When is Alabama Basketball's Rematch with St. John's at C.M. Newton Classic?

Alabama basketball will face St. John's in the 2026 RxBenefits C.M. Newton Classic on Dec. 12 at Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama.

This will be a rematch from last season, as the Crimson Tide beat the Red Storm 103-96 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Alabama was ranked No. 15 at the time, while St. John's was No. 5. Alabama guards Labaron Philon Jr. (25 points), Aden Holloway (21) and Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (17) scored a combined 67 points. Forward Taylor Bol Bowen was the X-factor, as he finished with 17 points on 6 of 7 from the field, while collecting nine total rebounds (four offensive), two blocks, two steals and an assist.

Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats will once again go head-to-head with St. John's head coach Rick Pitino, who has been a college basketball powerhouse for decades. In fact, Oats was born in the same year that Pitino got his first college coaching gig as an assistant for Hawaii.

The Naismith Basketball Hall-of-Famer called Alabama "the most unique team" in the nation, a couple of days before last year's game. Pitino said that playing Alabama would be like a track meet, and Oats provided some compliments as well.

"He's a really good coach," Oats said of Pitino before last year's matchup. "They figure out what you do best and they take you out of it. Can we score at the rim when they take away all of the threes? Can we get out and transition on them? It's a lot easier to take away threes in the half-court than it is in transition. We've got to get out in transition and attack them early before they get set, because when they're set, he's got his guys trained to style them.

"He came in immediately and made [St. John's] one of the best teams in the country, and they won the Big East last year. We're not the only program he takes away what they do best. They're going to take away the three-point line, honestly, they do a good job of that."

St. John's finished last season with a 30-7 record, including an 18-2 clip against the Big East. It was the second consecutive year that Pitino and company won the most conference games during the regular season and were also champions of the Big East Tournament. The Red Storm was the No. 5 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament and lost to No. 1 seed Duke 80-75 in the Sweet 16.

Alabama's 2026-27 Schedule as of July 7

Nov. 6: vs. Sam Houston
Nov. 13: vs. Seton Hall
Nov. 17: vs. Kennesaw State
Nov. 24: vs. Baylor at Players Era Championships in Las Vegas
Nov. 26: vs. winner of Gonzaga/Kansas State at Players Era
Nov. 27: vs. winner of Michigan/Creighton/Miami/TCU at Players Era (if Alabama wins prior matchups)
Nov. 28: Players Era Championship vs. winner of Tennessee/Maryland/Iowa State/San Diego State/St. John's/Oregon/Louisville/Texas Tech (if Alabama contends)
Dec. 2: at Miami in ACC/SEC Challenge
Dec. 12: vs. St. John’s in Birmingham
Dec. 21: vs. Iowa in Des Moines, Iowa

Alabama will also face Houston in the Jimmy V Classic, but that date is unknown at this time. The same is said for the Tide's second part of a home-and-home series at South Florida.

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