Nate Oats Altering Practice to Help with Fatigue

Tuscaloosa, Ala. - Alabama men's basketball has struggled with starting games this season, most notably in the two recent losses to Auburn (by nine points) and Missouri (by 12 points) in the recent week of SEC basketball action.

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Alabama allowed a 9-0 run to start the Auburn game, with the Tigers claiming victory by nine points in Coleman Coliseum on Saturday. Alabama also allowed a 12-0 run to start the Missouri game, with the Tigers defeating the Crimson Tide by 12 points in a shootout on the road on Wednesday night.

The slow starts and sloppy turnovers have plagued Alabama all season, with Alabama head coach Nate Oats attributing much of it to fatigue during his Friday press conference before Alabama takes on Kentucky on Saturday,

"We've got four fifth-year seniors in the lineup," Oats said on Friday. "We've tried to make sure they've got their legs back up under them."

Alabama was stuck in Missouri due to inclement weather on Thursday and did not arrive home until late Thursday evening. The travel issues allowed Nate Oats and the Tide's coaching staff to alter the practice schedule to allow the veterans to earn some rest before a track-like game on Saturday.

"Even before the travel issues yesterday, we decided not to practice yesterday, just to try to get their legs back, make sure that it's not a physical fatigue matter with the starts to these games."

"We didn't practice yesterday, went super light today, with the goal in mind to get them recharged physically and mentally. See if we can't have some better starts to these games," Oats said.

Alabama is relying on veterans to provide success for the Crimson Tide in the final five games of the regular season and the tournaments in late March. Mark Sears, Clifford Omoruyi, Chris Youngblood, and Grant Nelson are all in their fifth year of college basketball while starting for Alabama in 2025.

Nelson in particular has struggled, netting a -20 in both of Alabama's losses to Auburn and Missouri despite scoring 20 points across the two contests.

However, Nelson has a chance on Saturday to rejuvenate his season. The last time Alabama played Kentucky (in Rupp Arena on January 18) Nelson scored an Alabama career-high 25 points in a win on the road.

"We've definitely noted that," Oats said on Friday. "I think he had 19 at the half last time we played Kentucky. I agree, that's probably the best he's looked all year. It'd be great if we could get that Grant back."

"He just came out in that game aggressive, got downhill," Oats said on Nelson's success in Lexington.

Alabama had the hardest seven-game stretch of any team in college basketball to end the season, and the Crimson Tide has started slowly by losing the first two games. It is a tall task to respond in the middle of such a tough stretch of games, but Oats thinks his team can do it,

"I think we'll respond tomorrow," Oats said. "I think their spirits were up. I think our minds are in the right place. I think we will have given them enough time to rejuvenate themselves. I anticipate us being ready to go."

"I'm hoping that's what we see tomorrow."

The Crimson Tide faithful are right there with you, coach.

Alabama is still projected as a one-seed in the NCAA tournament according to ESPN's Joe Lunardi's latest bracketology update on Friday. The Crimson Tide will need to return to its winning ways if they hope to maintain one of the top seeds in March.

Wyatt Fulton is the TIde 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.