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Alabama reportedly optimistic for return of Derrion Reid during SEC Tournament
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Alabama has done just fine without freshman forward Derrion Reid while he’s been out injured since mid-February.
But Nate Oats’s 3rd-seeded team might be getting Reid back for its SEC Tournament quarterfinal showdown against 6th-seeded Kentucky on Friday night in Nashville. According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, Reid is expected to be a game-time decision for the final quarterfinal of a frenzied Friday at Bridgestone Arena.
A source told Thamel that there’s “strong optimism” that Reid will be able to play for Alabama for the first time since its first matchup with Auburn on Feb. 15.
The former McDonald’s All-American is averaging 7.1 points and 3.2 rebounds this season for the Crimson Tide, so his return for the quarterfinals and possibly beyond this weekend would be vital. Alabama went 2-0 against Kentucky this season, but Reid did not play in either matchup.
The 6-foot-8, 220-pound product of Grovetown, Ga., has played in 18 games in his first season in Tuscaloosa, and he’s averaging 16.3 minutes per game, so getting him back in the rotation would be a bonus for Alabama as it tries to better its NCAA Tournament seeding this weekend. The latest Final Four odds from FanDuel already give the Tide the 5th-best shot at reaching the national semifinals, checking in at +200.
ESPN’s matchup predictor likes the Crimson Tide’s chances against Kentucky regardless if Reid plays or not. ESPN is giving Alabama a 61% chance to prevail against the Wildcats and move on to Saturday’s semifinals.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
