Nate Oats wants Alabama to avoid same mistake as 2023-24 team after GameDay loss

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – No. 2 Alabama lost to No. 1 Auburn, 94-85, on its home floor Saturday.

It was one of the biggest home games in Crimson Tide basketball history and marked the first time two teams from the SEC met as the nation’s top two teams. To signify the importance of the matchup, ESPN College GameDay made its second-ever trip to Coleman Coliseum, and the Iron Bowl of Basketball was played in front of a soldout, raucous crowd.

But Alabama (21-4, 10-2 SEC) was on the losing end, and Auburn (23-2, 11-1) now sits atop the SEC standings with six games left in the regular season. Immediately after the loss, head coach Nate Oats said he brought up last season’s loss to Tennessee to his players.

In the first College GameDay broadcast from Alabama’s campus, the Tide also lost to the No. 4 Vols, 81-74. UA let that snowball into back-to-back losses, falling on the road at Florida, 105-87, the next game. Alabama hasn’t lost consecutive games so far this campaign.

But Oats doesn’t want to see this team make the same mistake.

“The leadership on the (2023-24) team didn’t rally us together enough to be ready to go on the road and play well at Florida. We got trounced pretty good on the road,” Oats said.

“We’ve got better leadership this year. We’re not in full control of our own destiny to win outright. We are in full control of our own destiny to at least get a tie with the league moving forward, because Auburn’s now a game ahead of us, and we got Auburn at their place.

“So we’ll see what type of maturity and leadership we have by how we come in on Monday.”

Alabama cut down its turnovers (7) and won the rebounding battle, 49-40. But the Tide didn’t shoot the ball well, either near the rim (14-30 on layups) or from deep (5-26 on 3s).

The Tide will be back to work on Monday, taking Sunday off before turning its full attention to another ranked matchup, this one at No. 21 Missouri. It’s the second of seven games against top-25 opponents to end the season for Alabama. “We gotta bring it,” Oats said.

“Our mindsets got to be better than they were last year, after the home loss, after GameDay was here,” Oats said. “That’s how I challenged our guys after the game.”

That message was received, at least by fifth-year senior guard Chris Youngblood.

“You never wanna lose on your home court, especially in front of a big crowd,” Youngblood said. “… It’s pretty frustrating, but it’s crucial that we move on and get ready from a pretty good Missouri team that’s been doing a good job all year.”

As Oats stepped behind the lectern for his postgame press conference, Alabama’s players were in the weight room with strength coach Henry Barrera. That’s the Tide’s approach after all home games, but Oats wants to see how the team responds to its fourth loss of the year.

“You guys give an honest effort in the weight room,” Oats said. “Let’s have some maturity. Let’s come in on Sunday, get your treatment from Clarke (Holter) and come in on Monday morning, go through the cleanup, put the Missouri scout in. We gotta be ready to go. 

“Hopefully, we’re mature enough and have enough leadership on this team that the adversity we just faced in the game tonight makes us a better team three weeks from now, four weeks from now, five, six, seven weeks from now, and we’re better off for this loss.”

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