According to KenPom, Duke men’s basketball outperforms Alabama in almost every sophisticated statistical measure.
offensive effectiveness. effectiveness in defense. turnovers. offensive rebounds. The list is endless. Duke is either on par with or marginally superior to Alabama in terms of statistics.
The Blue Devils are ranked first overall in KenPom and as the first seed in the NCAA Tournament. It follows that they rank highly in the majority of statistics.
There are not many statistical advantages for Alabama. However, there is still hope. The Crimson Tide are much superior to Duke in two areas.
Before the Elite Eight matchup between No. 1 seed Duke and No. 2 seed Alabama on Saturday at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey (7:49 p.m. CT, truTV, or TBS), let’s take a closer look at each of those two areas.
Benefit 1: Schedule strength
This explains why Nate Oats has such a rigorous schedule. For times like this, it primes the Crimson Tide.
According to KenPom, Alabama’s schedule is the best in the nation. Duke is ranked 57th.
With the exception of Duke, all five of KenPom’s top teams have met Alabama. No. 2 Florida, No. 3 Houston, No. 4 Auburn, and No. 5 Tennessee are the teams the Crimson Tide have faced twice. That’s only the apex of the challenging program.
Oats stated, “I believe that playing against those other teams has prepared us to play a game of this caliber.” “They’re obviously not the same. No one had Cooper Flagg. Khaman Maluach possesses rim protection that no one other has. However, those other teams performed admirably.
Auburn is the only KenPom top-10 team Duke has faced.
The Blue Devils have faced teams in the top 25 of KenPom seven times. Alabama has made 15 appearances.
That does not imply that the Crimson Tide are a superior squad. However, it does indicate that Alabama is more battle-tested.
“We’ve done that before, and I think we’ve been right in those games and done pretty well in most of them,” Oats stated. “Playing teams of that caliber comes with an intensity, a focus, and a level of preparation.”
Benefit 2: Experience
The San Diego State game was recalled by Mark Sears. Two years ago, Alabama lost to San Diego State, the fifth seed in the NCAA Tournament, in the Sweet 16 despite having the top overall seed.
In that game, Alabama started two freshmen, Noah Clowney and Brandon Miller. Jaden Bradley also contributed a lot of play. In 2023, San Diego State’s collegiate basketball team featured one of the most seasoned rosters. In Division I experience, it was placed twenty-first.
“I was one of many young guys on that team,” Sears remarked. They were an older group, San Diego State. In that game, their physicality was a major influence. We were taken aback. Having that seasoned leadership is crucial in this day and age of collegiate basketball, in my opinion.
Alabama now holds a stronger position than San Diego State. One of NCAA basketball’s oldest rosters is that of the 2025 Crimson Tide.
According to KenPom, Alabama’s average Division I experience is 2.99 years. That is ninth in the country.
Duke has 1.96 years of experience on average. That is ranked 128th.
We understand what it’s like to play at that level because we’ve been there before,” Mouhamed Dioubate remarked. “The pressure, and all of that.” It is really beneficial to you. When it comes to basketball, particularly in college, experience matters. We might have an advantage tomorrow because of that.
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