Why Facing Georgia on the Road Could Be 'Trap Game' For Alabama

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — No. 16 Alabama is one of the hottest college basketball teams in America right now.

After falling to Florida on Feb. 1 to bring its conference record to an eyebrow-raising 4-4, the Crimson Tide has won eight straight games and clinched a double bye for the SEC Tournament.

But UA's regular season isn't over. After a thrilling 13-point comeback win on the road over Tennessee, head coach Nate Oats and company will face Georgia in Athens on Tuesday evening and then Auburn at home on Saturday. Fans would likely treat the Georgia game as a bit of a buffer ahead of Round 2 of the Iron Bowl of Basketball, but Oats has "not even thought about Auburn."

"Obviously, the win on Saturday was pretty emotionally taxing to make a comeback on the road," Oats said during Monday's press conference. "I think the biggest job here is we've got to get our guys' minds right and to focus on that we still have a lot to play for with these two games left.

"For an immature team, it definitely could be a trap game. And I hope we're showing some maturity. I think the win on the road at Tennessee showed some maturity. I think some of these other ones in February have shown a little bit in the maturity face.

"An immature team would come off a road win at Tennessee, look forward to your big rival game and skip the Georgia game. That would be a huge mistake, because Georgia is a very good team. [You have to be] fully locked in to beat them."

The Bulldogs have quietly put together a standout season, as they've reached 20 wins in the regular season for the sixth time in program history — and there are still two games remaining. It's one of many reasons why Oats is stressing that this could be trap.

"I think [Georgia head coach] Mike [White] has done a great job with the talent over there," Oats said. "The talent level is high, they've done a great job of recruiting. Both sides of the ball, they play fast. Their athleticism shows.

"They're pressing, turning people over — second-highest turnover rate in the SEC — and they lead the country in blocks per game.

"Our transition D is going to be tested. It means you've got to be super locked in mentally."

Oats said that Alabama's three biggest wins this season were against St. John's (103-96 on Nov. 8), Illinois (90-86 on Nov. 19) and Tennessee (71-69 on Feb. 28). However, the Crimson Tide proceeded to lose the contests that followed St. John's and Illinois.

"We failed those two tests coming off really good wins. Now we're coming off a really good win and have another test.

"You can't come into this game still high off the Tennessee game and have a good chance to win. That's been the message to the guys and we've got to go to Georgia and beat a really good team on the road.

"You look at most analytic sites, this game is supposed to be a one-possession game. Every possession is going to matter and we've got to be better than we've been after the last two big wins of the year."