Nate Oats Updates Status of Keitenn Bristow, Others Ahead of Purdue Game

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— Alabama men's basketball head coach Nate Oats spoke to media members on Wednesday ahead of the No. 8 Crimson Tide's home matchup against No. 2 Purdue on Thursday night (6 p.m. CT, ESPN2). Sophomore forward Keitenn Bristow is highly doubtbul for the game, while speedy freshman guard Davion Hannah will be likely to play after practicing Thursday.

Freshman big Collins Onyejiaka will be out indefinitely due to a medical condition, Oats added. He played four minutes in the 103-96 win against St. John's on Saturday, not scoring any points. Hannah went down hard on a dunk attempt in the first half of that game and did not return.

Bristow scored 13 points and grabbed six rebounds in the team's exhibition win against Florida State inside Birmingham's Boutwell Auditorium last month. He played 16 minutes on Oct. 26 in Alabama's final exhibition at Furman, posting two points on the afternoon.

He was in a boot on Nov. 3 during the season opening win against North Dakota at Coleman Coliseum. Oats said five days later that Bristow had not practiced that day, one day before Alabama played then-No. 5 St. John's in New York at Madison Square Garden. Bristow also did not practice on Thursday, Oats said. The head coach added that Bristow's absence also has the potential to affect the frontcourt due to Onyejiaka's absence. The freshman had played in both games this season.

"It's not just Collins," Oats said. "Keitenn's probably out too. Aden [Sherrell] and Noah [Williamson] really need to give us great minutes at the five spot. They played pretty tough. I thought they were both physical... We gotta do a better job finishing at the rim. They gotta go get some rebounds."

The 6-foot-10 Bristow started 19 games as a true freshman at Tarleton State last season, playing in 23 contests. He averaged 11.4 points and 4.4 rebounds per game, which earned him recognition as the WAC Freshman of the Year.

A pair of key Alabama guards also missed the opener last Monday: Aden Holloway and Latrell Wrightsell Jr. did not play in the 91-62 victory. Both were back for the road game against the Red Storm. Holloway scored 21 points and Wrightsell Jr. had 17.

The Boilermakers defeated the Crimson Tide 87-78 in West Lafayette, Ind., last November. The programs have played one other time since Oats has been head coach at Alabama; Purdue beat Alabama by a 92-86 final score in Toronto, Canada, on Dec. 9, 2023.

Coleman Coliseum last played host to an Alabama-Purdue matchup in December of 2009. Purdue won 73-65 in the first year of Anthony Grant's tenure as the Crimson Tide's coach. Alabama is 1-2 at home against the Boilermakers all-time.

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