Alabama Basketball to Face Wake Forest in Preseason Charity Exhibition
Creative agency Knight Eady announced on Thursday that Alabama men's basketball will face Wake Forest on Oct. 19 in an inaugural charity exhibition in Birmingham, Ala. called "Bama in Boutwell."
The contest will be held in Boutwell Auditorium and is sponsored by Nike and Hibbett Sports. Here is the waitlist to grab tickets.
This is the second time Alabama has scheduled a charity exhibition this offseason as the Crimson Tide will face Memphis in the Rocket City Classic on Oct. 28 in Huntsville, Ala.
This is also the second consecutive season that Alabama and Wake Forest have scheduled a charity exhibition as they went head-to-head on Oct. 29, 2023 to support stroke research at the Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Stroke Center. The Demon Deacons won that game 88-80.
Alabama and Wake Forest have met six times in the regular season since their first matchup on Dec. 20, 1956. The Demon Deacons have had the Crimson Tide's number as they lead the all-time series 5-2. That said, these schools haven't faced off in a regular season game in this century as their last matchup occurred in the first round of the NIT Tournament on March 10, 1999.
Alabama's basketball program finished at No. 3 in its respective AP Poll after a 5-12 season that concluded with its first NCAA Tournament Final Four appearance in school history.
A strong argument can be made that this is the most anticipated season in the history of Tide Hoops. Head coach Nate Oats and his staff, several returning players, including First Team All-SEC point guard Mark Sears, multiple experienced transfers and highly touted incoming freshmen all give Alabama realistic expectations to get two more wins than last season's NCAA Tournament to claim the school's first-ever National Title.
Wake Forest turned in a solid 21-14 record last season and made the second round of the NIT Tournament before falling to Georgia.