Nate Oats shares wild stat from Alabama NCAA Tournament win over St. Mary's
03/23/2025 09:51 PM
Alabama basketball scrapped its way back to the Sweet 16 by knocking off St. Mary’s 80-66 Sunday. The Crimson Tide needed to hit a wild stat in their March Madness win, though, to scale the Gaels. Nate Oats himself acknowledged this rare accolade.
Alabama struggled early getting baskets against one of the nation’s best defenses. St. Mary’s entered the contest ranking No. 8 in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom. But Oats revealed the uncanny stat his Tide team earned, per Charlie Potter of On3.
“Nate Oats notes that Alabama is the first team to score 80 points on Saint Mary’s in over 100 games,” Potter said.
That’s right, St. Mary’s has only allowed one team to pour 80 on the Gaels in the last two seasons. And not a single opponent reached 80 facing this Gaels defense this season. Yet Oats’ squad wore down one of the nation’s fiercest defensive schemes.
How Nate Oats, Alabama cracked St. Mary’s defense
St. Mary’s didn’t even allow foes to surpass 75 points all season long. Head coach Randy Bennett masterfully built a system that limits points, forces turnovers and creates confusion.
However, here’s how Alabama cracked St. Mary’s defense per Oats’ words.
“I think our depth, our tempo did get to them,” Oats said postgame. “But man, they’re tough.”
St, Mary’s largest loss was by seven points. Tournament qualifiers Utah State (75-68) and West Coast Conference rival Gonzaga (58-51) handed the Gaels their largest margin of losses. Alabama doubled that by 14 in Cleveland.
The Crimson Tide discovered holes inside St. Mary’s defense. Mark Sears penetrated and attacked inside for a late layup. Cliff Omoruyi also pummeled St. Mary’s in the paint on an early one-handed dunk in the second half.
Alabama hit 15-of-20 from field goal range, good enough for 75%. The Tide also out-rebounded the Gaels 33-21 off the glass. Grant Nelson grabbed his 1,000th career rebound against St. Mary’s. Omoruyi led the way with 11 rebounds. Lastly, Alabama earned the edge on the minutes end. The Tide played nine total options (five starters, four on the bench) for more than 11 minutes. Six played past 20 minutes on the floor. St. Mary’s only had five surpass the double-digit minutes mark — and four Gaels played beyond 30.
Oats’ team proved they came with too much depth and energy for a top 10 defense. Now they’re two victories away from returning to the Final Four.
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