Update: 3 takeaways from Alabama basketball’s blowout SEC Tournament loss vs. Florida
Alabama men’s basketball was the third and final victim of the double-bye curse that seemed to hang over Nashville on Friday. The Crimson Tide, following the lead of Tennessee and Kentucky, was upset in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament by Florida, which won the game 102-88.
UA’s usual offensive firepower was shockingly absent in the defeat. The Tide shot just 46.5% from the field, and an even worse 24% from three.
Meanwhile, Florida didn’t have much trouble overwhelming Alabama on the other end of the floor. As the Crimson Tide awaits its continued postseason fate, here’s what to know about Friday’s loss.
Alabama started the half off good. Things quickly changed.
Florida coach Todd Golden had to call a timeout just 1:55 into the game. At that point, his Gators were down 8-0, and the Crimson Tide was threatening to break the contest open before the under-16 timeout.
Make the shots it needed to for the Tide to ever be a real threat to the Gators.
The inability to score exposed an issue that has plagued UA all season. Alabama simply couldn’t get the stops it needed.
For much of the year, one of the nation’s best offenses made up for that lack of defense. However, during the final stretch of the season, besides the win against Arkansas in its regular season finale, Alabama sputtered in that department as well.
It’s something the Tide has to fix before the NCAA tournament begins. Nate Oats has admitted that the defense is unlikely to return to its 2022-23 form, given how differently last year’s team was built.
The offense is going to have to make up for failure on the other end. If that doesn’t happen, the 2023-24 campaign will likely end quickly once the NCAA Tournament begins.
What’s next?
The defeat rounded out a day of SEC tournament upsets. Earlier in the day, top-seeded Tennessee fell to Mississippi State in its first game of tournament play.
Just before Alabama and Florida took the court at Bridgestone Arena, No. 2 Kentucky also went down. The only team that earned a double-bye and won in the quarterfinals was Auburn, which dispatched South Carolina in the second game of the day.
The Tigers continue their quest for a conference tournament title on Saturday, taking on the Bulldogs. The Crimson Tide heads home to Tuscaloosa to wait out its postseason fate.
Entering the game, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi projected that Alabama would be a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament. That could well change following the defeat.
The tournament selection show is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. CT on Sunday. It will be aired on CBS.
