5. Alabama (8-2)
Certainly not known for their basketball even a few years ago, Nate Oats has quite literally turned the tide at Alabama. After last year’s run to the Final Four, the Crimson Tide both returned and added significant talent and certainly are in shape to be a national contender again with wins over Illinois, Houston, and at North Carolina proving that possibility.
The Crimson Tide stayed at home this week and got a nice 83-75 win over a talented Creighton squad on Saturday night. This was another classic effort out of Mark Sears, who had 27 points and 6 rebounds in the victory. Saturday’s effort was yet another standout performance from freshman Labaron Philon, who this time had 16 points.
This team gets the job done on offense, scoring at least 80 points in eight of their ten games this season. The 3-point shots were not falling on Saturday but the Crimson Tide still did more than enough to win over Creighton, another notable victory for a full resume. They’re on the road next week at North Dakota before three straight home games, entering what’s certainly the last easy portion of their schedule.