Much to the chagrin of (mostly) Auburn fans, Alabama is not going to be ruled ineligible to participate in the NCAA Tournament after Charles Bediako ultimately lost his preliminary injunction against the NCAA and could no longer play for the Crimson Tide after seeing action in five games.
But that doesn't mean that Alabama won't be punished for it, either.
We're already noticing a bias by the AP and Coaches Poll voters, who are consistently keeping the Crimson Tide ranked lower than the metrics suggest they should be. Alabama finally climbed back into the AP Poll this week at No. 25, while being the first team left out of the Coaches Poll. This is a Top 25 team anyway you slice it, but with the negative perception around the program in the aftermath of the Bediako ruling, Alabama has no choice but to leave no doubt with its play on the court.
That's exactly what they are going to have to do the rest of the way in the eyes of the NCAA Tournament selection committee, too.
Alabama basketball can't afford any sort of late-season slide or it will be costly
As things stand, Alabama is a projected 4-seed in the NCAA Tournament according to ESPN's Joe Lunardi heading into Wednesday night's pivotal matchup at home against No. 20 Arkansas. With six games remaining in the regular season, the Crimson Tide looks well-positioned for a 4 or 5-seed in the NCAA Tournament and should be right there for an SEC Tournament double-bye by finishing in the top four of the conference.
But Alabama's seeding in March Madness should be considered tenuous at best. With the anti-Alabama bias of the AP/Coaches Poll voters, it's best to expect a similar bias to seep into the selection committee.
That's a conversation Nate Oats has undoubtedly had with his team. If they want to best position themselves for a run in the NCAA Tournament, they have to remove any doubt down the stretch. Alabama is 2-0 post-Bediako ruling, but its biggest test comes on Wednesday night against the Razorbacks. There are also road games left at LSU, Tennessee, and Georgia, along with Mississippi State and Auburn coming to Tuscaloosa looking to avenge home losses to the Crimson Tide.
Alabama probably needs to go 5-1 in its final six games to have a realistic shot at a 4-seed. That still could keep them on the 5-seed line, too, if the selection committee ultimately chooses to make the Tide eat an entire seed line in a pseudo-punishment.
Whatever you think Alabama's ceiling is for seeding, you should probably drop it a seed line. Whatever you think the floor is, you should probably lower it a seed line.
Perhaps recent comments by Jay Bilas will help with perception, but Alabama is currently college basketball's villain. All it can do is embrace it and make the doubters look foolish.