Alabama Basketball's NCAA Tournament Journey

0:00On March 16th, Alabama basketball heads into the NCAA tournament as the number 4 seed in the Midwest region set to face 13 seed Hofstra on March 20th. Idea! Unlike the regular season, this is strictly when or go home for coach Nate Oates and the Crimson Tide with no second chances until next year. The team turned things around late in the season after a rocky start, including a 4-4 record early in SEC play. They rattled off 8 straight wins to grab the number 2 seed in the conference tournament, but fell short in the quarterfinals to 15 seed Ole. Missed by a score of 80 to 79. Fans and players alike know the stakes, especially with Alabama's strong tournament pedigree as the only program to reach the elite aid in. Back to back years, capped by their first ever final 4 run. That history adds pressure, but also fuels confidence heading into March madness. Oates is drawing on past deep runs, like battling back from deficits against lower seeds, and even his days coaching at Buffalo as a 13-seed dead.

1:09Stunned atop opponent, he's pushing the squad to embrace the intensity right away using the recent SEC loss as a wake-up call. With preparation underway, Alabama aims to build on their solid foundation and chase another memorable postseason one game at a time.