Alabama throttled Yale on Monday night, 102-78, without the SEC's leading scorer, Labaron Philon. The star sophomore guard was held out with a leg contusion he suffered last Sunday during the Crimson Tide's win over Kennesaw State in Huntsville.
Alabama had more than enough firepower to take down the Ivy League favorite, but it will certainly need Philon back for the start of SEC play on Saturday against Kentucky. Nate Oats is optimistic that Philon will return, but stopped short of saying it was a certainty in his postgame press conference following the Tide's win.
"Labaron is going through treatment," Oats said. "He’s got a left leg injury from a contusion he got in the Kennesaw State game. It’s definitely not super serious, but he couldn’t play in a game now. We’re off tomorrow, hopefully he gets a lot of rehab. I think it’s pretty likely he plays Saturday, but I don’t want to say for sure."
Nate Oats "doesn't want to say for sure" that Philon will play vs. Kentucky
Alabama's backcourt had more than enough firepower to take down Yale, but the competition takes a sharp uptick on Saturday when Kentucky comes to Tuscaloosa.
Philon has gotten off to a brilliant start to his sophomore campaign. He's the SEC's leading scorer at 21.9 points per game, and he's done it efficiently. Philon is shooting 55% from the field and 42% from three-point range, looking every bit like a future NBA lottery pick. Philon is also fourth in the SEC in assists, averaging 5.6 a night.
Alabama had deep and talented play at guard around and behind Philon, but he's undoubtedly the leader of the pack.
Oats was intentional in building up his guard depth this offseason, bringing back both Philon and Aden Holloway, getting Latrell Wrightsell back from injury, and then adding Amari Allen (recruiting) and Jalil Bethea (Transfer Portal).
That depth allowed Alabama to still score over 100 points against a quality opponent with Philon sidelined.
But his return will be pivotal for the Crimson Tide to be able to get off to a good start in SEC play. Alabama's league schedule starts with a bang. After facing Kentucky at home on Saturday, the Crimson Tide will travel to Nashville to face off against currently undefeated Vanderbilt next Wednesday.