Alabama faces 'character' game vs. Arkansas after back-to-back losses

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama men’s basketball team has lost back-to-back games in SEC play for the first time since March of 2022. The Crimson Tide is coming off an 81-74 loss at home to fourth-ranked Tennessee and then a 105-87 defeat on the road at Florida.

That’s why Nate Oats called Saturday’s home finale against Arkansas a “character” game.

“We haven’t lost two games in SEC play in a long time,” Oats said on Friday. “We have to come out obviously and play a lot better on defense. Our guys gotta give better effort. 

“I felt like we gave really good effort in the Tennessee game and came up a little short. They’re the best team in the league. I felt like that loss carried over to Tuesday’s game against Florida, and Florida’s a really good team. They had a great environment. But they’re not the league champ like Tennessee, and our guys, I thought, let the Tennessee loss carry over and affect some effort.”

The last time out, No. 16 Alabama (20-10, 12-5 SEC) gave up 105 points to the Gators. It was a night that Oats said the Crimson Tide’s “offensive frustrations lead to some defensive letdowns,” which resulted in Florida opening up a sizeable lead at home in the second half.

The loss all but dashed Alabama’s hopes of winning the SEC regular-season championship for a third time in the last four years, as Tennessee claimed the title the next night with a road win at South Carolina. But UA is still battling for a top-4 seed in the SEC Tournament.

Alabama can claim the 2-seed in the league tournament with a win over Arkansas and a UT win over Kentucky on Saturday. Neither will be a walk in the park, however, as the Razorbacks are playing their best ball of the season of late. Razorback guard Khalif Battle also enters the matchup having scored 29 or more points in each of his last four games.

That’s one reason why Oats is continuing to preach defense. But the fifth-year coach isn’t the only one. He said some of UA’s leaders are trying to bring about better defensive effort.

“Since (Latrell) Wrightsell’s been back and he’s had a couple good days of practice, I think he’s been – maybe he was out long and realized what he’s missing and he’s got fresh legs – he’s been great,” Oats said. “His energy, his talk. He’s making tough plays. I’d say he’s probably the one that sticks out the most. I think Nick Pringle’s been trying to be a pretty good leader for us, too, in a lot of regards. 

“There’s some other guys that aren’t talking as much but their effort’s been better. I think Grant Nelson and (Aaron) Estrada have both tried to play a lot harder. I noticed that, too. But if you came to this week’s practices, particularly the last two days, I think Wrightsell stands out as a guy that’s probably done the most in that regard.”

Can Alabama bounce back against a surging Arkansas team that has won three of its last five? That’s what Oats wants to see on Saturday at Coleman Coliseum (11 a.m. CT on ESPN).

“We’ve gotta bounce back after two losses,” Oats said. “Are we winners? Do we have a competitive edge about us? Because we’re not playing for a league title anymore. We’re not playing for other than pride and some seeding. If we do win, I think we guarantee ourselves at least a 2- or a 3-seed in the SEC Tournament, and obviously, it helps with the NCAA Tournament.

“So we’re gonna see what our guys are made of Saturday, and we’re gonna have to play against a team that’s got plenty of talent in Arkansas and they’re playing their best basketball coming into the season. They’re gonna be ready to go, for sure.”

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