Throwback Thursday: Alabama in the 1985 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament

Alabama went to one of the toughest venues in college basketball, The Pit, and won against Arizona and Virginia Commonwealth to advance to the Sweet 16

Jimmy Bank | Mar 18, 2021

Alabama was making its fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament during Wimp Sanderson's fifth season as head coach.

Coming off a loss in the SEC Tournament championship game, Alabama was seeded seventh in the Western Regional, where it was paired against Arizona at The Pit in Albuquerque.

Higher-seeded teams weren't supposed to have such a geographical advantage, but more problematic was the Wildcat lineup. Lute Olson's team was led by prolific forward Sean Elliott, with the starting backcourt featuring guards Craig McMillan and future NBA coach Steve Kerr. Among the reserves was future Major League Baseball star Kenny Lofton.

Alabama successfully slowed the pace as senior center Bobby Lee Hurt tallied 14 points and six rebounds to lead the 50-41 first-round victory. Junior forward Buck Johnson added 12 points and sophomore guard Terry Coner scored 10, but Derrick McKey was named the player of the game by the CBS broadcast after not scoring a single point.

The freshman forward limited Arizona star forward Eddie Smith to just nine points, well under his season average, before fouling out. Alabama out-rebounded Arizona 32-29, and pulled away in the second half after leading just 19-17 at the break.

In the second round, Alabama faced second-seeded VCU, the Sun Belt champions who were fresh off a solid 81-65 win over Marshall.

Rolando Lamb scored a game-high 25 points for the Rams, but Alabama won the game in the interior.

Hurt topped the Crimson Tide attack with 19 points and 13 rebounds, while Coner netted 14, and a young transfer guard from Oral Roberts named Mark Gottfried finished with 10.

Alabama advanced to the Sweet 16, only to be bounced in Denver by third-seeded North Carolina State, 61-55.

Poor free-throw shooting was arguably the difference as the Crimson Tide made just 9 of 18 attempts. Lorenzo Charles and Spud Webb led the Wolfpack with 14 points each, while North Carolina State also boasted Nat McMillan and Vinnie Del Negro.

Coner scored 18 points and Johnson 16, as Alabama couldn't take advantage of the 37-31 rebounding edge.

The Crimson Tide finished 23–10, 11–7 in SEC play.

Published Mar 18, 2021

JIMMY BANK