Alabama begins his pressure to reach its second straight final four as it prepares against Robert Morris in the first round in the Eastern Region of the NCAA tournament on Friday afternoon in Cleveland.
Crimson Tide (25-8), who drew a NR 2 seed in the region after a loss to Florida in the SEC tournament semi-final last week, has to do with an injury to 6-foot-11-star forward Grant Nelson before his matchup with the 15-seeded colonials (26-8).
The winner will take on No. 7 Frö Saint Mary’s or No. 10 Frö Vanderbilt in the second round on Sunday.
Nelson, Alabama’s second leading goal scorer of 11.4 points per match and top rebounder (7.6 RPG), has breastfed a left knee injury since the 104-82 loss to Gators. Tide Coach Nate Oats said the senior is hesitant for the team’s tournament opener.
“We have to get him healthy. Not sure he will be ready on Friday,” Havre said. “We at least hope he will be ready on Sunday with the opportunity for maybe Friday. I thought he was playing really well. We avoid one. It was not too serious with his knee but will surely be doubtful for the first game Friday.”
Alabama has lost three of his last five games, including two against Florida and one against Tennessee.
However, Crimson Tide’s crime continues to thrive, when they lead the nation in points, an average of 91.1 points per match.
The tide shoots 48.3 percent in total from the field and 35 percent beyond the arch, which contributes to their 9.7 ppg victory margin.
Robert Morris is in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2015 after winning Horizon League tournament championship and finishing the season on a 10-game winning line.
This will be Colonial’s ninth tournament appearance. Robert Morris beat North Florida in a first four matchup in 2015 before losing in the first round to top seeds Duke. But in 2010, the colonials almost shocked Villanova for another 2 against 15 matchup before losing overtime. This will be the fourth time Robert Morris is competing as a seed no. 15 and has never made it past the first round.
Robert Morris coach Andy Toole mentioned his knowledge of oat coaching style from oat time at the helm in Buffalo. Toole acknowledged the big challenge waiting for his squad to try to slow down Alabama with or without Nelson.
Although Nelson cannot play, the tide will have a remarkable size advantage against the colonies.
Alabama is almost an inch higher than Robert Morris on average because Colonial’s highest player is 6-9 Alvaro Folgueiras, which shoots a team-leading 42.3 percent from 3-point range while scored 14.1 PPG. Kam Woods is the team’s leading goal scorer (15.1) and Assist Man (5.1), while Folgueiras publishes a team best 9.1 returns per match.
“Of course, Alabama has had one of the best seasons in college basketball, a last four teams last year,” Toole said. “A dynamic team. They know we have a lot of work to do between now and Friday. Across the line they will be bigger, faster, potentially stronger, more talented. We have to find out a way to do it as a team.”
-Field level media
