Nate Oats and his staff, his players, and all Alabama basketball fans want the Crimson Tide to win the SEC Tournament. Earning an SEC Tournament Championship is always a big deal, far bigger than winning the SEC regular season. Almost everyone outside the Crimson Nation expects the Florida Gators to become double SEC champions on Sunday.
Alabama fans will hate Florida winning it all, but on the same day, a new quest will become defined. Select morning, both ESPN's Joe Lunardi and CBS Sports' Bracketology had Alabama as a Big Dance 3-seed. Thursday's Bracket Matrix had Alabama as a 4-seed.
Win it all in Nashville, and Alabama could move up to a 2-seed. A 4-seed is assured no matter what happens against Ole Miss or later in the SEC Tournament. If Alabama wins only Saturday, there is a good chance a 3-seed will be locked down, even if a bad loss later happens in the SEC Championship Game.
CBS and Lunardi currently project 10 SEC basketball teams will make the NCAA Tournament field. The SEC's bubble teams are Texas and Missouri. Auburn is below the bubble and not likely to get back. The Oklahoma win over Texas A&M elevated the Sooners to Lunardi's top First Four Out. CBS has the Sooners in as an 11-seed. Missouri and Texas are looking at 11-seed play-in games.
Projected Alabama Basketball Big Dance Opponents
Lunardi has the Alabama Crimson Tide playing in the Midwest Region. Lunardi has Alabama opening in Greenville, SC, with Troy. In the projected second round, Alabama would face the winner of Wisconsin vs. Miami-Ohio.
The current CBS bracket has Alabama basketball sent to the West Region. The Crimson Tide's projected first-round opponent is UC Irvine. After taking down the Anteaters, Alabama is projected to advance to the winner of North Carolina vs. Oklahoma.
Lunardi being proven correct would please many Alabama fans, especially if Miami-Ohio would upset Wisconsin. Bruce Pearl would no doubt be a passionate believer that the RedHawks would beat the Crimson Tide. If only he could be courtside at that possible game, screaming profanities as he was yesterday in Nashville.