The game won't count in the record books, but Sunday's exhibition against Louisiana gave Alabama basketball freshman forward Charles Bediako his first opportunity against Division I opponents.
Bediako was struggling to adjust to the physicality at first, but soon began asserting himself around the rim and finished tied with Jaden Shackelford as Alabama's leading rebounder.
"I thought he grew up during the course of the game," Alabama coach Nate Oats said. "He only had one rebound midway through the second half and ended up leading the team with seven rebounds."
Transfer forward Noah Gurley said this was nothing new for Bediako. The team sees this type of aggression out of him at practice everyday.
"Big Charles is a freshman, but I feel like once he got adjusted, he realized he’s better than them out there," Gurley said. "That’s where he started grabbing all them boards and getting to the free throw line. I think that was a good adjustment in the game for him, and I think he's got that confidence to keep going because everybody on the team, we be telling him all the time that we want to see angry Chuck."
Bediako made it to the free throw line seven times. He only converted on three of those attempts, but Oats said it is something assistant coach Bryan Hodgson is continuing to work on with him.
One of those trips to the line was after Bediako got tangled up with a Louisiana defender that resulted in a heated exchange between the two teams. The Ragin Cajuns played a more forward-heavy lineup that consistently tested Bediako's physicality.
"I’ve seen a young dude that was ready to fight," Bediako said. "Those weren't no small guys out there."
Oats said that Bediako brings a new element to the Crimson Tide team that he hasn't had while in Tuscaloosa.
"He definitely gives us something we haven’t had since I’ve been here in rim protection," Oats said. "He’s got to figure out playing with the physicality of a Division I game, but he’s long, he’s athletic, he reacts to breakdowns well and goes over and erases mistakes."
The freshman started at the five position in the game and finished with five points and seven rebounds in almost 27 minutes in the 73-68 win for Alabama.
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