Well, the hay as they say is in the barn.
Saturday afternoon the University of Alabama basketball team played its final game of the regular season, a 65-57 home win over the Georgia Bulldogs.
According to who you’ve listened to over the past few weeks, Saturday’s game was the sixth “must win” game in a row for Bama to make it into the big dance on selection Sunday.
Alabama (20-10, 12-4) must now head to Atlanta for the conference tournament wondering if it has done enough, while preparing to do a little more on Friday and beyond.
When the selection committee sits down and gives us their final answer a week from today, experts say Alabama is in…according to which expert you’re listening to at the moment.
Bama finished off an impressive conference schedule at 12-4, including going 4-2 against the big bad East that everyone is in love with…a mark that should’ve been 5-1 had the officials not been serving up some hot and steamy home cooking in the final minute at Vandy.
But the Tide’s record on neutral or visiting courts was a woeful 4-10, with “bad losses” against the St. Peter’s Peacocks, at Providence and Iowa.
Alabama’s RPI heading into Saturday’s game was 88, with a 139 strength of schedule (279 out-of-conference). Still, Bama turned an 8-6 start into a 20-10 season. Once it found itself, Anthony Grant’s team became a tough out.
Supposedly the selection committee considers a team’s performance down the stretch; Bama finished its last ten games 7-3. The Vandy game heist and the flat performance in Oxford really hurt, as did the 27-point shellacking in Gainsville last Tuesday night.
So is Bama in or out? The “official” ITK prediction is that if they lose in Atlanta on Friday they’ll have the opportunity to extend their home winning streak this season in the NIT, which is a shame. Win Friday and they remain a strong bubble team. Win two and they become a 10 or 11-seed.
Give Bama its non-conference schedule again today and in my opinion they undoubtedly win 12 of 14 and no one is sweating today. But unfortunately, no one gets that chance…a lesson that will be front and center next season for the Tide.
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16 thoughts on “With the dance looming, is Bama in or out?”
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I truly hope bama makes it into the NCAA tournament. Cant wait to see the gumps have their ass handed too them by some directional school. Then ITK you will have another reason to post a “Bama was cheated” blog. We both win!
If you’re referring to the vandy game reference you’ll have a hard time finding someone to disagree with me outside of Nashville or Lee County.
Good luck in the NIT…oh wait…
Hey, what was Auburns basketball record in conference this year? That’s right you barner troll. And only an Aubun fan would say that we were not cheated in Nashville because they are the only fanbase who apparently watch their sports casually and with hardly any knowledge of rules.
got trees, just saying
They are in the same bracket with Georgia – this is going to be tough to win a revenge game.
I think that Bama will have to get to the Championship – and then they will sneak in.
They will send them as far west as possible against a top seed.
It’s all about playing suckass preseason Teams.
As far as Auburn Basketball – The Coach has no Contract and the Team – it just sucks. The numbers don’t lie. Tony can’t buy the Players he wants. That is a huge pain in the ass for somebody like Tony. He will be gone after the Tournament. Remember – He has no contract to hold him back.
can’t wait to see the get out of the cellar
It think that it is delusional to try and justify Auburn Basketball.
If Bama doesn’t make in it will be nobody’s fault but their own. Regardless of the two bad calls at the end of the Vandy game, the game that will have done them in was Florida. There is no way the Gayturds were 27 points better than us except in that game. We beat nearly every common opponent worse than them and stomped Miss St twice who beat them easily. That game cost us a share of the SEC Championship and maybe a lot more. Haven’t seen the seeds yet, but if as West champions and SEC runnersup we get a 2 seed that should guarantee us a couple of wins to start the Tournament then if we play tough against Kentucky or Vandy in the 3rd game, win or lose we will be in. However, it won’t do us much good without a perimiter game unless we drastically improve how we play outside of Coleman cause nearly every one of the other 65 or so teams will be better than the rest of the SEC West was. Just the same we can be proud of how they turned the season around, won the West, SEC runnrsup, took two from the Barnturds, phucked their new arena crowd at the IB presentation, and even beat Kentucky. I can live with that and the super recruits that Grant is bringing in next year, plus the fact that we’re guaranteed an NIT berth if all else fails. All in all, not a bad year. RTR!
I believe we will get a mid to low seed. No way the winner of the SEC West would go to the NIT. Two scenarios — NIT invitation — we’ll run it but probably not win it — just being real according to the play I’ve seen in the past two weeks. Horrible lay-ups, free-throw’s and time-out scenarios with officiating seeming like it’s on a Vega$ payroll. ANYWAYS … if we can win the SEC Tournament — that’s a definite. Just still pissed off from that Floridumb spanking. If we could just hit more 3’s and more accurate lay-ups in the paint along with proper fouling at certain timing — we can go a long way.
we hung on by the skin of our teeth to beat a bad (by kentucky standards)kentucky team at home and ut without hopson and pearl.
that’s it.
the losses ooc look bad. traditionally, the selection committee puts a lot of stock in the ooc record. if we get an at-large, they will have turned their backs on their own precedence.
in our favor is the extra teams in the dance this year and the mid-majors suck.
if we get in they’ll prolly pair us up with pitt.
regardless, this was a good year for us. the fans seem to have taken to grant and he showed his appreciation sat. after the game. i can’t remember a better year for attendance.
when you consider the low basketball i q of some of the players on this team (green, hillman) and the lack of a bench, i think it says a lot about the coaching job grant did this year.
rtr!
Ha! Alabama fans talking basketball shit! God I love how the tide has turned!
bama lock – every sec division champ with 11 plus wins went big dancing
bb – ive been a huge bb fan since reginald king leon douglas ennis whatley buck williams big skinny center key? mcdyess elite 8 under gottfried,,,bama tradition is probably 2nd in sec
How deliteful awbarn was the first team to go home
Wooooie!!! How about that Georgia gamw!!!! Yes, we are in!!!!
Afraid not. Totally wiped out by Kentucky.