Alabama rebounded from three straight losses to pull out a late win against rival Auburn and avoid a bad loss on the tournament resume.

The Crimson Tide finished the week 1-1 but very easily could have been 2-0 or 0-2. The game at Arkansas had 70 more points scored, but both games came down to the final possession. Alabama could have picked up a huge win in Fayetteville, but the week didn't affect things too much.

Anthony Grant's team is still hovering around the top 50 in the RPI but the resume is still pretty bland. This week provides the first must-win game of the year and another chance to strengthen the argument that Alabama deserves a spot. Let's dive into this week's breakdown.

  • The Core Numbers

    Alabama Record: 13-6 (one win vs non-D1)

    • 1 win vs top 50 (Texas A&M)
    • 2 wins vs RPI 51-100 (UCLA, Tennessee)
    • 2 win vs RPI 101-150 (Arizona State, Auburn)
    • Only 1 loss outside of the top 50 (South Carolina)
    • 1 loss to an RPI 100+ (South Carolina)
  • Current Projections

    ESPN Bracketology by Joe Lunardi - The good news? Lunardi now projects five SEC teams to make the tourney and three more among the first 8 teams out. The bad news? Alabama is not a part of that group, meaning they are, at best, 9th in the SEC according to the bracket expert.

    CBSSports.com Projections by Jerry Palm - Alabama has dropped a couple spots in the latest projections. Instead of being the last team into the tournament, Palm has Anthony Grant's team second-out this week.

  • Current Rankings

  • This Week's Opponents

    Home vs Florida (Tuesday, Jan. 27 @ 8PM, ESPN)

    This game is essentially a must-win for Alabama. First, the Gators (RPI 81) aren't even on the bubble at this point. A loss would put the Crimson Tide behind yet another conference opponent in the tourney conversation. Second, this game is on ESPN and provides the team a national stage to impress analysts and committee members.

    Away vs Kentucky (Saturday, Jan. 31 @ 6:00PM, SEC Network)

    The second meeting in as many weeks, Alabama needs to have a much more competitive effort against the top-ranked Wildcats. A number of other SEC bubble teams have performed well against Kentucky and it's time for the Crimson Tide to measure up.

  • How Key Non-Conference Opponents are Faring

    Wichita State (RPI 13) - Two more double-digit wins for the Shockers last week. The only thing that might stand in the way of an undefeated conference record is an away at Northern Iowa (RPI 23) this week.

    Iowa State (RPI 15) - After a great start to conference play, the Cyclones suffered an embarrassing loss to Texas Tech (RPI 152) on Saturday. But the team rebounded with a big win against Texas (RPI 25) Monday night. They'll have an easier game Saturday against TCU before a brutal stretch of conference games.

    Xavier (RPI 32) - It was a 1-1 week for Xavier, which included a 3-point loss at Providence (RPI 21). The Musketeers would celebrate another split record this week with games at Georgetown (RPI 12) and Seton Hall (RPI 42).

    UCLA (RPI 73) - It wasn't a good week for the Bruins, which lost two road games by an average of 14 points. The team returns home to Westwood for a huge game against Utah (RPI 11) and a chance to avenge an earlier loss to Colorado (RPI 86)

    Arizona State (RPI 115) - The Sun Devils made a nice jump up the rankings with a road win at California last week. This team could possibly crack the top 100 with a win against Oregon State (RPI 66) or Oregon (RPI 78) this week.

    *Only top 150 teams will be included in this section.

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