TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) – Alabama coach Anthony Grant doesn’t feel compelled to constantly remind his players about the stakes over the last four games, including hopes for an NCAA tournament berth and Southeastern Conference title.
He’s fairly sure the media will take care of that.
“I’m sure those guys are watching ESPN. They’re online,” Grant said Monday. “They’re paying attention. Anybody that plays college basketball, your goal is to make the tournament and be a part of that special time of the year. I think they understand.”
Besides, the reality for the Crimson Tide (18-8, 10-2) is that the team still has some work to do for an at-large NCAA bid. And the SEC title will require a strong finish, too.
Alabama already locked up its first Western Division championship since 2005 with last weekend’s 69-56 win over Arkansas with four games to play. The Tide is tied with No. 13 Florida for the best overall league mark.
Grant’s team hosts Auburn on Wednesday, then visits Mississippi and the Gators before closing the regular season against Georgia at Coleman Coliseum, where Alabama is 14-0 this season. He thinks Tide players remain “locked in” even with a division title in hand, and said he’s not worried about a letdown.
Neither is forward Chris Hines.
“That’s part of our identity this year: We stay hungry,” Hines said. “We’ve never arrived, and we always play hard. That’s our identity and that’s what we’ve been doing all year. It’s what we’re going to continue to do.”
The Tide has won 13 of its last 15 games. But in terms of NCAA projections and national reputation, Alabama is still trying to overcome an 8-6 nonconference record that came despite a strength of schedule that collegerpi.com ranks 128th in the country.
Alabama isn’t receiving any votes in the coaches poll and got only 15 in the AP Top 25 released Monday.
That’s something else Grant maintains isn’t on his mind.
“I really haven’t paid attention to it,” he said. “We’re excited about the opportunity we have in front of us, excited and proud of what our team has accomplished to this point. We’re just locked in.”
Alabama is off to its best league start since also opening 10-2 en route to the SEC title in the 2001-02 season.
Grant knows this is unfamiliar territory for his players, since the Tide has had losing SEC records the past four seasons
“I believe this is the first opportunity where you can say the team has had quote-unquote success in terms of the wins,” he said. “I think for our entire team it’s new territory and the focus for us has got to be one game at a time.
“For us, we’re going to focus on the task at hand and trying to win the game.”
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