Alabama basketball is due for a visit from a blueblood in next year’s SEC/ACC Challenge. The SEC needs to take note of this and make it happen.
The Crimson Tide took down UNC in the house Dean Smith built this past week, so why not send Duke to the house that coach Nate Oats is building in Tuscaloosa?
No. 12 Alabama (7-2) nabbed its first program win in Chapel Hill by double digits on Wednesday, but UA has never gotten the chance to face the No. 9 Blue Devils (6-2) in Durham.
In fact, Alabama and Duke have faced off just once in over 110 seasons for each team. It wasn’t in Coleman Coliseum, either.
The 2013-14 season saw the powers meet for the first and only time in the NIT Season Tip-Off at Madison Square Garden, back when the Mike Krzyzewski era was going strong and UA was still operating under now-Dayton coach Anthony Grant.
Coach K took down UA, 74-64, on the way to an NCAA Tournament appearance.
Alabama finished the year 13-19 − the program’s last losing record.
It’s a new era for Alabama basketball
Oats wouldn’t arrive until six seasons later, and oh, how the times have changed for Alabama basketball since.
Today, Alabama vs. Duke is a marquee matchup, and UA has done enough to be lauded as a basketball school while featuring a football program that’s won 18 national championships.
After the 94-79 win at UNC, Oats said, “I think the league decided they want to be good in basketball.”
Granted, there’s a long way to go before UA can join the likes of Kentucky, but the Crimson Tide should be given every chance possible to show it can become the league’s second blueblood.
UA proved itself time and time again in the Big 12/SEC Challenge, which the SEC/ACC Challenge replaced.
Alabama basketball fans deserve marquee home games
With Alabama’s first-ever appearance against Duke, the 2013-14 season also brought the first year of the Big 12/SEC Challenge. UA hosted Texas Tech. Alabama would later host Oklahoma a fourth-ranked Baylor team in that event.
Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Baylor are fine, but they aren’t Duke.
Don’t book the trip to T-Town for Wake Forest, Cal, or Virginia Tech. Pitt can stay at Peterson Center. Leave Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum.
Alabama showed in March Madness that it can down Clemson when it really counts. The two programs met twice last year and have played three other times in the last decade.
Still, those ACC programs just don’t bring the same appeal, pomp and circumstance as the five-time national champion Blue Devils.
After all, Alabama basketball loves to go out and do what rival Auburn can’t.
Emilee Smarr covers Alabama basketball and Crimson Tide athletics for the Tuscaloosa News. She can be reached via email at esmarr@gannett.com.
