For long-time college basketball fans, the thought of Alabama Basketball having an easy time against a Sean Miller-coached team is surprising. The 2025-26 Texas Longhorns are no typical Sean Miller team. The Horns have won nine games, but have lost three of their most recent five games, including a 14-point loss in Knoxville on Tuesday night.
After the Tennessee game, Miller talked about his team's biggest weakness. "If you can’t play with effort, it’s going to be a very, very hard next couple of months, and I think you’ll see that. Our lineup has to change. I can’t keep playing certain guys. We’re at that point. We’re just going to have to go with whoever is ready to play hard. We have to go with them, because that’s going to be our best bet."
Miller was also asked about his team's progress in establishing an identity. His response was, "We’re not making any."
That identity is certainly not toughness. Evan Miya has the Longhorns ranked with the No. 96 defense among Division One teams. Miya's model has only one SEC team ranked lower: the Oklahoma Sooners.
The Longhorns have some size with 7' 245lbs. Matas Vokietaitis. Sean Miller was displeased with him against the Vols and played him only 12 minutes. He is the second-leading scorer for Texas, and if Aiden Sherrell cannot go on Saturday night, Alabama will not only be missing rim protection, but the Tide may not have a big man who can defend Vokietaitis. Nate Oats reported that Sherrell has practiced some and will be a game-time decision. Even if Sherrell plays, he might be limited in minutes.
Without Sherrell in Nashville, Alabama had little rim protection, made worse by the fact that no Alabama defender could slow Vandy's Tyler Tanner penetration to the basket.
The best chance for Texas is that Sean Miller's players respond to his comments with extra effort and determination. Even if they do, Alabama should win. Look for the Crimson Tide to score in the 90s and win by double-digits.
Next week has two road games for the Crimson Tide: in Starkville on Tuesday night and in Norman, OK, on Saturday. The Bulldogs are sneaky good with the SEC's leading scorer, Josh Hubbard.