Nate Oats’s Alabama and Rick Pitino’s St. John’s reportedly set to meet for an exciting game at MSG 

Alabama and St. John’s, two storied college basketball programs led by Nate Oats and Rick Pitino, will square off Nov. 8 at Madison Square Garden. The matchup, first reported by Jon Rothstein and USA Today, was confirmed Wednesday via a post from Alabama Football’s official Instagram account.

The Crimson Tide will return the favor during the 2026-27 season, when the Red Storm visit Birmingham, Alabama.

The upcoming game will mark Alabama’s first appearance at Madison Square Garden since the 2013 NIT Tip-Off. It will also be the first meeting between Alabama and St. John’s since the 1982 NCAA Tournament when Wimp Sanderson’s Tide defeated the Red Storm. The programs are tied 2-2 in their all-time series.

Fan reactions to the announcement poured in on social media:

“So play in their back yard but have it count as a “natural site” come on now,” a fan wrote.

“Bama at MSG : look where we came,” another fan said.

“Lock ittttt,” one fan added.

Screenshot, via Instagram (Source: @bamaseccountry/Instagram)

MSG clash set to be 3rd meeting between Nate Oats and Rick Pitino

Alabama and St. John’s will meet for one of the most anticipated non-conference games of the 2025–26 basketball season.

St. John’s enters the season with high expectations under Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino. The Red Storm recently ranked No. 2 nationally in Gary Parrish’s CBS Sports projections.

Some analysts believe they could begin the year at No. 1, and most list them among the top five. This offseason, St. John’s added the nation’s top-ranked transfer class, including Bryce Hopkins (Providence), Joson Sanon (Arizona State), Ian Jackson (North Carolina) and Dillon Mitchell (Cincinnati).

Returning center Zuby Ejiofor, a key contributor during the team’s Big East regular season and tournament title runs, is also expected to play a leading role.

Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats - Source: Imagn

Alabama, while not ranked as high in early projections, is expected to open the season in the top 25 and contend nationally. Coach Nate Oats led the Crimson Tide to the Elite Eight for the second straight year, finishing 28-9. The program also lost several players to the NBA and the transfer portal but responded with a strong offseason.

The Tide added transfers Jalil Bethea, Noah Williamson, Taylor Bol Bowen and Keitenn Barlow, along with three four-star freshmen. Core returners include Aden Holloway, Latrell Wrightsell, Aiden Sherrell and Houston Mallette.

This will be the third meeting between Oats and Pitino. The two split their previous matchups in 2021 when Pitino coached at Iona. The game’s scheduling was first announced by Yeah Alabama, the university’s official NIL collective.

The matchup is tentatively scheduled for Nov. 8 in New York City. On the same day, Alabama’s football team is set to host LSU in Tuscaloosa. Game times for both events have not been announced.

Alabama’s schedule is one of the strongest in the country

Nate Oats' Alabama’s non-conference schedule is one of the strongest in the country. In addition to St. John’s, the Tide will face Purdue, Arizona (in Birmingham), Illinois (in Chicago), Yale, and North Dakota. They will also participate in the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas and the SEC/ACC Challenge. Alabama is finalizing a game against USF, led by former Crimson Tide assistant Bryan Hodgson.

The St. John’s game presents a demanding early-season challenge for both programs, offering an opportunity to measure roster development and team cohesion against top-tier competition.