Pepperdine transfer Houston Mallette announces commitment to Alabama

On Tuesday, former Pepperdine guard Houston Mallette announced he is transferring to Alabama on his social media. Mallette initially entered the transfer portal on March 6.

Mallette spent the first three seasons of his collegiate career at Pepperdine. This past season, Mallette averaged a career-high 14.7 points per game while shooting 43.1% from the field and 41.5% from beyond the arc. The veteran marksman also averaged 3.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists per contests.

For his efforts, he was named an honorable mention All-WCC player. In three seasons at Pepperdine, Mallette amassed 1,295 points, 320 rebounds and 212 assists while knocking down just shy of 200 3-pointers.

A native of Santa Monica (Calif.), Houston Mallette was a four-star prospect and the No. 10 combo guard coming out of high school, per the 2021 On3 Industry Rankings. Mallette played three years at Pacifica Christian High School in Newport Beach, Calif., and was a 2021 McDonald’s All-American nominee.

He is the first player Alabama basketball has landed in the transfer portal this cycle. Alabama’s season isn’t over yet. The Crimson Tide will face off against No. 13 seed Charleston in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday at 7:35 p.m. ET.

Nate Oats reveals postseason hopes for Alabama

Despite its underwhelming seeding, Charleston is extremely dangerous. Nearly half the team’s field-goal attempts come from beyond the arc, and they’re extremely deep, as well.

Nonetheless, Alabama has been relatively impervious to significant upsets this season. The Crimson Tide went undefeated against non-Power Five opponents this year before entering conference play. Alabama head coach Nate Oats simply hopes his players enjoy the experience.

“At the end of the day, there’s a lot of distractions around the NCAA Tournament, which makes it great. It’s the best sporting event on the planet,” Oats said. “Over a three-week stretch, it’s all eyes in the world in sports are all on this. It’s an unbelievable sporting event that these guys will remember for the rest of their lives.

“But, there’s 40 minutes where the best team is going to come out on top, and there’s another 40 minutes where the best team comes out on top. The best thing we can do is eliminate all those distractions as much as possible, enjoy the environment and the moment without letting it be a big distraction.”