GAME NOTES: The Alabama Crimson Tide will continue their three-game season- opening homestand at Coleman Coliseum, as they take on the Western Carolina Catamounts on Monday night as part of the CBE Hall of Fame Classic.

WCU opened up its season on the road against another SEC squad on Friday night, as it fell on the wrong end of a 66-56 decision to Mississippi State.

Meanwhile, Alabama opened up its campaign in dominant fashion over the weekend with an 82-54 triumph over Towson. The victory was coach Anthony Grant's 100th with the Crimson Tide, becoming the seventh coach in program history to reach that plateau.

The Tide have beaten the Catamounts in all three previous meetings with an average margin of victory of 31.0 ppg.

Although the Catamounts held a one-point lead late in the first half of their first game, they fell victim to a last-second field goal by Mississippi State to head into intermission with a deficit, and they were unable to regain the advantage in the second stanza. Despite knocking down nine 3-pointers, WCU had a lackluster field goal shooting night overall (.362), and the large disparity between free throws made (28-5) was what ultimately made the difference in the 10-point loss. James Sinclair did his best to lift the squad to victory, scoring 20 points on 7-of-14 from the field. Rhett Harrelson and Mike Brown added 14 and 11 points, respectively, but the other seven players to see the floor combined for only 11 points.

The Crimson Tide used a 13-2 run near the end of the first half of their opener to set the tone on their way to a convincing 28-point victory. Not only did they outshoot Towson from the field, 46 percent to 36 percent, but it also forced the Tigers into 22 turnovers while committing just eight miscues itself. Levi Randolph was the catalyst, contributing across the board with 15 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, four steals and no turnovers. Rodney Cooper also scored 15 points, doing so on 6-of-8 shooting from the field. Shannon Hale chipped in with 14 points, and Riley Norris came off the bench to net 10.

Despite a disappointing overall record in 2013-14 (13-19), the Tide still managed to play very well at home, winning 13-of-17 at Coleman Coliseum. Expect similar success in Tuscaloosa this season with a veteran squad, with WCU likely being another easy victim.