Ahead of Alabama basketball's upcoming Final Four game, their opponents experienced problems traveling to Glendale. Due to airplane mechanical issues, UConn basketball's Wednesday evening flight was delayed, with the team finally landing in Arizona during the early hours of Thursday. Nate Oats seemed to find humor in the entire ordeal. Speaking to the media, the Alabama head coach joked about the Huskies' transpo hurdle.
“(I'm) not quite sure what happened with the plane,” Oats said, per The Next Round. “It wasn't me, I didn't send anybody over there to mess with the mechanics…I did get a good night's sleep last night so it's nice.”
Oats did mention that he expects Dann Hurley and UConn to be ready come Saturday.
“I'm sure he'll (Hurley will) be fired up and ready to go (on) Saturday. It'll be fun and then we'll touch base after the game.”
UConn's trip to Arizona was supposed to commence at 6 p.m. Wednesday ET. Unfortunately for them, the aforementioned mechanical issues took hours to resolve and the Huskies eventually landed at their destination by 3:14 a.m.
Alabama faces its toughest test yet
Nate Oats and the fourth-seeded Crimson Tide are coming off an Elite Eight win over the Clemson Tigers. The team shot 16 three-pointers to emerge victorious and book their ticket to Glendale.
What could be perhaps their biggest win so far comes at the expense of top-seeded North Carolina basketball. Rallying behind a March Madness breakout game from forward Grant Nelson, Alabama basketball stunned the entire country by eliminating the Tar Heels in the Sweet 16.
And now, they're set to face another number-one seed — a team that could possibly be their toughest test yet. If there's one word to describe UConn's run so far, it would be dominant. Throughout the entire tournament, all of the Huskies' opponents have been blown out of the water. UConn's closest output was a 17-point win over Northwestern during the second round. Against number-three-seeded Illinois this past Saturday, the Huskies used a 30-0 run to come up with a 77-52 victory. All five UConn starters are averaging double-digits in scoring this season. Led by center Donovan Clingan and guard Tristen Newton, the Huskies are favored by many to win another national championship.
Alabama basketball is still a formidable team
Nevertheless, Alabama basketball is in the Final Four for a reason. The Crimson Tide's fast-paced, uptempo style of play has worked wonders throughout the year. Additionally, the team can get hot from downtown, as seen in their previous outing. Point guard Mark Sears is having himself a season, tallying 21.5 points per game on 50.4% field goal shooting and a 43.4% downtown average while Latrell Wrightsell, the team's top gunner (44.3% from three) is expected to make a return this Saturday after missing two games. Furthermore, Alabama's 90.6 team points per game tops all Division I schools this season.
UConn might be Alabama's toughest test, but that statement could also apply inversely. The Huskies haven't faced a team like the Tide throughout the tournament so it's going to be an interesting affair this coming Saturday.
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