For lifelong and long-term Alabama basketball fans, this run under Nate Oats has been nothing less than incredible and feels like a dream come true. This is a program that has had success over the years, but nothing as sustained as what we are witnessing right now. That first Sweet 16 appearance in 2021 was so surreal, and since then, to have made the second weekend in the tournament a regular part of Crimson Tide basketball is amazing.
Of course, we would love to cut down the nets in April and bring the first title to Tuscaloosa, but for right now, as a fan, you just have to appreciate what is happening.
Just two years ago, reaching the Final Four seemed like the mountain top, but after reaching the Elite Eight last year and being again two games from a second Final Four appearance, it just seems like at some point a National Championship banner will be hung in Coleman Coliseum. As an Alabama basketball fan who has seen the ups and downs over the past few decades, I don't think I will ever not get excited about reaching the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament. The expectations have definitely escalated in the last couple of years, but this is something that can not be taken for granted ever.
This season has had a lot of ups and downs on and off the court, but the joy we saw from this team from start to finish Sunday night in Tampa will always be a fond memory. Now we head to Chicago to face arguably the best team in America, and a team on paper we do not match up against well at all. We have our work cut out for us on Friday night against Michigan, but playing with house money in March with a star like Lebaron Philon, we've seen crazier things. After seeing Iowa pull off the upset against Florida, this seems a much more likely one.