Why Nate Oats Views Alabama's Season as a 'Disappointment' Entering NCAA Tournament

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama basketball has officially tied a program record with its sixth straight NCAA Tournament appearance. Furthermore, the Crimson Tide is a top-four seed for the fourth straight year after being announced as a No. 4 seed during Sunday’s NCAA Selection Show.

Under head coach Nate Oats, Alabama has become one of the most consistent programs in the SEC and nationally.

Oats is not satisfied with the results.

“I didn’t plan on being a four-seed this year. Our players didn’t plan on it," Oats said. "Our plan was to win the SEC regular season and tournament. To me, it’s been a little bit of a disappointment at this point.”

Alabama will face Hofstra in the Round of 64 in Tampa on Friday. The Crimson Tide sits at 23-9 entering the Big Dance following an up-and-down season with very high highs and low lows. A road win over Big East Champion St. John's and an eight-game SEC winning streak showed the team's potential, while a 4-4 start to conference play and a stunning SEC Tournament loss to 15-seeded Ole Miss are the reasons this team is not a two or three-seed.

"We can make up a lot of excuses for why we didn't have the year we wanted to have," Oats said, citing injuries. "But at the end of the day, we didn't win enough games for what we expect to win around here."

Despite the disappointment with the seeding, Oats made it clear that the program’s expectations remain unchanged entering the NCAA Tournament.

"While the program is to heights that we wanted to get it to, and it hadn't been here in a while, we've got to make a run," Oats said. "We got to get back to Sweet 16."

2026 Midwest Region

No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 16 UMBC/Howard
No. 8 Georgia vs. No. 9 Saint Louis
No. 5 Texas Tech vs. No. 12 Akron
No. 4 Alabama vs. No. 13 Hofstra
No. 6 Tennessee vs. No. 11 Miami (Ohio)/SMU
No. 3 Virginia vs. No. 14 Wright State
No. 7 Kentucky vs. No. 10 Santa Clara
No. 2 Iowa State vs. No. 15 Tennessee State

Alabama Basketball in the NCAA Tournament:

(Season, Seed, Final Result)

1974-75: Lost in Round of 64 (NCAA Tournament seeding introduced in 1979)
1975-76: Lost in Sweet 16
1981-82: 4-seed, Lost in Sweet 16
1982-83: 6-seed, Lost in Round of 64
1983-84: 9-seed, Lost in Round of 64
1984-85: 7-seed, Lost in Sweet 16
1985-86: 5-seed, Lost in Sweet 16
1986-87 (vacated): 2-seed, Lost in Sweet 16
1988-89: 6-seed, Lost in Round of 64
1989-90: 7-seed, Lost in Sweet 16
1990-91: 4-seed, Lost in Sweet 16
1991-92: 5-seed, Lost in Round of 32
1993-94: 9-seed, Lost in Round of 32
1994-95: 5-seed, Lost in Round of 32
2001-02: 2-seed, Lost in Round of 32
2002-03: 10-seed, Lost in Round of 64
2003-04: 8-seed, Lost in Elite Eight
2004-05: 5-seed, Lost in Round of 64
2005-06: 10-seed, Lost in Round of 32
2011-12: 9-seed, Lost in Round of 32
2017-18: 9-seed, Lost in Round of 32
2020-21: 2-seed, Lost in Sweet 16
2021-22: 6-seed, Lost in Round of 64
2022-23: No. 1 overall seed, Lost in Sweet 16
2023-24: 4-seed, Lost in Final Four
2024-25: 2-seed, Lost in Elite Eight
2025-26: 4-seed, Result TBD

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