Alabama's Nate Oats admits multiple mistakes during late collapse vs. Tennessee

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College basketball in the SEC has delivered day after day in 2024-25, and Saturday was no different. No. 5-ranked Alabama basketball and No. 6 Tennessee went back and forth in Knoxville with critical seeding implications on the line in both the SEC and NCAA Tournaments.

Nate Oats and the Crimson Tide held a slim lead, 76-72, with just over 30 seconds remaining. However, a four-point possession thanks to a couple of fouls sandwiched around an offensive rebound tied things up at 76. Alabama tried to milk the rest of the clock down, but a critical five-second turnover with just under four seconds to go set Tennessee up to snatch the victory away.

JAHMAI MASHACK IS A HOOPER pic.twitter.com/LgwcqyBiz2

— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) March 1, 2025

Jahmai Mashack’s buzzer-beater took Alabama out of contention for the regular season SEC title just like that. After the game, Oats admitted that multiple substitution mistakes and a timeout error led to the loss, via Nick Kelly of AL.com.

After Chaz Lanier’s layup, plus a foul, to cut the Alabama lead to just two with 30 seconds to go, Oats subbed his small guards Mark Sears and Chris Youngblood back in the game for his bigs, Mo Dioubate and Cliff Omoruyi. Tennessee secured the offensive rebound off the miss and was fouled again.

“Subbed our bigs out to get the rebound before I should have,” Oats said, per Kelly. “Should have subbed them out after we secured the rebound.”

Then, after the ball went out of bounds with 3.8 seconds left, Alabama couldn’t get the ball inbounds from underneath its own basket. Oats didn’t call either of his two remaining timeouts, and true freshman Labaron Philon took the five-second turnover.

“I should have called timeout,” Oats said, per Kelly. “Coaches can call timeout on the underneath out of bounds play. At four (seconds), I should have called it.”

Then, Oats made another substitution mistake. He subbed Sears and Youngblood out for the two bigs, presumably to prevent Tennessee from getting right to the rim for a good look at the buzzer. However, without guards on the floor there was no Alabama player to put any ball pressure on Mashack, allowing him to walk into the 3-pointer at the horn.

“We probably could have had better guys in,” Oats said. “Get a little bit smaller at the end with 3.8 on the clock to make sure they didn't get the ball up the floor.”

This result will give Tennessee the upper-hand on this Alabama basketball team for a possible No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Auburn, Duke, Houston and Florida probably occupy those spots as of now, but this game could be one that the selection committee looks at on Selection Sunday.

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