Alabama Crimson Tide news and notes from Monday and Tuesday, April 6th and 7th:
Alabama basketball sees 3 players enter the Transfer Portal
The Transfer Portal officially opened for business for men's basketball on Tuesday, and Alabama has already seen three players enter. Taylor Bol Bowen and Jalil Bethea weren't surprises, but sophomore center Aiden Sherrell's decision to test the portal waters was a bit surprising and disappointing.
Bol Bowen and Bethea were a part of last season's portal class that turned out to be a total bust. They are back in the portal again a year later, while Keitenn Bristow is widely expected to join them, and Noah Williamson is out of eligibility after an underwhelming (to be kind) season.
Sherrell is the big loss so far. He was arguably Alabama's most important player this past season, with the weight of the Crimson Tide's entire frontcourt production on his shoulders. He won't be easily replaced, and Nate Oats will likely still try to engage to bring him back, but he's going to command a significant payday on the open market.
Oats and Preston Murphy have to find some impact players in the portal this year, and rest assured, they are hard at work. Some early names of note are LSU's Dedan Thomas, Wisconsin's John Blackwell, Tennessee's Cade Phillips, and Colorado's Bangot Dak.
Labaron Philon declares for the NBA Draft
After a spectacular sophomore season that saw him average 22 points and 5 assists per game while shooting 39.9% from three and earning 3rd Team All-American honors, Labaron Philon will take his talents to the NBA. And this time, there won't be any suspense about him potentially coming back.
Philon declared for the draft a year ago, even going so far as to announce that he would be staying in the draft after the NBA Combine, before pulling a stunning 180 just hours before the withdrawal deadline to return to Alabama.
That decision proved fruitful for both Philon and the Crimson Tide. He upped his draft stock into the lottery range and led Alabama to the Sweet 16 for the fourth consecutive season.
Alabama softball run-rules South Alabama
Fresh off an impressive series win over No. 1-ranked Texas, Patrick Murphy and Alabama softball didn't let their guard down in a mid-week matchup against South Alabama in Tuscaloosa on Tuesday night.
Highlighted by a 3-run home run by Brooke Wells and a strong four innings from freshman Kaitlyn Pallozzi, the Crimson Tide routed the Jagaurs 8-0 in five innings to earn the run-rule victory.
For Wells, her 16th homer of the season puts her in a tie for 10th place for single-season home runs in program history. She's now 10 away from tying the single-season record set by Bailey Hemphill back in 2019.
Alabama will travel down to the Plains this weekend to face off against rival Auburn.
Alabama baseball dominates Samford for run-rule win
Not to be outdone, Rob Vaughn and Alabama baseball got a run-rule victory of their own on Tuesday night in Tuscaloosa, rolling to a 16-2 win over Samford.
Following a series win over Oklahoma on the road, Alabama moved up to the Top 10 in the rankings, and it sure looked like a Top 10 team against the Bulldogs.
It was a big night from freshman Eric Hines, who hit his first home run at Sewell-Thomas Stadium to highlight a 3-for-3 night. Luke Vaughn and Chase Kroberger also hit home runs as Alabama racked up 16 runs on 13 hits in the easy victory.
The win moved the Crimson Tide to 26-8 on the season as they have won 11 of their last 12 games. They will welcome No. 22 Arkansas to Tuscaloosa this weekend for another pivotal three-game series.