re: Alabama Basketball Megathread | 26-7 (16-2)

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Five power-conference schools — Baylor in the Big 12, Villanova in the Big East, Alabama in the SEC, Virginia in the ACC, and UCLA in the Pac-12 — are entering this weekend with perfect league records. Of the group, the biggest surprise is probably the Crimson Tide considering Nate Oats' team started unranked.

Did you realize Alabama is taking an eight-game winning streak into Saturday's game with Mississippi State -- and that the Crimson Tide has won their past three games by an average of 27 points while bombing the opposition from beyond the arc? They were 14-of-30 from 3-point range in an 85-65 victory over Kentucky, 15-of-36 from 3-point range in a 90-59 victory over Arkansas, and 23-of-43 from 3-point range in a 105-75 victory over LSU. Add it up, and Alabama has made 52 of the 109 3-pointers it's attempted in its past three contests. That means Alabama took, on average, 36.3 3-pointers per game in that stretch, and made 47.7% of them. So it's not difficult to understand why those games were all lopsided.

Is this sustainable?

At that rate, probably not. But the fact that Alabama has the 11th-best adjusted defensive efficiency rating in the sport makes the Crimson Tide a legitimate Final Four contender. Going into every game, you know nearly every other shot is coming from beyond the arc. If Alabama makes above 40% of them, it probably isn't losing. And even if it doesn't make a great rate, the defense is strong enough to keep the Crimson Tide in games against nearly anybody, which is among the reasons Alabama, No. 10 in Saturday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings, is now considered the favorite in the SEC. The school has not won a regular-season league title in men's basketball since 2002. But, barring injuries, a surprise, or a collapse, that figures to change come March.

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Alabama's eight-game winning streak includes double-digit victories over Florida, Kentucky, Arkansas and LSU. The Crimson Tide have made 52 3-pointers in their past three games.

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