Alabama's Late-Night Test vs Texas Tech

0:00On March 22nd, 4th-seated Alabama faces 5th-seated Texas Tech in the round of 32 to night in Tampa. The tip-off comes at 9.45pm, eastern time, a late one that feels familiar to the Crimson Tide. They've dealt with similar late nights and quick turnarounds earlier this season. Back in November, Alabama played three games in three days at the players' era festival in Las Vegas. All started after 8.30pm local time, with the last two tipping even later at 11pm. They faced tough opponents, dropping the opener, but bouncing back with big wins in the next two. Coach Nate Oates built that tough non-conference slate on purpose to toughen up his team. Players agree it's sharpened them for high stakes matchups like this, handling elite competition on short rest. That Vegas run included games against teams that made the tournament, giving Alabama real practice for March Man's pressure. Oates noted steady improvement across those contests, even if the first one was rough. A win tonight sends Alabama to the sweet 16 against

1:04top-seated Michigan, building on that early preparation for a deep tournament run.