Happy Thursday, everyone. Or, perhaps I should say Happy Sweet 16 day, as Alabama is set to face BYU on CBS tonight at 6:00 CT. It’s quite clear that Nate Oats has the team focused on defending against an elite BYU offense.
Last year, the defense was not good. The Crimson Tide ranked No. 111 in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom. This year, it’s much better at No. 29 in KenPom heading into the Sweet 16. Still, Oats isn’t satisfied.
“It’s still not where we’d like it to be,” Oats said. “It’s going to have to get significantly better to make another Final Four run. Because the next two teams we play, if we’re fortunate to even have a second game, BYU has got the No. 1 offense in the country I think since February 12th or something like that, and then Duke and Arizona are two of the best offenses in the country, as well.”
Oats, in this offense-heavy region, said he thinks the team that plays the defense is most likely to emerge from the region and head to the Final Four.
“They play a lot like us, very fast paced, and it should be a very fun game, but it’s going to come down to getting stops,” Crimson Tide guard Mark Sears said. “… We’ve just got to limit their 3s as much as possible. We can’t give them simple 3s … we’ve got to do a great job of that and we’ve got to try to limit rotations as much as possible, because when they’re breaking down a defense, that’s giving easy 3s to their shooters.
“And we’ve got to do a great job of transition defense because I’ve seen they’re very, very elite in transition, and we’ve just got to do a great job of slowing that down.”
Hope for the best.
SB Nation’s BYU site has the Cougars pulling off the upset.
For Alabama, they just have so many pieces on offense that will make things difficult for the Cougs. BYU likes to pack the paint and funnel shots to players that aren’t huge scoring threats, but Alabama has several players that can score and packing the paint will be tough against an Alabama teams that likes to hoist ball up quick. Alabama’s front court duo is big like Wisconsin’s, but play very different than them. Similar to Arizona’s front court, I think Alabama can give BYU trouble.
I might be leading with my heart a little here, but I’m going with BYU. BYU has proven that if the team isn’t Houston, they can carve up any defense. Alabama does a good job at limiting the three, but BYU should be able to gash them in PNR situations and find open shooters off of that. I can see Egor Demin having a big game where he puts up 15+ points and 10 assists. Defensively BYU will struggle to slow down Alabama, but BYU has proven they can be stout in situational moments, which is what this game may require down the stretch.
Give me the Cougs.
Prediction: BYU 97, Alabama 94
When you get to this level of the tournament, anyone you play is capable of beating you if you don’t play your best. Hopefully Alabama is able to do that tonight.
The A Day format was announced, and you probably aren’t going to love it.
Alabama’s annual Walk of Fame ceremony at Denny Chimes will begin at 10 a.m. with head coach Kalen DeBoer joined by 2024 captains Tyler Booker, Deontae Lawson, Jalen Milroe and Malachi Moore. Following the ceremony, the entire 2025 roster will take part in the Walk of Champions leading into Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium at 11:35 a.m. The Crimson Tide will then take part in an hour-and-a-half practice beginning at 12 p.m.
Following the A-Day workout, Yea Alabama members will be granted exclusive access to an on-field autograph session with the Crimson Tide players and coaching staff. Those attending the autograph session will be permitted to one autographed item per player/staff member. Parties who have not yet joined Yea Alabama can sign up in advance by clicking here.
This is the trend across the sport, an open practice rather than a scrimmage. Some of it is definitely about keeping eyeballs off the roster, but in some cases sheer numbers have necessitated it as teams need to shop the summer portal in order to have enough players in some position groups to have a full scrimmage. It’s just where we are at this point.
It’s a long time until December, but Alabama got a commitment from the top cornerback in the 2026 class yesterday in Jorden Edmonds from metro Atlanta.
“Smooth mover who can flip his hips with ease in coverage, experienced playing a variety of different coverage schemes but excels in off-man coverage,” 247Sports national analyst Hudson Standish wrote in his evaluation of Edmonds. “Ball production doesn’t jump off the page, but has consistently proven to be tough to beat at the catch point on both sides of the ball.
“Competitive temperament is ideal, constantly battles for positioning, maintains phase well, and uses the sideline to his advantage as a defender. At this stage of the evaluation process stacks up as one of the top cornerbacks in the country. Should be viewed as a traits-heavy boundary cornerback with the potential to shut down an entire side of the field for a College Football Playoff contender.”
That’s some kind of review. Holding onto him won’t be easy, but it’s nice to get the commitment nonetheless.
Last, ESPN has Alabama football 12th in its way too early rankings, and here is their synopsis of the team.
Strength: Defensive front. It starts in the interior with 325-pound Tim Keenan III, who’s back for his redshirt senior season, and James Smith, a prime candidate to be Alabama’s top breakout player on defense and a dynamic playmaker in the middle of that defensive line. LT Overton is also back for his senior season after leading the team with nine quarterback hurries in 2024. He was Alabama’s most impactful pass rusher. Florida transfer Kelby Collins is a key addition, an edge rusher who has shown he can get to the quarterback going up against SEC tackles.
Weakness: Receiver depth. Ryan Williams had an exceptional freshman campaign, especially the way he torched defenses the first part of the season. The challenge now is to find more dependable playmakers around him at the receiver position. Germie Bernard is back after leading Alabama with 50 catches last season. The Alabama coaches are excited about the talent at receiver, but which players are going to emerge as options 3, 4 and 5? Miami transfer Isaiah Horton is one to watch. — Low
That’s about it for now. Have a great day.
Roll Tide.
