TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The Alabama men’s and women’s basketball teams officially opened the 2018-19 campaign Monday night with the fourth-annual Tide Tipoff at Coleman Coliseum.
“We had a great crowd,” Alabama women’s basketball coach Kristy Curry said. “I’m really excited to see so many folks in the stands. There was a lot of excitement. Tonight was great for our team and for the fact we got to put our uniforms on and lace our shoes up to play in a real game-like environment. We have a big freshmen class, which is always a positive. I saw a little bit of jitters and nerves, but I absolutely love the energy of this team. I love our veterans and I love our newcomers. We just have a great mix of the old and the new that brings an awful lot of energy. This is the most energetic team I have had at Alabama, and I’m excited about their potential.”
Alabama men’s basketball coach Avery Johnson thanked the fans for coming out to support both programs.
“We appreciate everybody that came out. They were really into it,” Johnson said. “We had some good moments throughout the scrimmage, and it was very strategic for us to play a 30-minute scrimmage. We are not a finished product, but the main thing was trying to get our team some live reps in front of an audience. When we asked the fans to get on their feet they were really fired up, so I would say mission accomplished on that front. I think we have some experience this year and some quality depth and hopefully that will play out positively for us throughout the course of the season.”
The teams signed autographs for an hour and then hit the court. The women’s team played a 12-minute intrasquad scrimmage. Following the introduction of the men’s team, there were two 15-minute periods of an intrasquad scrimmage. The night concluded with a dunk exhibition by select men’s players.
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