It's easy to draw a parallel between what's ahead of Alabama basketball on Tuesday with Vanderbilt in town and what the Crimson Tide faced a week ago against Ole Miss.
Alabama went into last Tuesday's matchup in Coleman against the Rebels fresh off a Top 10 road win. The Tide rolled into College Station and walked out victorious.
This week, Alabama is getting ready for a visit from Vanderbilt fresh off another Top 10 road win on Saturday, this time over the Kentucky Wildcats. Nate Oats and the Tide are hoping to avoid a repeat of the malaise that greeted them against Ole Miss.
Alabama looked tired and disinterested against Ole Miss and they got what they deserved: a disappointing 10 point home loss to a team they should have beaten. If they play the same level of basketball this Tuesday, Vanderbilt is fully capable of doing the same thing.
Avoiding a repeat is fresh on Oats' mind, and he's done what he can to make sure the players understand it. Alabama's Monday practice ran long as a result:
“Trying to make sure they didn’t have a repeat of last week,” Oats said
“So we’re gonna do it over again until we get it right. It took a few drills, a few minutes longer than we planned because I told them last week, on my end, I’m gonna hold them a little bit more accountable, and I think they’re seeing that I’m serious about it."
Alabama will need its veterans to lead the way against the 'Dores. Everyone will be looking at Mark Sears and Grant Nelson and will follow the energy they see from them.
If Vanderbilt didn't have Alabama's attention before, it should now following the 'Dores win over Tennessee on Saturday. It was a signature win for first year head coach Mark Byington, who has Vandy as a much-improved team from where they were a year ago.
One of Vanderbilt's biggest strengths is its ability to score off of turnovers. Turnovers crushed Alabama against Ole Miss last week; the Tide committed 21 turnovers to only 20 made field goals. A repeat of that performance will lead to another home loss.
And with LSU coming to Coleman on Saturday, there won't be a quick opportunity to make up for it.