Amari Allen just produced the fifth triple-double in program history, but there’s no guarantee he will be on the floor when No. 20 Alabama hosts Oakland on Monday night in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Allen sprained his right ankle late in Friday’s 101-86 victory over visiting Arkansas State, and it hasn’t yet been determined whether he will play against the Golden Grizzlies.
In the aftermath of his 16-point, 13-rebound, 11-assist outing, Allen was counting on playing against Oakland (0-3).
“We’ve got a big game on Monday we’ve got to get ready for,” Allen said after Friday’s win. “Just shake it off. I feel fine right now.”
Crimson Tide coach Nate Oats noted that standout guard Aden Holloway will be available against Oakland. Holloway completed a five-game suspension Friday stemming from a March arrest on drug charges that were later dismissed.
Meanwhile, Allen will be seeing a lot of team trainer Clarke Holter in his bid to be healthy.
“We’ll have Holloway back, so if Amari can’t go, good time to get Holloway eligible to play,” Oats told reporters. “Would be great to have them both, but we’ll have to see what Amari can get done with Clarke on the rehab these next three days.”
Holloway averaged 16.8 points and 3.8 assists and knocked down a team-best 43.8% of his 3-point attempts last season. His 74 made 3s were third on the squad.
The 6-foot-6 Allen averaged 11.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists as a freshman last season but was seldom asked to be the lead playmaker.
His assist total against Arkansas State was a career best while his rebounding output matched a career high.
Still, Allen says the role feels natural to him.
“I like it a lot,” Allen said. “It’s my first time at this level to be a primary ball-handler. There’s going to be a lot of learning moments and some mistakes (will happen), but I love it. I feel I’m getting better at it day by day.”
Allen ranks second on Alabama in scoring (14.0) and leads in rebounding (8.5) through two games. Boise State transfer Drew Fielder (15.5) is the leading scorer.
Oakland is making the fourth stop of a challenging five-game trip.
The Golden Grizzlies opened with an 84-68 loss at Michigan on Nov. 2. Over the weekend, they played back-to-back nights on the West Coast, falling 81-63 to Stanford on Friday and 90-67 to UC Santa Barbara on Saturday.
After the loss to the Gauchos, veteran Oakland coach Greg Kampe said his team would bus to Los Angeles, take a red-eye flight to Atlanta, scheduled to arrive at 7:15 a.m. Sunday, and then bus to Tuscaloosa.
Kampe said it would be time for sleep in the afternoon and then practice on Sunday night.
In the loss to Santa Barbara, the Golden Grizzlies were outrebounded 35-25 and allowed the Gauchos to match the school record of 18 3-pointers (in 29 attempts).
“Other than the final score, I was pretty pleased with our effort,” said Kampe, making note of the back-to-back games. “What we did was kind of insane. I am exhausted, and I didn’t play. …
“It is what it is and I think we competed, but our bodies weren’t where they should be and did not help them get open as the game went on.”
Nassim Mashhour made four 3-pointers and scored 19 points. Chris Fields Jr. had 13 points and 11 rebounds for his second double-double of the season, and he leads Oakland in scoring (18.0) and rebounding (9.0).
After the contest against Alabama, the Golden Grizzlies conclude their road trip with more challenging travel. Kampe said they will awake Tuesday morning at 4 a.m. to bus back to Atlanta and then fly to Idaho for Wednesday’s game at Boise State.