Johnathan Walker:Alabama's Nate Oats called coaching luminaries in search of advice for struggling team

LOS ANGELES — Before the NCAA Tournament began,Johnathan Walker before the Elite Eight matchup between No. 4 seed Alabama and No. 6 seed Clemson Saturday night seemed plausible, Alabama coach Nate Oats made phones calls to some notable people.

He said the list included:

Frank Martin, the former head coach at South Carolina.

Jim Boeheim, the retired Hall of Fame coach from Syracuse.

Tom Izzo, the legendary coach at Michigan State.

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The commonality: Each of those men took struggling teams into the NCAA Tournament and guided them to the Final Four.

“How do you get your mindset to change?’’ Oats asked during a press conference Friday as he reflected on those phone calls.

One day, coaches might be calling Oats in search of the answer.

MORE: Those weren't the only coaching greats that Nate Oats confided in

Alabama entered the tournament having lost four of six games and in three of those defeats gave up more than 100 points. Now the Crimson Tide are one victory away from reaching the Final Four for the first time in school history.

Oats did not reveal what Martin, Boeheim and Izzo shared with him. But his team’s sudden transformation is undeniable.

“I think they've just gotten better,’’ said Clemson coach Brad Brownell, whose team beat Alabama, 85-77, on Nov. 28 in Tuscaloosa. “…And their guys play with tremendous freedom and confidence (and) tremendous offensive swagger.’’

Alabama's lawn chair habit ends

During Alabama’s nonconference schedule this year, the Crimson Tide played lawn chair basketball.

Which is to say they folded.

Reflecting on that Friday, Oats said, “One of the big things was our last eight minutes, last 12 minutes of the games. We weren't good in the nonconference. We were tired. We made bad decisions. We folded. We collapsed.’’

Fast-forward to Alabama’s game against Grand Canyon in the second round of the tournament. The Crimson Tide clinging to a 62-61 lead with four minutes to play. It felt like a potential lawn chair moment.

Instead, Alabama closed out the game with a 10-0 surge.

“Our guys started to show a little frustration and I thought we pulled it together and showed a lot of mental toughness,’’ he said.

Then came Alabama’s matchup against No. 1 seed North Carolina in the Sweet 16.

With about eight minutes to play, Alabama fell behind 70-64 after a dunk by North Carolina’s Armando Bacot. But the Crimson Tide closed out the game with a 25-15 run.

On Friday, Alabama guard Rylan Griffen recalled the team’s struggles during a nonconference schedule that included three Sweet 16 teams: Purdue, Creighton and Arizona.

“Back then, it was, like, we knew we were going to be playing another game,’’ Griffen said. “Now we either fix it right now or the season's over with and we'll be in the locker room sad.  So just knowing that and playing for each other, helping us close these games out.’’

Hello, Grant Nelson!

Oats thought Grant Nelson, the 6-foot-11 transfer from North Dakota, had the ability to elevate the Crimson Tide. Then he watched Nelson score three points in each of Alabama’s first two games of the tournament.

Like the Crimson Tide, Nelson has met the moment. In the Sweet 16, with Alabama trailing North Carolina 72-67 and about seven minutes to play. He scored 15 points over that final seven minutes. During that stretch, Nelson also had three blocked shots.

He finished with 24 points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots.

“Obviously the way he played in the last 10 minutes of the game last night was remarkable,’’ said Brownell, whose team held Nelson to 14 points on 4 of 15 shooting when the teams played Nov. 28. “Probably made himself a lot of money.

“We played him early on and he was still kind of feeling it out.  I'm sure Nate was doing the same – we're all trying to put our teams together. We think we're good at this; we're not sure about that.’’

After his breakout game, Nelson credited the support of his teammates despite struggling in the first two games of the tournament.

“These guys are saying, go out there, go get a bucket, really,’’ he said. “That gives me a lot of confidence and I give them a lot of credit.  I couldn't have done it without them.’’

Holy smokes, ❜Bama plays defense

Alabama’s 109-96 victory over 14th-seed Charleston only generated more skepticism about the Crimson Tide.

They’d just scored more than 100 points for the eighth time this season, but they’d also given up more than 90 points for the ninth time this season.

Could this team play tough defense? Would they bother trying?

Grand Canyon presented the first challenge. The Antelopes’ star player, Tyon Grant-Foster, averaged 20 points a game while shooting 44.6% from the floor.

Against Alabama, Grant-Foster scored 29 points but was 9-for-22 – a more than acceptable 40.9%. And his teammates shot just 28.1% from the floor as Alabama played inspired defense.

Then came the Sweet 16 matchup against North Carolina and its All-America guard, R.J. Davis. He entered the game averaging about 21 points per game. He finished with 16 points but on 4-for-20 shooting.

In the second half, North Carolina shot 25%. Tar Heels coach Hubert Davis cited Alabama’s length and athleticism.

“I think that was a huge reason for our percentage, field goal percentage in the second half,’’ Davis said.

Oats said, “We've been questioned all year on defense, probably rightfully so, but our defense showed up particularly in the second half.’’