The Alabama Crimson Tide not only triumphed over the BYU Cougars in the Sweet Sixteen on Thursday, they dominated with a score of 113-88, setting a new NCAA Tournament record with 25 three-pointers. As a result, they are now headed to the Elite Eight for a significant showdown against the No. 1-seed Duke Blue Devils. While their tournament run has been impressive, many in the college basketball media are likely to bet against Alabama making it to their second consecutive Final Four. That’s precisely the situation head coach Nate Oats thrives in.
In a conversation with college basketball broadcaster John Fanta, Oats expressed his hopes, saying, “I hope the media picks against us,” echoing the classic “no one believed in us” attitude. He added, “I hope that everybody keeps picking against us like some of your fellow colleagues, because it gives these guys a little motivation. We make sure that we show them. So if you could all just pick the winner of this game going on right now, that would help.”
Nate Oats has a message for the media heading into Alabama’s matchup with Duke! pic.twitter.com/7A6o96EEmt
— John Fanta (@John_Fanta) March 29, 2025
Analyzing ESPN’s predictions, only eight out of 58 experts chose Alabama to reach the Final Four, with none predicting them to win it all. Similarly, at CBS Sports, just one out of nine experts backed Alabama for an advancement to the Final Four, while the rest favored Duke. This lack of faith from the media might just serve as potent motivation for the Crimson Tide—only time will tell if it proves effective.
