3 Instant Observations from No. 18 Alabama's Win over Seton Hall

A 20-0 run in the middle of the game gave the Crimson Tide enough cushion to hold off a tenacious Pirates team to stay undefeated on the early season.

Alabama forward Amari Allen goes up for a shot in the first half of the game against Seton Hall on Nov. 13, 2026. | Sarah Munzenmaier/Alabama Crimson Tide on SI

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.—No. 18 Alabama was facing its biggest test of the season against a high-major opponent with a Friday night matchup against Seton Hall. Because of some late misses at the free throw line in the final few minutes, the game got a little too close for comfort for the Crimson Tide fans inside Coleman Coliseum.

The Pirates kept fighting until the final whistle, but Alabama had just enough in the tank hold off Seton Hall with a 82-76 win to improve to 4-0 on the season.

Here are three quick observations from the Crimson Tide's win:

Amari Allen amazes

Alabama's offense was ice cold for most of the first half, and the Crimson Tide found itself trailing by six points with five minutes to go in half. The team closed the half on a 16-0 run, and sophomore guard Amari Allen had a personal eight-point spurt during that run.

Pull up 5⃣ pic.twitter.com/dcCSlAYK5g

— Alabama Men’s Basketball (@AlabamaMBB) November 14, 2026

Allen ended up leading the Crimson Tide in scoring with 24 points, one off from his career high. He did it in every aspect, taking shots around the rim, from beyond the 3-point line and at the free throw line.

The sophomore guard is the most complete player on the Alabama roster. The offense runs through Allen, who also had 5 assists on the night.

Turnover trouble

The main reason Seton Hall was keeping it close in the first half was because of Alabama's turnover issues. Through the first three games, Alabama's season high in turnovers was 14, and the Crimson Tide had 12 turnovers in the first half alone, leading to 16 points off turnovers for the Pirates. They finished with 25 points off the Crimson Tide's 17 turnovers.

Seton Hall ran a full-court press for most of the game that kept the Alabama offense out of its comfort zone. However, the Crimson Tide did protect the ball better in the second half with just five turnovers after the half.

Rocky rebounding

Nate Oats put a big emphasis on defensive rebounding heading into Friday night's matchup, and his players answered the call early on. Alabama out-rebounded Seton Hall 41-36 overall.

The effort on the glass is why the game didn't get away from the Tide despite the cold shooting early. Alabama was cleaning up its misses and wasn't allow the Pirates to grab many second chances in the first half.

However, it was a different story in the second half with the Pirates nearly doubling Alabama up in rebounding after the half.

It's an area that will still need to improve as Seton Hall finished with 21 second-chance points. Alabama has a lot of talent and offensive firepower, but it will struggle to beat good teams if it can't get better on the glass. The Crimson Tide has one more tuneup opportunity on Tuesday at home against Kennesaw State before entering the heart of the non-conference schedule.

This story will be updated with quotes and video.

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