1996–97 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team

The 1996–97 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team represented the University of Alabama in the 1996–97 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team's head coach was David Hobbs, who was in his fifth season at Alabama. The team played their home games at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. They finished the season with a record of 17–14, with a conference record of 6–10, which placed them in a tie for third in the SEC Western Division.

1996–97 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	17–14 (6–10 SEC)
Head coach	David Hobbs (5th season)
Assistant coach	Mike Davis (2nd season)
Home arena	Coleman Coliseum

1996–97 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
East
No. 6 South Carolina	15	–	1		.938			24	–	8		.750
No. 5 Kentucky†	13	–	3		.813			35	–	5		.875
No. 17 Georgia	10	–	6		.625			24	–	9		.727
Vanderbilt	9	–	7		.563			19	–	12		.613
Florida	5	–	11		.313			13	–	17		.433
Tennessee	4	–	12		.250			11	–	16		.407
West
Ole Miss	11	–	5		.688			20	–	9		.690
Arkansas	8	–	8		.500			18	–	14		.563
Auburn	6	–	10		.375			16	–	15		.516
Alabama	6	–	10		.375			17	–	14		.548
Mississippi State	6	–	10		.375			12	–	18		.400
LSU	3	–	13		.188			10	–	20		.333
† 1997 SEC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

The Tide defeated Florida in the first round of the 1997 SEC men's basketball tournament, but lost to South Carolina in the quarterfinal. The Tide did not an invite to a postseason tournament, marking the first time the Tide didn't participate in the postseason since the 1987–88 season.

Roster

1996–97 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 14 Eric Washington 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) — Sr Pearl High School Pearl, Mississippi G 4 Brian Williams 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) — So Davis High School Montgomery, Alabama F Anton Reese 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) — So Lithonia High School Lithonia, Georgia C 54 Thalamus McGhee 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) — Sr Westfield High School Houston, Texas F 25 M.C. Mazique 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) — So Brooklyn, New York G 30 Damon Bacote 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) — Jr Hampton High School Hampton, Virginia G 34 Blake Thrasher 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) — So C 44 Scott Hamilton 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) — Jr F 35 Demetrius Alexander 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) — Jr Hazelwood Central HS/Hutchinson CC St. Louis, Missouri G George Brown 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) — Jr F Ricky Poole 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) — Jr C 52 Jeremy Hays 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) — Fr Boaz High School Boaz, Alabama G Nick Wilmott 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) — Fr G 21 Dejuan Thrasher 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) — Fr	Head coach David Hobbs Assistant coach(es) Mike Davis Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	Site city, state
Regular Season
Nov 22, 1996*		vs. UNC Wilmington Top of The World Classic	W 58–51	1–0	Carlson Center  Fairbanks, AK
Nov 23, 1996*		vs. Southern Illinois Top of the World Classic	W 79–58	2–0	Carlson Center  Fairbanks, AK
Nov 24, 1996*		vs. Middle Tennessee Top of the World Classic	W 77–74	3–0	Carlson Center  Fairbanks, AK
Nov 30, 1996*		Northeastern Illinois	W 93–50	4–0	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Dec 2, 1996*		Arkansas–Pine Bluff	W 95–44	5–0	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Dec 5, 1996*		No. 16 Minnesota	W 70–67	6–0	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Dec 7, 1996*		FIU	W 80–65	7–0	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Dec 14, 1996*	No. 24	Western Carolina	W 100–48	8–0	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Dec 18, 1996*	No. 20	North Texas	W 72–55	9–0	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Dec 21, 1996*	No. 20	vs. VCU Holiday Hoopfest	W 72–69	10–0	UAB Arena  Birmingham, AL
Dec 27, 1996*	No. 19	at San Jose State Cable Car Classic	L 59–60 OT	10–1	The Event Center  San Jose, CA
Dec 28, 1996*	No. 19	vs. Santa Clara Cable Car Classic	L 62–77	10–2	San Jose Arena  San Jose, CA
Jan 4, 1997		at Vanderbilt	L 84–92	10–3 (0–1)	Memorial Gymnasium  Nashville, TN
Jan 8, 1997		at Ole Miss	W 59–46	11–3 (1–1)	Tad Smith Coliseum  Oxford, MS
Jan 11, 1997*		Syracuse	L 66–70	11–4	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Jan 15, 1997		Arkansas	L 68–72	11–5 (1–2)	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Jan 18, 1997		at Florida	L 66–85	11–6 (1–3)	O'Connell Center  Gainesville, FL
Jan 22, 1997		South Carolina	L 60–62	11–7 (1–4)	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Jan 25, 1997		LSU	W 75–66	12–7 (2–4)	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Jan 28, 1997		at Auburn	L 62–72	12–8 (2–5)	Beard–Eaves Coliseum  Auburn, AL
Feb 1, 1997		at Mississippi State	L 51–64	12–9 (2–6)	Humphrey Coliseum  Starkville, MS
Feb 5, 1997		Georgia	L 74–83	12–10 (2–7)	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Feb 8, 1997		at Tennessee	L 61–65	12–11 (2–8)	Thompson–Boling Arena  Knoxville, TN
Feb 12, 1997		Ole Miss	W 57–54	13–11 (3–8)	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Feb 15, 1997		at LSU	W 78–72	14–11 (4–8)	Maravich Assembly Center  Baton Rouge, LA
Feb 19, 1997		No. 3 Kentucky	L 61–75	14–12 (4–9)	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Feb 22, 1997		Auburn	W 55–50	15–12 (5–9)	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
Feb 26, 1997		at Arkansas	L 53–73	15–13 (5–10)	Bud Walton Arena  Fayetteville, AR
Mar 1, 1997		Mississippi State	W 78–49	16–13 (6–10)	Coleman Coliseum  Tuscaloosa, AL
SEC Tournament
Mar 6, 1997	(4 W)	vs. (5 E) Florida SEC Tournament First Round	W 80–66	17–13	The Pyramid  Memphis, TN
Mar 7, 1997	(4 W)	vs. (1 E) No. 4 South Carolina SEC Tournament Quarterfinals	L 61–72	17–14	The Pyramid  Memphis, TN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Sources