Alabama, FSU Basketball to play exhibition match before 2025-26 season

Luke Loucks has given his team a tough challenge to prepare for his first season as head coach.

Florida State University’s new men’s basketball coach Luke Loucks stands with FSU Athletic Director Michael Alford before a press conference Monday, March 10, 2025. | Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Florida State and Alabama already have one high-profile matchup on the docket this year, as the two teams will open the football season in Doak Campbell Stadium on August 30th. It's a big moment for FSU as they try to rebound from a 2-10 season and prove their mettle against a known power in Alabama, even if they don't have Nick Saban anymore.

As much as fans are looking forward to that game, there is now an even more important game between the two schools.

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Mar 29, 2025; Newark, NJ, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats brings a referee a whistle during the second half against the Duke Blue Devilsin the East Regional final of the 2025 NCAA tournament at Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Alabama and FSU have reached an agreement for an exhibition men's basketball game that will take place on October 16th in Birmingham. The game is part of Alabama's second annual "Bama in Boutwell" event, as the game will be at Birmingham's Boutwell Auditorium. They beat Wake Forest in this event last year, 98-77. Auburn will play Oklahoma State in the same arena in an exhibition the day before.

There are a few interesting connections between the two programs, even in Luke Loucks' first season at the helm of Florida State. The most obvious one is Taylor Bol Bowen, who spent his first two seasons in Tallahassee playing under Leonard Hamilton. He blossomed in his second season, averaging 8.0 PPG and 5.2 RPG, shooting 41.4% from three, and playing outstanding defense. He transferred to the Crimson Tide this offseason.

Another one is that Coach Loucks has said he wants his offense to play like Nate Oats' at Alabama, with a lot of tempo and a lot of three-pointers. Coach Oats visited NBA teams' practices as he was building his system, and one of the teams he stopped by was one Loucks was working for at the time. This will be an intriguing matchup between the programs, especially since it doesn't count for anything.

Alabama has been one of the better programs in the country the last few years, going 129-48 over the last five seasons. They made the Final Four in 2024 and have won at least one NCAA Tournament game in four of those five seasons.

Florida State has almost an entirely new roster this season, only keeping two players from last year's roster. With a non-conference schedule that features three SEC teams (Florida, Georgia, and Texas A&M), this will be a good early test.

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