Alabama basketball HC Nate Oats 'disgusted' by loss to Ole Miss
Yesterday at 10:44 AM
A 14-3 start isn’t bad by any means for Alabama basketball and head coach Nate Oats. However, a 74-64 loss to Ole Miss turned that record on its head for the program. After Oats was 100% real about Alabama basketball’s success, he was equally as real about their shortcomings in Monday’s loss.
He explained via Alabama Crimson Tide on SI about the loss to a conference opponent on their home court.
“It’s disgusting, to be honest with you,” Oats said. “It starts with me…I felt like we lost because they came ready to play. They brought energy. They brought effort. We did not. That’s a frustrating way to lose.”
The Crimson Tide has five players averaging 10+ points per game. Not to mention, they have the highest-scoring offense in all of college basketball. Despite their average of 89.5 points per game, they scored a season-low 64 points. They were playing from behind most of the game, as they committed 21 turnovers. The majority of those were errant passes.
Nate Oats sees bright spots for Alabama basketball despite loss to Ole Miss
Sophomore guard Aidan Holloway had a great game, all things considered. Off the bench, he posted 15 points and showed some improvements on the defensive end. However, as Oats echoed, the game isn’t about one players’ success. It’s a collective effort from everyone.
“I thought Holloway showed pretty well,” Oats said. “He got more minutes than normal. But nobody was good enough for us to win this game, including the head coach, and we got to be better moving forward.”
Accountability is the name of the game for Oats and his program. Furthermore, the SEC is the strongest it has been in years. Teams like Auburn, Tennessee, Florida, Kentucky, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, and Georgia round out the teams in the Top 25. No matter what, the standard is high for the Crimson Tide. Oats explained more to his guys about who deserved to win.
“I told our guys in the locker room after the game, ‘We have to deserve to win, and we didn't deserve to win this game,'” Oats said. “Ole Miss came in and they deserved to win the game. You have to deserve it with your preparation going into the game. Then you’ve got to deserve it with your effort once you're in the game. The team that deserved to win tonight won the game tonight."
Their schedule doesn’t get any easier, as they’ll travel to Lexington and take on Kentucky. Following Alabama basketball’s game against Ole Miss, this could be a good time to turn the corner and keep riding the positive momentum Oats mentioned before the loss.
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