Green Could Start On Senior Night

As a senior who should have known better, JaMychal Green put his basketball career on the line. As a coach who knows best, Anthony Grant has reinstated Green to the program and Green is expected to start on Senior Night against Auburn Wednesday.

Alabama will host Auburn at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the final game of the season in Coleman Coliseum. That final game is always Senior Night. This year Alabama has only one senior on the squad, inside player JaMychal Green. He will be honored in a pre-game ceremony.

Green came off suspension for Alabama’s last game, a 67-50 win over Mississippi State in which Green scored nine points and had six rebounds.

On Tuesday, Alabama Coach Anthony Grant said it was “likely” that Green would be in the starting lineup for Bama.

Alabama is 19-9 overall and 8-6 in Southeastern Conference games after having won four of its last six games. The Tide is hoping to improve its position in SEC and NCAA tournaments. Auburn is 14-14 overall and 4-10 in the conference.

Green was suspended for four games prior to the Mississippi State game. Bama lost two of those games, to LSU on the road and to Florida in Tuscaloosa. Green is the Crimson Tide’s leading scorer (13.9 points per game) and rebounder (7.0 per game). He also missed three games earlier in the year with injury.

In a previous game against Auburn in Auburn, a 68-50 Alabama win, Green had 19 points and seven rebounds.

Speaking of Green, Grant said, “The biggest thing with Mike has been the growth in his game. I also think he has matured in his role as a person, basketball aside. I think he’s very grateful to go through Senior Night and to have what time he has left with his teammates.

“He told me he was proud to be from Alabama and wants to be a part of Alabama tradition. I think he played a part in getting us to the NIT last year and, hopefully, getting back to the NCAA this year.

“I think he is a part of the foundation in the building program.”

Grant also noted that Alabama having the scoring load shared by various players through the course of the season “is the mark of a good team.

“We have a variety of guys who are more than capable. I don’t think in terms of freshman or senior. They are just guys.”

While he said Green was a likely starter, Grant said it would be after Tuesday’s practice before he had an idea about the availability of freshman guard Trevor Lacey, who suffered an ankle sprain against Arkansas last week, and then aggravated the injury against Mississippi State.