The No. 2 seed Alabama Crimson Tide followed up a historic Sweet 16 shooting display against BYU, where they scored 113 points, with a much quieter offensive showing against Duke, managing only 65 points. Their top scorer, Mark Sears, struggled, finishing with just six points on 2-for-12 shooting.
For the second consecutive season, Alabama’s pursuit of a national title was cut short. Last year, they reached the Final Four, and this time, they made it back to the Elite Eight—still an impressive feat given the program’s status before head coach Nate Oats took over.
Oats has played a key role in Alabama’s basketball resurgence. Despite the disappointing loss to Duke, he remained optimistic, delivering a confident message after the game:
“We’ll get back to the Final Four and win one soon,” Oats stated. “We need to do a better job during the season to earn a No. 1 seed—it’s a little easier to make it [to the Final Four] that way.”
Fans echoed his confidence, expressing their belief in Alabama’s future success.
“Totally believe that. Only a matter of time,” one fan commented.
“I believe,” another added.
“Yes sir,” a third posted.
One more fan praised Oats’ leadership, saying, “I like a motivated Nate Oats who is setting a true standard for Alabama basketball. He’s not Nick Saban, but he has some similarities.”
Now, Alabama looks ahead to the offseason, preparing for roster changes with key players like Grant Nelson and Mark Sears departing. The Crimson Tide will also jump into the NCAA transfer portal, which opened last week. Their deep tournament run put them a week behind in recruiting, but Oats credited assistant coach Preston Murphy for staying proactive in the portal even while Alabama was still competing.
