A lot has been written and a lot has been said about Alabama basketball's disappointing home loss to Ole Miss on Tuesday night. The Crimson Tide looked unprepared and disinterested and ultimately got what it deserved in a 74-64 loss to the Rebels.
It was a disappointing performance for Crimson Tide fans and for head coach Nate Oats, who made it well known how displeased he was with his team in the aftermath.
At the end of the day, however, the loss has not impacted Alabama's standing nationally, particularly as it pertains to eventual NCAA Tournament seeding.
ESPN's bracket guru Joe Lunardi tweeted out an updated seed list on Thursday night:
— Joe Lunardi (@ESPNLunardi) January 16, 2025
Lunardi had Alabama as the fourth and final No. 1 seed early in the week, meaning he had them at No. 4 overall. Following the loss to Ole Miss, the Crimson Tide tumbled all the way down to.... No. 5 overall and the top 2 seed in Lunardi's bracket projection.
Alabama dropped one spot in the NET rankings from No. 7 to No. 8. Most fans would be surprised the Tide didn't drop more in NET and in bracket projections, but at the end of the day the loss to Ole Miss, even at home, is a Quad 1 loss.
The Rebels are currently ranked No. 16 in the NET rankings and as long as they stay inside the Top 25 that game will be considered a Q1 game and losing Q1 games no matter where they are played will rarely be too impactful. Winning them has a much bigger positive effect than losing them has a negative. Unlike college football, you are rewarded for playing a difficult schedule in college basketball.
Alabama has 14 more SEC games to go and 12 of them are against teams that would currently qualify as Q1 opponents.
Where the loss to Ole Miss is most impactful is with Alabama's hopes of winning the SEC Championship. Auburn and Ole Miss remain undefeated at 4-0, so Alabama is a game behind them now. It puts some pressure on what will be a difficult game on Saturday in Lexington against Kentucky.
A loss to the Wildcats would put Alabama behind the eight-ball in the SEC race. A win would put the Tide right back in the thick of it and more than erase the disappointing loss to Ole Miss in Coleman Coliseum.