Alabama Basketball: Moving on from first league loss

Alabama basketball fell 68-59 at Tennessee on Wednesday night, marking its first conference loss of the season. The Volunteers were physical from the outset and controlled the pace of the game. They were able to make it a low-scoring, ugly affair with their aggressive defensive approach, and the Crimson Tide did not respond well.

Alabama basketball shot just 35 percent from the field, but really lost the game on its 19 turnovers. This season, Bama has played other teams that play with a tough, gritty style. It was able to go on the road and beat teams like Houston and Auburn at their own games.

However, Tennessee proved to be too much to overcome, staying in command for most of the game despite having poor offensive metrics of its own.

Alabama Basketball: A positive outlook

Make no mistake; this was a disappointing loss. It is still difficult for some to digest, but Alabama basketball has reached a level of success this season that it should expect to win every game. With expectations this high, every loss is going to be disappointing.

Sure, the Crimson Tide missed out on some landmarks with this defeat. Alabama will not go undefeated in the SEC. It will not have beaten all of its rivals. And it likely won’t stay no. 1 in the country for longer than a week.

The good news is that all of these things are meaningless talking points in the grand scheme of the college basketball season. While it loses some of those bragging rights, Alabama is still on track to accomplish all of its goals. Those goals start with winning the SEC regular season championship.

Bama remains three games ahead of Tennessee and, barring disaster, the Vols will not catch the Tide. However, unranked Texas A&M beat Arkansas last night and quietly improved to 11-2 in the league. A&M has won five straight, and is now just a game behind Alabama in second place in the conference standings.

This means Bama has to keep its foot on the pedal to maintain its lead in the regular season SEC Championship race. Alabama and Texas A&M will meet in College Station on March 4th to close the regular season. That game could very well determine the champion, but the Crimson Tide have to take care of business up until that point.

Alabama basketball’s next objective is to win the SEC Tournament championship. The tourney is a grueling gauntlet of a stretch that will require three straight days of high-level execution to win. Bama has all but secured a top-four seed and a double-bye, but winning the regular season and securing the top seed would give Alabama the easiest path.

Lastly, this Alabama basketball team seeks to win a national championship. It has the talent, depth, and intangibles to do so. Bama hoops is one of few teams in the country that is elite on both ends of the floor, as well as on the glass. It has proven to be a well-rounded squad. There are no flawless teams in college basketball, but Alabama can mask and counterbalance its weaknesses as well as anyone else.

To win six straight games in the NCAA tournament and be crowned national champs requires more than the ability to do so. There are so many unknowns and variables involved, that it necessitates a little bit of luck as well. All this team can do is what it has done all year: focus on what it can control.

All of Alabama’s goals are still in front of it, but it has to grow and learn from the loss in Knoxville. The last two games Alabama basketball has lost, it made necessary adjustments and came out of those losses as a better team.

If Bama hoops can once again reach another level, the rest of college basketball might be in trouble.