2020–21 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team

American college basketball season

2020–21 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball

SEC regular season & tournament champions
NCAA tournament, Sweet Sixteen
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 5
AP	No. 5
Record	26–7 (16–2 SEC)
Head coach	Nate Oats (2nd season)
Assistant coaches	Bryan Hodgson (2nd season) Antoine Pettway (9th season) Charlie Henry (2nd season)
Home arena	Coleman Coliseum
Seasons← 2019–20 2021–22 →

2020–21 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
No. 5 Alabama†	16	–	2	.889	26	–	7	.788
No. 10 Arkansas	13	–	4	.765	25	–	7	.781
LSU	11	–	6	.647	19	–	10	.655
Tennessee	10	–	7	.588	18	–	9	.667
Florida	9	–	7	.563	15	–	10	.600
Ole Miss	10	–	8	.556	16	–	12	.571
Missouri	8	–	8	.500	16	–	10	.615
Kentucky	8	–	9	.471	9	–	16	.360
Mississippi State	8	–	10	.444	18	–	15	.545
Georgia	7	–	11	.389	14	–	12	.538
Auburn	7	–	11	.389	13	–	14	.481
South Carolina	4	–	12	.250	6	–	15	.286
Texas A&M	2	–	8	.200	8	–	10	.444
Vanderbilt	3	–	13	.188	9	–	16	.360

† 2021 SEC tournament winner Ineligible for postseason due to self-imposed postseason ban.

The 2020–21 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team represented the University of Alabama in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by second-year head coach Nate Oats. They played their home games at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, Alabama as a member of the Southeastern Conference. The Crimson Tide won the regular season Southeastern Conference Championship, marking the team's first championship since 2002. They also won the SEC tournament, their first win in that competition since 1991 and the first time since 1987 that the program won both the regular season and tournament.

The Tide were placed as a No. 2 seed in the East Region for the 2021 NCAA tournament, their highest placement since 2002. They would defeat Iona and Maryland before falling to a surging 11-seed UCLA in the Sweet Sixteen in overtime, 88–78 (that UCLA team made the Final Four). Alabama was ranked No. 5 in the final Coaches' Poll following the season, and Oats was named SEC Coach of the Year as well as being a finalist for National Coach of the Year honors.

Previous season

The Crimson Tide finished the 2019–20 season 16–15, 8–10 in SEC play to finish in ninth place. They were set to take on Tennessee in the second round of the SEC tournament. However, the remainder of the SEC Tournament was cancelled amid the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Javian Davis	0	F	6'9"	242	RS Freshman	Canton, MS	Transferred to Mississippi State
Kira Lewis Jr.	2	G	6'3"	165	Sophomore	Meridianville, AL	Declared for the 2020 NBA draft; selected 13th overall by the New Orleans Pelicans
James Bolden	11	G	6'0"	160	RS Senior	Covington, KY	Graduated
Jaylen Forbes	12	G	6'4"	186	Freshman	Florence, MS	Transferred to Tulane
Sam Okauru	34	G	6'5"	200	Freshman	Raleigh, NC	Walk On; Transferred
Raymond Hawkins	35	F/C	6'9"	240	Freshman	Oakland, CA	Transferred to Long Beach State

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Jordan Bruner	2	F	6'10"	225	Senior	Columbia, SC	Graduate transfer from Yale
Keon Ellis	14	G	6'6"	170	Junior	Eustis, FL	Junior College Transfer from Florida Southwestern State College.
Kendall Wall	30	F	6'5"	192	Senior	Columbia, SC	Walk On; Graduate transfer from Francis Marion University.

2021 recruiting class

College recruiting information
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
JD Davison PG	Letohatchee, Alabama	Calhoun School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Oct 3, 2020
JD Davison PG	Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 94
Charles Bediako C	Brampton, Ontario	IMG Academy	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Jun 1, 2021
Charles Bediako C	Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 88
Jusaun Holt SG	Tacoma, Washington	St Francis Day School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Sep 27, 2020
Jusaun Holt SG	Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 82
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2021 Alabama Commits". Rivals.com. "ESPN- Alabama Crimson Tide Men's Basketball Recruiting". ESPN.com. "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Preseason

SEC media poll

The SEC media poll was released on November 12, 2020.

Predicted finish	Team
Media poll
1	Tennessee
2	Kentucky
3	LSU
4	Florida
5	Alabama
6	Arkansas
7	Auburn
8	South Carolina
9	Ole Miss
10	Missouri
11	Texas A&M
12	Mississippi State
13	Georgia
14	Vanderbilt

Preseason All-SEC teams

The Crimson Tide had one player selected to the preseason all-SEC teams.

First Team

John Petty Jr.

Roster

2020–21 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G/F	1	Herbert Jones	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Sr	Hale County HS	Greensboro, AL
F	2	Jordan Bruner	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	GS	Yale	Columbia, SC
F	3	Alex Reese	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	Sr	Pelham HS	Pelham, AL
F	4	Juwan Gary	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	218 lb (99 kg)	RS Fr	West Charlotte HS	Charlotte, NC
G	5	Jaden Shackelford	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	So	Hesperia HS	Hesperia, CA
G	10	Delaney Heard (W)	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	198 lb (90 kg)	Fr	Oak Hill Academy	Canton, GA
G	11	Joshua Primo	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Fr	Royal Crown	Toronto, ON
F	12	Darius Miles	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Fr	Theodore Roosevelt HS	Washington, D.C.
G	13	Jahvon Quinerly	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	RS So	Villanova	Hackensack, NJ
G	14	Keon Ellis	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Jr	Florida SouthWestern State	Eustis, FL
F	15	Tyler Barnes (W)	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	201 lb (91 kg)	Sr	St. Xavier HS	Louisville, KY
G	21	Britton Johnson (W)	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	183 lb (83 kg)	Jr	Mountain Brook HS	Mountain Brook, AL
F	22	Keon Ambrose-Hylton	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Fr	Andrews Osborne Academy	Toronto, ON
G	23	John Petty Jr.	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	184 lb (83 kg)	Sr	Jemison HS	Huntsville, AL
G	24	Jaden Quinerly (W)	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	155 lb (70 kg)	Fr	Ramsey HS	Hackensack, NJ
G	25	Adam Cottrell (W)	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	So	Lakeview Academy	Flowery Branch, GA
F	30	Kendall Wall (W)	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	192 lb (87 kg)	GS	Francis Marion University	Columbia, SC
F	33	James Rojas	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	RS Jr	Hutchinson CC	Jamestown, NY
F	35	Alex Tchikou	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Fr	Dream City Christian HS	Paris, France

Head coach

Nate Oats (Maranatha Baptist)

Assistant coach(es)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank	Opponent	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 25, 2020* 7:00 pm, SECN		Jacksonville State	W 81–57	1–0	18 – Tied	12 – Jones	3 – Quinerly	Coleman Coliseum (2,025) Tuscaloosa, AL
November 30, 2020* 8:30 pm, ESPN2		vs. Stanford Maui Invitational Quarterfinals	L 64–82	1–1	14 – Quinerly	6 – Petty	3 – Primo	Harrah's Cherokee Center (0) Asheville, NC
December 1, 2020* 8:30 pm, ESPN2		vs. UNLV Maui Invitational consolation 2nd round	W 86–74	2–1	22 – Petty Jr.	7 – Bruner	6 – Petty Jr	Harrah's Cherokee Center (0) Asheville, NC
December 2, 2020* 6:00 pm, ESPN2		vs. Providence Maui Invitational 5th Place Game	W 88–71	3–1	16 – Petty Jr.	8 – Jones	5 – Jones	Harrah's Cherokee Center (0) Asheville, NC
December 12, 2020* 7:00 pm, ACCNX		vs. Clemson Holiday Hoopsgiving	L 56–64	3–2	17 – Jones	5 – Reese	5 – Reese	State Farm Arena (0) Atlanta, GA
December 15, 2020* 8:00 pm, SECN		Furman	W 83–80	4–2	18 – Jones	12 – Jones	5 – Petty Jr.	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
December 19, 2020* 1:00 pm, ESPNU		Western Kentucky	L 71–73	4–3	16 – Jones	7 – Petty, Jr.	3 – Tied	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
December 22, 2020* 6:30 pm, SECN+		ETSU	W 85–69	5–3	26 – Shackelford	8 – Bruner	9 – Quinerly	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
SEC regular season
December 29, 2020 8:00 pm, SECN		Ole Miss	W 82–64	6–3 (1–0)	24 – Quinerly	7 – Shackelford	4 – Shackelford	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
January 2, 2021 5:00 pm, ESPN2		at No. 7 Tennessee	W 71–63	7–3 (2–0)	19 – Petty Jr.	8 – Jones	6 – Quinerly	Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN
January 5, 2021 6:00 pm, ESPNU		Florida	W 86–71	8–3 (3–0)	16 – Tied	8 – Ellis	4 – Bruner	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
January 9, 2021 11:00 am, ESPN2		at Auburn Iron Bowl of Basketball	W 94–90	9–3 (4–0)	22 – Primo	8 – Tied	4 – Bruner	Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL
January 12, 2021 8:00 pm, ESPN		at Kentucky	W 85–65	10–3 (5–0)	23 – Petty Jr.	6 – Rojas	6 – Shackelford	Rupp Arena (3,075) Lexington, KY
January 16, 2021 2:30 pm, SECN		Arkansas	W 90–59	11–3 (6–0)	17 – Petty Jr.	5 – Primo	4 – Quinerly	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
January 19, 2021 8:00 pm, ESPN2	No. 18	at LSU	W 105–75	12–3 (7–0)	24 – Petty Jr.	7 – Rojas	8 – Shackelford	Pete Maravich Assembly Center (2,295) Baton Rouge, LA
January 23, 2021 5:00 pm, SECN	No. 18	Mississippi State	W 81–73	13–3 (8–0)	17 – Jones	5 – Jones	7 – Jones	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
January 26, 2021 6:00 pm, ESPN	No. 9	Kentucky	W 70–59	14–3 (9–0)	21 – Shackelford	9 – Jones	8 – Jones	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
January 30, 2021* 11:00 a.m., ESPN	No. 9	at No. 24 Oklahoma Big 12/SEC Challenge	L 61–66	14–4	15 – Reese	7 – Jones	5 – Jones	Lloyd Noble Center (2,680) Norman, OK
February 3, 2021 6:00 pm, ESPNU	No. 10	LSU	W 78–60	15–4 (10–0)	19 – Shackelford	8 – Jones	5 – Petty Jr.	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
February 6, 2021 11:00 am, ESPN	No. 10	at No. 18 Missouri	L 65–68	15–5 (10–1)	15 – Shackleford	6 – Tied	1 – Tied	Mizzou Arena (3,113) Columbia, MO
February 9, 2021 5:30 pm, SECN	No. 11	at South Carolina	W 81–78	16–5 (11–1)	20 – Petty Jr.	8 – Petty Jr.	7 – Jones	Colonial Life Arena (3,089) Columbia, SC
February 13, 2021 2:30 pm, SECN	No. 11	Georgia	W 115–82	17–5 (12–1)	21 – Jones	5 – Tied	4 – Tied	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
February 18, 2021 2:00 pm, SECN	No. 8	at Texas A&M	Postponed due to inclement weather					Reed Arena College Station, TX
February 20, 2021 12:00 pm, SECN	No. 8	Vanderbilt	W 82–78	18–5 (13–1)	27 – Shackelford	9 – Ellis	4 – Jones	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
February 24, 2021 8:00 pm, ESPN2	No. 6	at No. 20 Arkansas	L 66–81	18–6 (13–2)	14 – Bruner	9 – Gary	4 – Tied	Bud Walton Arena (4,400) Fayetteville, AR
February 27, 2021 5:00 pm, SECN	No. 6	at Mississippi State	W 64–59	19–6 (14–2)	19 – Quinerly	14 – Jones	2 – Tied	Humphrey Coliseum (1,000) Starkville, MS
March 2, 2021 6:00 pm, ESPN2	No. 8	Auburn Iron Bowl of Basketball	W 70–58	20–6 (15–2)	23 – Shackelford	9 – Jones	6 – Jones	Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL
March 6, 2021 1:00 pm, CBS	No. 8	at Georgia	W 89–79	21–6 (16–2)	18 – Quinerly	7 – Petty Jr.	4 – Tied	Stegeman Coliseum (1,638) Athens, GA
SEC Tournament
March 12, 2021 11:00 am, ESPN	(1) No. 6	vs. (9) Mississippi State Quarterfinals	W 85–48	22–6	14 – Quinerly	7 – Tied	7 – Jones	Bridgestone Arena (2,186) Nashville, TN
March 13, 2021 12:00 pm, ESPN	(1) No. 6	vs. (4) Tennessee Semifinals	W 73–68	23–6	21 – Jones	13 – Jones	4 – Jones	Bridgestone Arena (3,164) Nashville, TN
March 14, 2021 12:00 pm, ESPN	(1) No. 6	vs. (3) LSU Championship	W 80–79	24–6	21 – Shackelford	11 – Jones	6 – Jones	Bridgestone Arena (2,586) Nashville, TN
NCAA tournament
March 20, 2021 3:00 pm, TBS	(2 E) No. 5	vs. (15 E) Iona First Round	W 68–55	25–6	20 – Jones	7 – Petty Jr.	3 – Ellis	Hinkle Fieldhouse (1,037) Indianapolis, IN
March 22, 2021 7:45 pm, TNT	(2 E) No. 5	vs. (10 E) Maryland Second Round	W 96–77	26–6	21 – Shackelford	7 – Gary	11 – Quinerly	Bankers Life Fieldhouse (2,226) Indianapolis, IN
March 28, 2021 6:15 pm, TBS	(2 E) No. 5	vs. (11 E) UCLA Sweet Sixteen	L 78–88	26–7	20 – Quinerly	9 – Tied	3 – Tied	Hinkle Fieldhouse (1,055) Indianapolis, IN
*Non-conference game. Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time.

Rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	Final
AP	RV	RV	RV	—	—	—	RV	RV	18	9	10	11	8	6	8	6	5	Not released
Coaches	25	25^	RV	—	—	—	RV	24т	16	8т	7	11	9	7	5т	5	5	5

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings
^Coaches did not release a Week 1 poll.

References

Horka, Tyler (July 27, 2020). "Magnolia State native Javian Davis to transfer from Alabama to Mississippi State". Clarion Ledger. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
Potter, Charlie (March 24, 2020). "Alabama's Kira Lewis, John Petty to test NBA draft waters". 247 Sports. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
"Men's Basketball Adds Alabama Transfer Jaylen Forbes". Tulane Green Wave. April 22, 2020. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
"Beach Basketball Receives Commitment From Alabama Transfer Raymond Hawkins III". Long Beach State Beach. May 6, 2020. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
Borzello, Jeff (April 10, 2020). "Jordan Bruner joining Alabama as graduate transfer". ESPN. Retrieved October 20, 2020.
Martin, Alex (April 17, 2020). "FSW guard Keon Ellis commits to Alabama over Iowa State, Kansas State, Western Kentucky". Fort Myers News-Press. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
"Media picks Vols to win 2021 SEC Men's Basketball title". Southeastern Conference. November 12, 2020. Retrieved November 28, 2020.

v t e Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball
Venues	Little Hall (1915–1939) Foster Auditorium (1939–1968) Coleman Coliseum (1968–present)
Rivalries	Auburn
Culture & lore	Traditions Big Al Gambling scandal 2017–18 corruption scandal
People	Head coaches NBA players Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Premo-Porretta national championship in bold; NCAA Final Four appearance in italics

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