re: USA Today Preseason Basketball Poll released

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Is it strange for the Bama fans to be this excited about basketball?

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By the end of this season, we will be the 2nd winningest basketball program in the SEC.

We will also still be the only SEC program ranked in the Top 3 in the conference in all time wins in all 3 major sports.

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We were picked 11th in the conference and 48th in the polls... if I remember right the SEC basketball season didn’t end until we lost by 4 to Gonzaga in the final four.

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Yep - and you lost players who accounted for 74% of your scoring and 66% of your minutes played in that game.

Folks expect you to take a step back. Maybe you will, maybe you won't.

Brutal schedule for A&M.

#10, at #11, #5, at #25, #7, at #4, at #3, #4, and #25.

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Last year Alabama was fifth in the SEC in attendance behind only Kentucky, Arkansas, Tennessee and South Carolina. 27th in the country. That's not bad. Averaged almost 12,000 fans per game.

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2017 - 5th/27th (NIT)
2016 - 4th/22nd (Avery hired, NIT)
2015 - 6th/40th (Grant fired)
2014 - 5th/35th (13-19)
2013 - 5th/31st (NIT)
2012 - 5th/27th (NCAA)

If we are good we sell out. If we are bad we had good crowds for decent/good SEC games and bad crowds for crap games.

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Not a lot of people putting stock in USCe reloading, but I think people are sleeping on Martin's ability to get his team to play quality defense.

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I think South Carolina's lower pick in the SEC is based on a combination of things

(a) They lost a lot from last year
(b) They have never been a very good offensive team, and their success last year really came (generally) when Thornwell took over games. He's gone and there isn't an heir apparent replacement there (there could be one, but it hasn't been shown to the public). So, offense is a question mark. Everyone knows they will play great defense
(c) The league is better than it was last year and a lot of teams return their starters

So, a combination of all those things sees South Carolina pretty low in the SEC preseason picks. However, it's not like people seem to think they will go 12-18. They are still picked in the top 50. I wouldn't be shocked to see them put together another solid season and make the tournament because Martin is great and he's established a culture there. However, I get why they are where they are.

Meh

Show me one other final four team that got predicted 11th the following year in their conference

I'm fine with not being Top 5 but 11th is just retarded. We have plenty of returning talent, and incoming talent as well. Georgia? Ole Miss?

Who cares though. We ALWAYS get ranked low, and prove them wrong. Do it again.

i remember when A&M played yall in tuscaloosa for an OOC game, 2008 i think. there were maybe 500-700 fans there. the 2 guys calling the game on the video/audio stream sounded like they were straight from the finebaum show. when our 5'9 PG hit a 3 with one sec to send it to OT, the color guy called him a "little peckerhead", was hilarious.

if that wasnt the low point in bama hoops id love to know what was.

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i remember when A&M played yall in tuscaloosa for an OOC game, 2008 i think. there were maybe 500-700 fans there. the 2 guys calling the game on the video/audio stream sounded like they were straight from the finebaum show. when our 5'9 PG hit a 3 with one sec to send it to OT, the color guy called him a "little peckerhead", was hilarious. if that wasnt the low point in bama hoops id love to know what was.

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2008-2009 season, which was Gottfried's last season (he got fired like a month after that game). Everyone wanted and thought he was going to get fired after going 17-16 (5-11) the year before and being downright putrid, but they brought him back. We'd lost the season opener to Mercer then went out and got beat by 23 by Oregon in Maui. It was fvckin awful.

I think that game was during Christmas Break and was the Saturday after we lost to the SECCG to Florida too, so combine all those factors and yea..........people were pretty much tuned the frick out.

UK and UF not the only ones ranked or getting votes