Alabama had its Tide Tipoff event for the men’s and women’s basketball teams Friday night.
It was a 45-minute session at Coleman Coliseum that consisted of a joint 3-point contest and a dunk contest.
Here are a couple notes:
— The last of the four teams to go during the 3-point contest got the win, the combination of freshman guard Jaylen Forbes and women’s guard Brittany Davis. They combined to hit 16 of their 30 shots. Graduate transfer guard Beetle Bolden and women’s guard Megan Abrams hit 13 shots. So did the team of freshman guard Jaden Shackelford and women’s guard Jordan Lewis. The combination of Villanova transfer Jahvon Quinerly and women’s forward Jasmine Walker finished fourth with 12 made shots. Quinerly started slow but hit his last four 3s from the top of the key.
— Herb Jones won the dunk contest, which started with five contestants. Jones and fellow junior forward Alex Reese were the two finalists. Jones’ final dunk scored in the high 40s. Reese only got a 28 for his final attempt. He ended up settling for a regular two-handed dunk after missing his first few attempts. There were five judges for the dunk contest, including ESPN sideline reporter Molly McGrath, former Alabama football star Mack Wilson and ex-Crimson Tide basketball players Levi Randolph and Lawson Schaffer.
“It’s good for the guys to get in front of a crowd for the first time,” Alabama coach Nate Oats said. “I’m not a huge fan of the dunk contest and all that stuff. When we get to where we’re playing games and actually competing, that’s when it’s fun for the coaches. It’s good for the guys (though) to get in front of the fans and have some fun."
Matt Zenitz is an Alabama and Auburn reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @mzenitz.