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Alabama earns No. 2 seed, will face Iona in first round of NCAA tournament

Tony_Tsoukalas

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Feb 5, 2014
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Alabama basketball will be a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament where it will open up against No. 15 seed Iona in the first round on Saturday at 3 p.m. CT inside of Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The game will be televised on TBS.

Earlier in the day, Alabama (24-6) won its first SEC tournament title since 1991, beating LSU, 80-79, in the championship game. The Crimson Tide also earned the SEC regular-season title, making it the only Power Five school to win both of its conference championships this season. Iona (12-5) advances to the tournament after winning the MAAC tournament on Saturday. The Gaels are coached by two-time NCAA champion Rick Pitino.

Alabama will be part of the East Region which features No. 1 seed Michigan. If the Tide is able to get past Iona it will move on to face the winner of No. 7 seed Connecticut and No. 10 Maryland in the second round. The East Region also features No. 8 seed LSU, setting up what could be a fourth meeting between the Tide and the Tigers this season.

“I have full faith we can take the NCAA tournament by storm and win the whole thing,” Alabama point guard Jahvon Quinerly said following the Tide's victory over LSU earlier in the day. “I know how hard we work. We have the best coaching staff in the country who just prepares us each and every game. And I have full faith if we lock in and do what we’ve got to do, we’ll be crowned again. So, there is more work to be done.”

Alabama’s seeding in this year's tournament is tied for its highest in program history as the Tide also entered the tournament as a No. 2 seed in 1987 and 2002. This will be Alabama’s 21st appearance in the NCAA tournament. The Tide’s deepest run came in 2004 when it reached the Elite Eight as a No. 8 seed.

Alabama last reached the Big Dance in 2018 when it was a No. 9 seed. That year’s team took down Virginia Tech in the first round before falling to eventual national champions Villanova in its next game.

Only four players on Alabama’s current roster remain from that team in Herbert Jones, John Petty Jr., Alex Reese and walk-on Tyler Barnes. Graduate transfer Jordan Bruner advanced to the NCAA tournament with Yale in 2019 as the No. 14 seed Bulldogs fell to No. 3 seed LSU in the first round.

While this is Nate Oats’ first NCAA tournament appearance with Alabama, the second-year head coach is no stranger to the Big Dance himself. Oats took Buffalo to the NCAA tournament three of his four years as head coach, earning two first-round wins, including an upset of No. 4 seed Arizona in 2018.

NCAA TOURNAMENT GAMES
West Region

Games will be played on Saturday, March 20
No. 1 Gonzaga (26-0) vs. No. 16 Norfolk State/Appalachian State
No. 8 Oklahoma (15-10) vs. No. 9 Missouri (16-9)
No. 5 Creighton (20-8) vs. No. 12 UC Santa Barbara (22-4)
No. 4 Virginia (18-6) vs. No. 13 Ohio (16-7)
No. 6 USC (22-7) vs. No. 11 Wichita State/Drake
No. 3 Kansas (20-8) vs. No. 14 Eastern Washington (16-7)
No. 7 Oregon (20-6) vs. No. 10 Virginia Commonwealth (19-7)
No. 2 Iowa (21-8) vs. No. 15 Grand Canyon (17-6)
South Region
Games will be played on Saturday, March 20
No. 1 Baylor (22-2) vs. No. 16 Hartford (15-8)
No. 8 North Carolina (18-10) vs. No. 9 Wisconsin (17-12)
No. 5 Villanova (16-6) vs. No. 12 Winthrop (23-1)
No. 4 Purdue (18-9) vs. No. 13 North Texas (17-9)
No. 6 Texas Tech (17-10) vs. No. 11 Utah State (20-8)
No. 3 Arkansas (22-6) vs. No. 14 Colgate (14-1)
No. 7 Florida (14-9) vs. No. 10 Virginia Tech (15-6)
No. 2 Ohio State (21-9) vs. No. 15 Oral Roberts (16-10)
Midwest Region
Games will be played on Friday, March 19
No. 1 Illinois (23-6) vs. No. 16 Drexel (12-7)
No. 8 Loyola-Chicago (24-4) vs. No. 9 Georgia Tech (17-8)
No. 5 Tennessee (18-8) vs. No. 12 Oregon State (17-12)
No. 4 Oklahoma State (20-8) vs. No. 13 Liberty (23-5)
No. 6 San Diego State (23-4) vs. No. 11 Syracuse (16-9)
No. 3 West Virginia (18-9) vs. No. 14 Morehead State (23-7)
No. 7 Clemson (16-7) vs. No. 10 Rutgers (15-11)
No. 2 Houston (24-3) vs. No. 15 Cleveland State (19-7)
East Region
Games will be played on Saturday, March 20
No. 1 Michigan (20-4) vs. No. 16 Mount St. Mary’s/Texas Southern
No. 8 LSU (18-9) vs. No. 9 St. Bonaventure (16-4)
No. 5 Colorado (22-8) vs. No. 12 Georgetown (13-12)
No. 4 Florida State (16-6) vs. No. 13 UNC Greensboro (21-8)
No. 6 BYU (20-6) vs. No. 11 Michigan State/UCLA
No. 3 Texas (19-7) vs. No. 14 Abilene Christian (23-4)
No. 7 Connecticut (15-7) vs. No. 10 Maryland (16-13)
No. 2 Alabama (24-6) vs. No. 15 Iona (12-5)
 
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Tough draw in the first 2 rounds. Iona can shoot the 3

also the last time we won the sec and the sec tourney we were bounced by Pitino
 
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A quick look at their starters:
Sr. G Isaiah Ross 34 min. 18ppg
Sr. G Asante Gist 30 min. 13.3ppg
JR. G Herrick Jeanlouis 31.5min 8.2ppg
Fr. F Nelly Joseph 27 min 11ppg
Fr. F Dwayne Koroma 15 min 2.8ppg

Just looking at their remaining roster not a whole lot of minutes are dealt out to other players as they have an additional forward that logs 21 min a game. Run and gun and aggression should play into the Tide's favor.

Their 9 seeding in their conference is a little misleading as well. Since their schedule was affected by covid their ranking was given based on conference wins (6-3 record). They played one good team in Seton Hall and lost by 22.
 
Earlier in the day, Alabama (24-6) won its first SEC tournament title since 1991, beating LSU, 80-79, in the championship game
Are you sure? I didn't see any highlights on the SEC Now. If Bama had played and beaten LSU today in one of the most exciting games all season then one would have thought there would have been extensive highlights and analysis.
 
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Are you sure? I didn't see any highlights on the SEC Now. If Bama had played and beaten LSU today in one of the most exciting games all season then one would have thought there would have been extensive highlights and analysis.

I thought I had made a mistake for a second lol
 
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Tough draw in the first 2 rounds. Iona can shoot the 3

also the last time we won the sec and the sec tourney we were bounced by Pitino
I thought the same, but some on ESPN have said they like Alabama's draw. Seth Greenberg thinks they have the easiest path to the Elite Eight and possible Final Four.
 
I actually think we have a pretty tough road. UConn is one of the hottest teams in the country and has me worried with their style of play. Texas also is legit.
 
I actually think we have a pretty tough road. UConn is one of the hottest teams in the country and has me worried with their style of play. Texas also is legit.
Bama is also one of the hottest teams in the country and considered legit. We also play tenacious defense.
 
I actually think we have a pretty tough road. UConn is one of the hottest teams in the country and has me worried with their style of play. Texas also is legit.

It's the NCAA tournament. Virtually every team ranked better than a 10 seed can be considered "legit". Hell, we just beat an 8 seed by 1 point on a neutral court. We've already lost to an 8 and 9 (Oklahoma & Missouri). Bottom line is once you get past the first round anything can happen.
 
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