Alabama Makes Top 5 For Elite Transfer

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Ryan Harris | Last updated Apr 19, 2025 10:05 PM ET

Alabama Crimson Tide basketball suffered a brutal ending to their 2024-25 campaign being dominated by the Duke Blue Devils in the Elite Eight.

Now the Tide are moving on without some of their stars, including star guard Mark Sears, who shattered records during their scoring onslaught against BYU.

While Sears is hard to replace, Nate Oats and Alabama have been going after one of the top transfers in the country. Former Washington State guard Cedric Coward, ranked as a top 20 player in the transfer portal, would do just that.

Coward has announced his top five schools, and Alabama has made the cut.

Among Alabama as his final five schools is Duke, Florida, Kansas, and Washington. It is going to be a battle until the finish for these schools looking for the talents of Coward.

While he only played in six games this past season due to a shoulder injury that sidelined him before December, Coward averaged 17.7 points and 7.0 rebounds per game.

He has entered his name in the 2025 NBA Draft to feel out the process and see if that is a possibility, however is very likely to remain in school.

Alabama currently sits at the No. 8 ranked recruiting class in the country according to On3, and the addition of Coward could have them cracking the top five.

Six total four-stars, including three transfers, sets up the Alabama squad to make another deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

The coming days and weeks will be vital for Coward's future in college basketball, and the Crimson Tide are hopeful that he will choose to spend his next season in Tuscaloosa.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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