Ahead of Alabama basketball's Sweet 16 matchup against North Carolina basketball, Charles Barkley described the fourth-seeded Crimson Tide as “frail”. While he did compliment Alabama's three-point shooting, Barkley felt that the Tar Heels' physicality would be too much for Alabama.
“They (Alabama) are going to have to make 15 three-pointers to win this game but they cannot match up with the physicality of UNC,” Barkley said, per AL.com. “It’s going to come down to that. They are a very frail team. They can’t handle North Carolina in the post. That’s a huge advantage for North Carolina, but Alabama is one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country.”
Fast forward to the final buzzer on Thursday, Alabama just stunned their number-one seeded opponents to book a ticket to the Elite Eight — and Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats couldn't help but respond to the former NBA player's comments.
“Charles Barkley called us frail,” Oats said in a postgame interview. “I don’t think he (Grant Nelson) was frail tonight.”
"Charles Barkley called us frail. I don't think [Grant Nelson] was frail tonight."
Alabama MBB's Nate Oats kept the receipts on Chuck 👀
(via @awfulannouncing)pic.twitter.com/feRefJhGZ4
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 29, 2024
Grant Nelson leads Alabama basketball to an upset win
Grant Nelson, the player Oats was referring to, finished with a double-double of 24 points and 12 rebounds in a tough battle against UNC's bigs. He scored a clutch And-1 play to give Alabama a one-point lead with 38.6 seconds left. Nelson then sank the free throw to put the team up two and converted an additional pair of charity stripe shots moments after to seal the game.
Nelson's heroics finished a back-and-forth game that ultimately went down to the wire. Both teams were locked in a 77-all tie with less than five minutes remaining. An inside basket and a three-pointer by Nelson put the Crimson Tide up five, but a Jae'Lyn Withers layup and six straight points by RJ Davis brought the lead back to North Carolina.
Down by three, Alabama guard Mark Sears scored a layup to cut the deficit to a point with 1:21 remaining. The Tar Heels then missed an attempt, paving the way for Nelson's aforementioned heroics.
Sears and Nelson went for a pick-and-roll play on the left wing. The UNC defense tried to execute a quick hedge-and-recover on Sears, which resulted in the cutting Nelson getting open under the basket. Sears found Nelson and the latter was able to pump fake the help defender before scoring on the clutch And-1.
Alongside Nelson, three other Alabama players tallied double-digits in scoring. Rylan Griffen and Aaron Estrada had 19 points apiece while Sears added 18 points.
For North Carolina, big man Armando Bacot led the way with 19 points and 12 rebounds.
Nelson's big game arrived at the right time
Following the game, Oats and Sears had compliments for Nelson.
“…I don't think by now they (people) should be asking who (Nelson) is anymore,” Oats said, per CBS Sports College Basketball
“They already know who he is now,” Sears added.
Nate Oats: "Maybe in the middle of the game, but I don't think by now they should be asking who [Grant Nelson] is anymore."
Mark Sears: "They already know who he is now."@AlabamaMBB 😅 pic.twitter.com/JtxoanDBkC
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 29, 2024
Prior to Thursday's upset win, Nelson had a quiet first two games for the Crimson Tide. His postseason breakout couldn't have come at a better time, considering it resulted in Alabama's first Elite Eight appearance since 2004.
This season, Nelson is averaging 11.4 points and 5.4 rebounds for Alabama. He transferred to Nate Oats' squad in January of 2023 after three seasons with North Dakota State basketball.
Alabama will now face the sixth-seeded Clemson basketball, who are likewise coming off an upset win against the number-two-seeded Arizona basketball.
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