One of the biggest men on the practice court was once SEC player of the year for Alabama basketball. However, it wasn’t a member of the Crimson Tide’s current roster as the team prepared for its first Final Four trip in program history.
No, Erwin Dudley was wearing a blue number 32 practice jersey on Tuesday, assisting with the scout team as part of his current role as a graduate assistant for Alabama. Dudley, now age 42, played for the Tide from 1999-2003, winning the league’s player of the year award in 2002.
One of Alabama’s current bigs, Grant Nelson, described the challenge of facing off against the 6-foot-8 Irwin, who weighed in at 245 during his playing days.
“It gives us a look for bigs like (Donovan) Clingan,” Nelson said before the Crimson Tide got on the plane bound for Phoenix. “It’s just a good look every day in practice.”
Clingan, one of UConn’s top inside players, will present a major challenge for UA when the two teams meet Saturday in Arizona. Clingan stands 7-foot-2, and weighs in at 280-pounds, so Dudley, whose photo hangs over the court along at the practice facility with other Tide basketball greats, isn’t an exact match.
Still, he’s what Alabama has, and according to head coach Nate Oats, has been a valuable help in preparation for the game.
“Erwin was the SEC player of the year and scored pretty well in the post,” Oats said. ‘He’s not young like Clingan. He’s not near as big, so he can’t give us the exact look, but gives us a pretty a good look at a lot of post players in practice.”
