Alabama Basketball: Breaking down the 2018 non-conference matchups for the Tide

Home games for Alabama

Nov 6th: Southern

Southern finished 5th in the SWAC last season, and they mostly played teams that were clearly better than them outside of their conference. I don’t want to count eggs before they’ve hatched, but this should be a warm-up for the Tide

Nov. 11th: App. State

Appalachian State finished fifth in their conference as well. Alabama will be the better team, but upsets are always possible. If the Mountaineers can beat Michigan in football, they can surely beat Alabama in basketball. I wouldn’t bet on that, however.

Nov. 26th: Murray State

Murray State will be a respectable opponent. They only lost five games in the regular season last year, one of which being a nail-biter against Auburn. They earned a bid in the Tournament last year and should be just as good this year.

Dec. 4th: Georgia State

Georgia State wasn’t great last year, but they won their conference tournament and secured a bid in the National Tournament. They lost to Cincinnati as a 15 seed. Alabama will have to be prepared for this game, but they should simply be the more talented team on the court.

Dec. 9th: Arizona

This game has been circled on Tide fans’ calendars since it was announced last year. Many were expecting Shaq’s brother to be a Wildcat, but his decision to change schools will slightly hurt the hype of this game. Arizona will definitely take a step back this season after losing Deandre Ayton to the draft, but they will still be relevant enough to give Alabama a run for their money.

Dec. 21st: Penn State

Penn State won the NIT last year, so they will definitely be on the rise this season. Although the NIT is not a highly respected tournament, winning it means something.

Floor record: 3-3

Ceiling record: 6-0

Projected Record: 5-1