Where Alabama Basketball Ranks After Week 2

Following a single-digit win over McNeese, the Crimson Tide suffered its first loss of the season against Purdue on the road.

Nov 11, 2024; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats walks onto the court before the game at Coleman Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Will McLelland-Imagn Images | Will McLelland-Imagn Images

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— After receiving its highest preseason ranking in the AP and Coaches Polls in program history at No. 2, the Alabama men's basketball team started relatively strong with two wins to open the season in Week 1––maintaining its inaugural ranking in each of the polls.

On Nov. 11, the Crimson Tide defeated McNeese State 72-64 on Monday night in Coleman Coliseum. However, as the score suggests this was far from an easy victory. The Crimson Tide was up by as much as 21 points early in the second half, but a big run by the Cowboys combined with some major offensive struggles by Alabama made this game much closer than it should've been.

There was reasonable concern for Alabama ahead of its first road game against then-No. 13 Purdue on Friday. The Boilermakers had the lead for a heavy majority of the evening and Alabama couldn’t maintain its couple of leads in the second half. The Crimson Tide played at its renowned fast pace when the game was within a couple of points but Purdue slowed down Alabama late and took over with a massive run in the end for a final score of 87-78.

Due to a sluggish week that concluded with Alabama's first loss of the 2024-25 season, the Crimson Tide was placed at No. 8 in the AP Poll and No. 7 in the Coaches Poll on Monday.

AP Poll

(Rank, Team, First-Place Votes, Record, Points)

1. Kansas (49), 4-0, 1509
2. UConn (7), 3-0, 1416
3. Gonzaga (2), 3-0, 1397
4. Auburn (3), 3-0, 1370
5. Iowa State, 2-0, 1184
6. Purdue, 4-0, 1172
7. Houston, 2-1, 1091
8. Alabama, 3-1, 1084
9. Kentucky, 3-0, 1009
10. North Carolina, 2-1, 969
11. Tennessee, 4-0, 942
12. Duke, 3-1, 914
13. Baylor, 3-1, 765
14. Creighton, 4-0, 722
15. Marquette, 4-0, 630
16. Indiana, 3-0, 573
17. Arizona, 2-1, 437
18. Cincinnati, 3-0, 412
19. Wisconsin, 4-0, 370
20. Arkansas, 2-1, 313
21. Florida, 4-0, 302
22. St. John's, 4-0, 270
23. Texas A&M, 3-1, 233
24. Rutgers, 3-0, 143
25. Illinois, 3-0, 116

Others receiving votes: Texas Tech 109, Mississippi 103, Xavier 89, BYU 27, UCF 21, Texas 17, VCU 17, Michigan St. 16, Mississippi St. 15, Ohio St. 13, Miami 10, Pittsburgh 9, Oregon 7, Memphis 6, Penn St. 4, Providence 4, Utah St. 3, Kansas St 3, Clemson 2, Furman 2, Arizona St 2, Michigan 1, Hofstra 1, Maryland 1.

Coaches Poll

(Rank, Team, First-Place Votes, Record, Points)

1. Kansas (21), 4-0, 665
2. UConn (3), 3-0, 632
3. Auburn (2), 3-0, 608
4. Gonzaga (1), 3-0, 599
5. Iowa State, 2-0, 516
6. Purdue, 4-0, 513
7. Alabama, 3-1, 470; Houston, 2-1, 470
8. Tennessee, 4-0, 462
9. Duke, 3-1, 421
10. Kentucky, 3-0, 381
11. North Carolina, 2-1, 377
12. Creighton, 4-0, 348
13. Marquette, 4-0, 319
14. Baylor, 3-1, 313
15. Cincinnati, 3-0, 229
16. Arizona, 2-1, 228
17. Indiana, 3-0, 208
18. Florida, 4-0, 168
19. Illinois, 3-0, 133
20. St. John's, 4-0, 119
21. Texas Tech, 3-0, 95
22. Texas A&M, 3-1, 94
23. Arkansas, 2-1, 82
24. Wisconsin, 4-0, 75

Schools Dropped Out: No. 22 Ohio State; No. 24 Rutgers,

Others Receiving Votes: Rutgers 56; Xavier 43; Ole Miss 39; BYU 28; Saint Mary's 18; Pittsburgh 18; Texas 14; Michigan State 9; Mississippi State 5; Oregon 4; Nevada 4; Ohio State 3; Dayton 3; Wake Forest 2; VCU 2; UCF 2.