Alabama Men's Basketball Lost at Tennessee, But Gained Valuable Experience
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Any loss is a tough loss, but the way Alabama basketball lost to Tennessee wasn't quite like the others.
The most comparable game prior to the 68-59 loss in Knoxville would be the one against Houston; a road game where the crowd is against you, and the physicality makes everything tougher to execute.
Head coach Nate Oats believed that Houston, and the early loss to UConn in the Phil Knight Invitational, were both physical games, but not like the one against the Volunteers.
"That was probably the most physical game we've been in," Oats said. "[The referees] are not gonna let it be quite that physical in the NCAA Tournament, but we have to handle physicality much better. There was physicality that was not fouling that we didn't handle well either."
The game itself received a healthy amount of criticism for being too physical, but like Oats said, Alabama struggled even beyond that. It was evident with the turnovers, the most in a game (19) since the Crimson Tide opened SEC play against Mississippi State in late December. Unlike the early part of the season, however, where the turnovers were just the result of poor decision-making, a lot of the turnovers were a direct result of the pressure Tennessee applied.
But with it being the first time experiencing such pressure, especially for the freshmen, it bodes well that the experience will pay off later down the line. Surprisingly, the person who also benefitted from the experience might be the elder statesman, Jahvon Quinerly.
"I've never played in there with a full crowd," Quinerly said. "I think it was different for everybody on the team, not only the younger guys."
Quinerly would describe the atmosphere in Knoxville as "an NCAA Tournament game," and that the experience is good to have ahead of the big dance. Oats also thinks the experience will benefit the team, especially if Alabama faces Tennessee again.
"It's easier for players to realize they're not as good at it when they get beat by it," Oats said. "You look at our four losses, there's different things we've learned every loss, and that's one of them.
"If we see Tennessee in the SEC Tournament, I think we'll handle it a little bit better."
Alabama's next game will be against Georgia. Tipoff is at 5 p.m. CT on Saturday inside Coleman Coliseum. The game will be broadcasted on SEC Network.
See also: Alabama Hasn't Forgotten 'Embarrassing Loss' to Georgia Last Season
Recruiting Rundown: The Offers Are Rolling in For the 2024 Class
Alabama Viewer's Guide to First Full Weekend of Spring Sports
