabama got off to a sluggish start from the field, but Jemison got them going. He connected on his first four shots and his first four threes to provide a much-needed early offensive boost.
Jemison finished tied for the team lead in scoring with 15 points on 6-of-7 from the floor with 3 rebounds and 2 steals in just 20 minutes.
3. Alabama got great minutes from all the bigs
While TJ St. Louis and Collins Onyejiaka might get some spot minutes here and there, Alabama's core group of bigs this year will be Brandon Garrison, Drew Fielder, Jamarion Davis-Fleming, and Keitenn Bristow.
That quartet combined for 37 points and 16 rebounds with 13 stocks (steals + blocks). Fielder led the way in scoring with 15 points and 6 rebounds. Garrison scored 9 points and had 5 stocks. Bristow had 5 points and 6 stocks. Davis-Fleming had 8 points, 3 boards, and blocked 2 shots.
Alabama may not have a big as singularly impactful as Aiden Sherrell was last season, but Oats did great work to replace him in the aggregate, and this team is much, much deeper on the interior now.
4. Anderson Diaz and Cole Cloer looked rusty in their returns
Diaz making his Alabama debut was surprising. On Monday, Oats called Diaz "doubtful," but he was cleared to play and logged 11 minutes off the bench. While he was certainly rusty and played a bit out of control at times, he also flashed his immense potential and was a blur with the ball in his hands.
anderson diaz lets be great uno pic.twitter.com/r3009ARmHa
— wok (@wokdior) November 4, 2026
Getting him legitimate minutes before Aden Holloway's return next week is pivotal for his development.
As for Cloer, he looked even rustier. He looked a step slow from the guy we saw in the two exhibition games he played in, and he finished the game 1-of-9 from the field and 0-of-6 from three, scoring just 2 points in his official debut.
Both guys will be fine as they work themselves back into game shape.
5. Alabama's rebounding will have to get better
The one negative takeaway was that Alabama still struggled on the glass. Sam Houston finished +3 in rebounding, something that Oats will harp on in a big way with his team.
Alabama allowed 15 offensive boards, and that's simply too many. This was a team Alabama should have handled rather easily on the boards, which is cause for some legitimate concern when they play the more physically imposing teams on the schedule.
That will be a major area of focus for Oats.
Add us as a preferred source on Google