Alabama A&M @ Alabama preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 23, 2011 ) Alabama A&M 45, Alabama 82

No. 25 Alabama desperately needed a go-to scorer coming into the season - and it appears they might just have their man. Sensational freshman Collin Sexton looks to build off an impressive debut as the Crimson Tide host Alabama A&M on Friday night to kick off the Barclays Center Classic.

Sexton, one of the top recruits in the nation, missed the Crimson Tide's season-opening 82-70 triumph over Memphis due to rules violations but was the best player on either team in his Alabama debut, scoring 22 points and adding five assists in the 86-64 rout of Lipscomb. Fellow freshman guard John Petty, who added 14 points and six rebounds, told reporters afterward: "It's finally good to be able to pick back up our team chemistry, and put all the pieces together that we had before the (Sexton) situation popped up. It was great just getting back in rhythm with each other." They'll look to fine-tune that on-court chemistry against an Alabama A&M team that has opened its season with losses to Ohio and Samford.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, SEC Network Plus

ABOUT ALABAMA A&M (0-2): The Bulldogs have had a frightfully difficult time generating offense to date; while their 37.2-percent rate from the field leaves something to be desired, the real problem is the 50 turnovers they have racked up through two games. Junior guard Arthur Johnson has been the offensive spark plug early on with averages of 17 points and seven rebounds; he scored 22 points on 8-of-14 shooting in the loss to Samford. Alabama A&M has just 16 assists through its first two contests, with no player accumulating more than three.

ABOUT ALABAMA (2-0): The emergence of Sexton and Petty as go-to scorers, combined with the year-over-year improvement of backcourt mate Dazon Ingram (16.5 points), is a welcome sight for Crimson Tide head coach Avery Johnson, who saw his leading scorer - the injured Braxton Key - average a paltry 12 points last season. Ingram has looked like one of the SEC's most well-rounded players through two games, shooting nearly 56 percent from the field while averaging six rebounds and five assists. Alabama will need to work on its free-throw shooting after going just 31-of-60 in its season-opening victories.

TIP-INS

1. Alabama ranks 40th in the nation in field-goal percentage (52.6).

2. The Crimson Tide outscored Lipscomb 50-22 in the paint.

3. The Bulldogs average just 22.5 first-half points.

PREDICTION: Alabama 94, Alabama A&M 58