Tag: mark sears

Where Alabama ranks in USA TODAY Sports preseason men’s basketball coaches poll

Here’s where Alabama ranks in the preseason USA TODAY Sports men’s college basketball poll.

The start of the 2024-25 college basketball season is just 12 days away, and the expectations for Nate Oats and the Alabama Crimson Tide have never been higher.

Wednesday saw the release of the preseason USA TODAY Sports men’s basketball coaches poll. To no surprise, Alabama was ranked in the top five at No. 2. Bill Self’s Kansas Jayhawks took the top spot at No. 1.

The two-time defending national champion UConn Huskies were ranked No. 3 with the Houston Cougars No. 4. The Duke Blue Devils and freshman sensation Cooper Flagg rounded out the top five.

Fresh off the program’s first trip to the Final Four in school history, and led by returning players like top-scoring guard Mark Sears (a 2024-25 AP preseason All-American) and forward Grant Nelson, Alabama has a grueling nonconference slate — even by Oats’ scheduling standards.

In a stretch from mid-November through mid-December, the Crimson Tide will travel to West Lafayette, Ind., to face the 13th-ranked Purdue Boilermakers on Nov. 15, followed by the 24th-ranked Illinois Fighting Illini at Birmingham’s Legacy Arena on Nov. 20.

The Tide will then head to Las Vegas for the Players Era Festival starting Nov. 26 with a game against Houston, followed by a matchup with No. 25 Rutgers a day later. Alabama will close the Players Era Festival with a matchup against unranked Notre Dame on Nov. 30.

From there, the Crimson Tide visits the 10th-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels in Chapel Hill for a Sweet 16 rematch with RJ Davis and company on Dec. 4 as part of the SEC-ACC Challenge. Alabama closes its stretch of Top 25 competition against the 14th-ranked Creighton Bluejays on Dec. 14 in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama opens the regular season against UNC Asheville at Coleman Coliseum on Monday, Nov. 4. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPNU.

2024-25 Preseason Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll

Rank School Last Year’s Record Points
1 Kansas 23-11 743 (15)
2 Alabama 25-12 718 (6)
3 Connecticut 37-3 717 (6)
4 Houston 32-5 698 (4)
5 Duke 27-9 625
6 Iowa State 29-8 591
7 Gonzaga 27-8 575
8 Baylor 24-11 545
9 Arizona 27-9 510
10 North Carolina 29-8 498
11 Auburn 27-8 465
12 Tennessee 27-9 437
13 Purdue 34-5 390
14 Creighton 25-10 342
15 Texas A&M 21-15 332
16 Arkansas 16-17 272
17 Marquette 27-10 268
18 Indiana 19-14 208
19 Texas 21-13 166
20 Cincinnati 22-15 163
21 Florida 24-12 130
22 UCLA 16-17 123
23 Kentucky 23-10 95
24 Illinois 29-9 87
25 Mississippi 20-12 66

Dropped Out:

No. 13 North Carolina State (26-15); No. 15 Clemson (24-12); No. 18 San Diego State (26-11); No. 20 Utah State (28-7); No. 22 Saint Mary’s (26-8); No. 23 South Carolina (26-8); No. 24 Washington State (25-10); No. 25 Texas Tech (23-11)

Others Receiving Votes:

Texas Tech (23-11) 60; Rutgers (15-17) 57; St. John’s (20-13) 42; Xavier (16-18) 26; Michigan State (20-15) 25; Brigham Young (23-11) 16; Oregon (24-12) 16; Kansas State (19-15) 11; Boise State (22-11) 9; Saint Mary’s (26-8) 9; Clemson (24-12) 8; Dayton (25-8) 7; Ohio State (22-14) 7; Maryland (16-17) 4; Grand Canyon (30-5) 3; Mississippi State (21-14) 2; Princeton (24-5) 2; San Diego State (26-11) 2; Virginia (23-11) 2; Wake Forest (21-14); Wisconsin (22-14)

The USA TODAY Sports Board of Coaches is made up of 31 head coaches at Division I institutions. All are members of the National Association of Basketball Coaches. The board for the 2024-25 season: Tobin Anderson, Iona; Adrian Autry, Syracuse; John Becker, Vermont; Randy Bennett, Saint Mary’s; Jeff Boals, Ohio; Alvin Brooks, Lamar; Scott Drew, Baylor; Matt Driscoll, North Florida; Dan Earl, Chattanooga; Jonas Hayes, Georgia State; Alan Huss, High Point; Donte’ Jackson, Grambling; Ben Jacobson, Northern Iowa; James Jones, Yale; Greg Kampe, Oakland; Brad Korn, Southeast Missouri State; Greg McDermott, Creighton; Nick McDevitt, Middle Tennessee; Mike McGarvey, Lafayette; Niko Medved, Colorado State; Dan Monson, Eastern Washington; Chris Mooney, Richmond; Nate Oats, Alabama; Eric Olen, UC San Diego; Matt Painter, Purdue; Michael Schwartz, East Carolina; Patrick Sellers, Central Connecticut State; Zach Spiker, Drexel; Brett Tanner, Abilene Christian; Stan Waterman, Delaware State; Jeff Wulbrun, Denver.

 

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Alabama news and notes, plus opinions. 

Alabama guard Mark Sears named to AP Preseason All-America Team

The preseason accolades continue to roll in for Sears.

With basketball season right around the corner, the AP released their 2024-25 Preseason All-America Team on Monday afternoon, with Alabama Crimson Tide guard Mark Sears one of the players mentioned.

Sears was one of six total players selected, with the Alabama guard receiving 54-of-55 votes from the national media panel, making him a near unanimous selection.

Joining Sears on the team were North Carolina guard RJ Davis, Kansas forward Hunter Dickinson, Auburn forward Johni Broome, Arizona guard Caleb Love, and Duke forward Cooper Flagg.

The Alabama guard, who was also recently named the SEC Preseason Player of the Year, returns this season to lead a Crimson Tide team that is ranked No. 2 nationally to begin the year.

Sears is also coming off a season in which he started all 37 games for the Crimson Tide to average a career-high 21.5 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 4 APG, and 1.6 SPG to earn multiple honors at seasons end.

The Alabama guard also led the conference with a 60.4 effective field goal percentage, while also shooting 43.6% from three, and figures to be one of college basketball’s top players once again this season.

Alabama basketball edges Houston, Kansas, UConn for No. 1 in expert’s preseason rankings

This college basketball expert tabs Alabama as the best in college basketball entering the 2024-25 season.

With only 18 days until the start of college basketball’s regular season, analysts and experts are making their predictions for the year ahead — including for the Alabama Crimson Tide.

On Thursday, CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander unveiled his Top 100 (And 1) rankings entering 2024-25. Norlander ranked the Crimson Tide No. 1 ahead of the Houston Cougars at No. 2 and the Kansas Jayhawks at No. 3. The two-time defending national champion UConn Huskies were ranked fourth with the Duke Blue Devils fifth.

Per Norlander’s analysis of ranking of Alabama at No. 1:

“In what feels like a wide-open season just over the horizon, I’m taking a team at No. 1 with the preseason national player of the year; a team that brought in one of the best transfer classes of the offseason; a team that is adding multiple five-star freshman; and a team that had the No. 2-ranked offense last season en route to the Final Four. Alabama.

The Tide are in the rare spot of having the men’s basketball band ranked higher in the preseason than the football fellas, just the eighth time that’s happened and the first time since 2006. (Bama football was No. 5 in the preseason.) Alabama, of course, is coming off its first Final Four in school history. Now it’s going to try to become just the fourth SEC school (joining Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky) to make back-to-back Final Fours. Remember, the Tide was wicked unpredictable on defense last season, but survived in the NCAAs despite that.”

RELATED: Everything Alabama coach Nate Oats said at SEC Basketball Media Days

Norlander isn’t the only one who favors Alabama entering the season. CBS Sports’ David Cobb recently picked the Crimson Tide to finish atop the SEC in his projected order of finish. Nate Oats’ team was ranked No. 2 in the preseason AP Top 25 Poll on Monday.

Alabama opens the regular season Nov. 4 against UNC Greensboro at Coleman Coliseum. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPNU.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Alabama news and notes, plus opinions. 

Everything Alabama coach Nate Oats said at SEC Basketball Media Days

Here’s everything Alabama basketball coach Nate Oats said at SEC Media Days.

Expectations for the Alabama Crimson Tide men’s basketball program have never been higher.

Just months after making their first Final Four appearance, the Crimson Tide are ranked No. 2 in the preseason AP Top 25 Men’s College Basketball Poll and are a strong pick by national analysts to win the SEC, which featured eight teams represented at last season’s NCAA Tournament.

Alabama will be returning top scoring guard Mark Sears as well as forward Grant Nelson, both huge contributors to the Tide’s March Madness run that included an 89-87 victory over No. 1 seed North Carolina in the Sweet 16 and a hard-fought 89-82 win over a gritty, experienced Clemson Tigers squad in the Elite Eight.

But Oats wasn’t focused on last season’s trip to the Final Four during his appearance at SEC Media Days in Birmingham on Tuesday. To him, that Final Four run is already “old news.”

“We obviously used it in recruiting to get some of them here,” Oats said. “But I don’t really want to talk about it that much with the team. We had the celebration Friday where we raised the banner and gave out the rings. The issue is that eight out of our 13 scholarship guys weren’t here last year.

Alabama head coach Nate Oats speaks during SEC Media Day at the Grand Bohemian Hotel in Mountain Brook Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

“That was last year. It’s kind of old news,” Oats added. “It was great for the program, for the fans, for the university to be able to celebrate it, but it has nothing to do with what we’ve got going on this year. So, we’re trying to flip the page, move on, and not really address it. It was nice. It was good for our league, it’s good for our school and good for our program, but we’ve got to focus on what we’ve got to do this year, and that’s where we’re trying to get our guys’ minds at.”

Alabama will open the 2024-25 regular season against UNC Asheville on Nov. 4 at Coleman Coliseum. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPNU.

Here’s everything Oats said at SEC Media Days entering his sixth season in Tuscaloosa.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Alabama news and notes, plus opinions. 

Alabama PG Mark Sears named to CBS Sports Preseason All-America team

CBS Sports names Crimson Tide PG to Preseason All-American First Team.

After guiding the Alabama Crimson Tide to their first-ever Final Four appearance a season ago, many thought PG Mark Sears would ride off into the sunset and declare for the NBA draft. Fortunately for fans of the Crimson Tide, he decided to stay in Tuscaloosa for one last go-around after testing the draft process.

Sears was a First-team All-SEC member and Consensus second-team All-American a season ago, but expectations are even higher this year as the SEC recognized him as the Preseason Player of the Year today. But the accolades didn’t stop there as CBS Sports named Sears to their preseason All-American First-team alongside RJ Davis of North Carolina, Hunter Dickinson of Kansas, Ryan Kalkbrenner of Creighton and Cooper Flagg of Duke.

Over the last two seasons, Sears has started all 74 Alabama games and, in 2024, averaged 21.5 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 4.0 apg and 1.6 spg. With a much deeper roster this year I think some of Sears numbers will come down, but he will still be the guy Oats relies on in crunch time situations.

Alabama was ranked No. 2 in the first AP Poll released earlier today, and as crazy as it is to think, the basketball team probably has a better chance of winning a national title than the football team. CBS Sports raves of Sears saying,

“The only unanimous All-America First Team pick from us – and it’s a deserved honor for Alabama’s sharpshooting Sears. The Crimson Tide star is coming off a career year in Tuscaloosa where he averaged 21.5 points, 4.0 assists and hit 43.6% of his 3s on a team that hung its hat on chucking deep bombs at a volume only a handful of others topped. He was the face and force of Alabama as it finished second in offensive efficiency on the season while leading the sport (among all 362 teams!) in points per game.”

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

College basketball analyst features Alabama often in preseason picks

More preseason honors continue to roll in for the Alabama basketball program.

A staple of ESPN’s college basketball coverage, analyst Dick Vitale has made multiple predictions for the upcoming 2024-25 season in which the Alabama Crimson Tide were featured heavily.

Beginning with his PTPers (prime-time players), guard Mark Sears was the lone player mentioned, as Vitale expects the Alabama star to be among the top players in college basketball this season. Vitale also named Sears to his list of floor generals this season alongside both Latrell Wrightsell Jr. and Chris Youngblood, all of which are among his guards to watch.

Alabama also had a pair of players named to Vitale’s low post enforcers to watch in the returning Grant Nelson, as well as newcomer Clifford Omoruyi. Omoruyi was also listed among Vitale’s Marco Polo team as a transfer to watch make an impact this season.

Lastly, head coach Nate Oats also received some recognition from Vitale. Oats was named to the Frank Lloyd Wright team as one of the top coaches in college basketball.

The Crimson Tide are set to officially tipoff the 2024-25 season November 4 at home against UNC Asheville.

Alabama basketball ranked No. 1 in Blue Ribbons’ Preseason Top 25 Poll

Alabama PG Mark Sears recognized as Preseason Player of the Year by Blue Ribbon.

For probably the first time in school history, the Alabama Crimson Tide basketball program has a better chance at winning a national title than the football team. Granted the football team looks like one of the three or four best teams in the country, but the basketball team will be that good in Tuscaloosa this year.

According to Blue Ribbon’s Preseason Top 25 Poll, the Crimson Tide is the No. 1 ranked team in the country. Alabama returns many key contributors from last year’s Final Four team, like Mark Sears and Grant Nelson, but Nate Oats did a sensational job cleaning up in the portal as well.

Blue Ribbon has very high expectations for Sears this season as well, naming him their Preseason Player of the Year. In 2023-24, Sears led the Alabama offense with 21.5 ppg, 4.2 rpg and 4.0 apg. Sears tested the NBA draft waters but ultimately decided he wanted to help bring a national championship back to Title Town.

Alabama will open regular season play on November 4th when UNC Asheville comes to town.

https://twitter.com/AlabamaMBB/status/1834626052158529616

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

Alabama guard ranked among nation’s best entering 2024-25 season

The guard is among the nation’s best entering next season.

A key piece in the Alabama Crimson Tide’s run to the Final Four last season, it is no secret that Mark Sears is one of the top players in college basketball entering the 2024-25 campaign.

That thought has been echoed by numerous college basketball analysts, the latest of which is Andy Katz, who recently ranked Sears as the No. 3 guard in the country entering 2024-25.

In the ranking, Sears trailed only Dylan Harper from Rutgers and RJ Davis from North Carolina, who sat at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively.

Entering his third season in Tuscaloosa, Sears is coming off a career-year during the 2023-24 campaign in which he was one of the SEC’s top players. In Alabama’s run to the Final Four, Sears averaged 21.5 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 4 APG, and 1.6 SPG across 37 games, while also shooting 50.8% from the field, 43.6% from three, and 85.7% at the free throw line.

Sears is now expected to be among the preseason favorites for SEC Player of the Year, among numerous other honors.

Alabama F Jarin Stevenson withdraws from NBA draft and is set to return to Alabama

Jarin Stevenson announces to return to Alabama forego 2024 NBA draft

Wednesday was a massive day for [autotag]Nate Oats[/autotag] and the Alabama Crimson Tide as both [autotag]Mark Sears[/autotag] and now officially [autotag]Jarin Stevenson[/autotag] withdrew from the NBA draft and will return to Tuscaloosa in 2024.

Many people were projecting the Tide to be a top-five team going into next season as things stood, but now, with two massive contributors coming back, the majority of people will view Alabama as the No. 1 team in the country.

Stevenson’s decision to enter the draft came as a bit of a surprise after starting just five games in 2023-24 and averaging 5.3 ppg and 2.7 rpg. The Chapel Hill native was a five-star and top-50 recruit coming out of high school so all of the potential is there, but I think another year in Oats system with real minutes will be the best thing for his development. He will eventually find himself playing in the NBA so I don’t think there was any reason to rush into it this cycle. However, that almost means with 100% certainty he will be gone next summer.

After having the No. 1 overall seed in the 2023 Tournament and obviously their legendary Final Four run in 2024, Alabama is no longer going to be sneaking up on anyone. The target is on the Tide’s back and a national title is the goal.

 

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

All-American Mark Sears will return to Alabama after withdrawing from NBA draft

Mark Sears announced he will withdraw from the 2024 NBA draft and return to Alabama for his last year of eligibility.

Senior Mark Sears announced Wednesday on X, formerly known as Twitter, that he will withdraw from the 2024 NBA draft and return to the University of Alabama for his last year of eligibility.

The news was first reported by Jonathan Givony of ESPN.

Sears, who played the last two seasons with the Crimson Tide, declared for the draft on April 17 while retaining the option to return to school. He participated in the draft combine this month in Chicago, Illinois, and recorded 11 points and two steals in one scrimmage game.

Alabama coach Nate Oats said last week Sears would likely wait until Wednesday to make a decision after working out with the Houston Rockets and Milwaukee Bucks. The deadline to withdraw from the draft and return to school is Wednesday at 11:59 p.m. EDT.

Sears was a consensus second-team All-American after averaging 21.5 points, 4.2 rebounds, four assists and 1.6 steals on 43.6% shooting from 3-point range. He set the program record for most points scored in a single season (797).

The 22-year-old was the first Division I player in the last 31 years with at least 795 points, 150 rebounds, 145 assists and 95 3-pointers in a season. He also set the single-season program records for 20-point games (26) and free throws made (198).

His return figures to be a big addition for the Crimson Tide next season. The team has the second-ranked recruiting class in 2024 after signing top-30 prospects Derrion Reid (No. 16) and Aiden Sherrell (No. 30) and adding Clifford Omoruyi and Aden Holloway via the transfer portal.

Alabama earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight season after posting a 25-12 record. They advanced to the Final Four for the first time in history.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=650262612]