# 1985–86 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team

The 1985–86 Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team represented the University of Alabama in the 1985–86 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team's head coach was Wimp Sanderson, who was in his sixth season at Alabama. The team played their home games at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. They finished the season 24–9, 13–5 in SEC play, finishing in a tie for second place.
The team lost forward Bobby Lee Hurt to graduation, but key additions were freshman forwards Michael Ansley from Jackson-Olin High School in Birmingham and William DeVaughn from Birmingham.
The Tide made it to the 1986 SEC men's basketball tournament final, but lost to Kentucky. They received an at-large bid to the 1986 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, where they defeated Xavier and Illinois and reached the Sweet 16 for the second straight season. In the Sweet 16, however, the Tide lost to Kentucky for the fourth time in the 1985–86 season.

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular Season ||||||
| December 2, 1985* | | Utah | W 73–57 | 1–0 | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| December 4, 1985* | | Rider | W 91–63 | 2–0 | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| December 9, 1985* | | Murray State | W 99–65 | 3–0 | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| December 14, 1985* | | Mercer | W 92–49 | 4–0 | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| December 16, 1985* | | Florida State | W 100–89 | 5–0 | Civic Center Birmingham, AL |
| December 21, 1985* | | Maryland | L 58–60 | 5–1 | Cole Field House College Park, MD |
| December 25, 1985* | | Northwestern State | W 82–77 | 6–1 | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| December 29, 1985* | | Nebraska Sun Carnival Classic Tournament | W 78–61 | 7–1 | Don Haskins Center El Paso, TX |
| December 30, 1985* | | No. 19 UTEP Sun Carnival Classic Tournament | L 62–74 | 7–2 | Don Haskins Center El Paso, TX |
| January 2, 1986 | | Mississippi State | W 71–62 | 8–2 (1–0) | Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS |
| January 4, 1986 | | Georgia | L 80–88 | 8–3 (1–1) | Stegeman Coliseum Athens, GA |
| January 9, 1986 | | No. 8 LSU | W 83–67 | 9–3 (2–1) | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| January 11, 1986 | | No. 11 Kentucky | L 52–76 | 9–4 (2–2) | Rupp Arena Lexington, KY |
| January 16, 1986 | | Auburn Rivalry | W 60–56 | 10–4 (3–2) | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| January 18, 1986 | | Tennessee | W 92–79 | 11–4 (4–2) | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| January 22, 1986 | | Vanderbilt | W 85–72 | 12–4 (5–2) | Memorial Gymnasium Nashville, TN |
| January 25, 1986 | | Florida | W 67–64 | 13–4 (6–2) | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| January 29, 1986 | | Ole Miss | W 69–62 | 14–4 (7–2) | Tad Smith Coliseum Oxford, MS |
| February 1, 1986 | | Mississippi State | W 72–54 | 15–4 (8–2) | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| February 5, 1986 | | Georgia | W 57–54 | 16–4 (9–2) | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| February 9, 1986 | | LSU | W 80–71 | 17–4 (10–2) | Maravich Assembly Center Baton Rouge, LA |
| February 13, 1986 | No. 17 | No. 11 Kentucky | L 71–73 | 17–5 (10–3) | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| February 15, 1986 | No. 17 | Auburn Rivalry | L 69–71 | 17–6 (10–4) | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| February 19, 1986 | No. 18 | Tennessee | W 80–64 | 18–6 (11–4) | Stokely Athletic Center Knoxville, TN |
| February 22, 1986 | No. 18 | Vanderbilt | W 69–68 | 19–6 (12–4) | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| February 26, 1986 | No. 19 | Florida | L 65–77 | 19–7 (12–5) | O'Connell Center Gainesville, FL |
| March 2, 1986 | No. 19 | Ole Miss | W 74–59 | 20–7 (13–5) | Memorial Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL |
| SEC Tournament ||||||
| March 6, 1986 | (3) | (6) Georgia Second Round | W 77–59 | 21–7 | Rupp Arena Lexington, KY |
| March 7, 1986 | (3) | (10) Mississippi State Semifinals | W 77–65 | 22–7 | Rupp Arena Lexington, KY |
| March 8, 1986 | (3) | (1) No. 3 Kentucky SEC Championship | L 72–83 | 22–8 | Rupp Arena Lexington, KY |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||
| March 14, 1986* | (5 SE) | vs. (12 SE) Xavier First Round | W 97–80 | 23–8 | Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, NC |
| March 16, 1986* | (5 SE) | vs. (4 SE) No. 19 Illinois Second Round | W 58–56 | 24–8 | Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, NC |
| March 20, 1986* | (5 SE) | vs. (1 SE) No. 3 Kentucky Regional semifinal - Sweet Sixteen | L 63–68 | 24–9 | The Omni Atlanta, GA |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern time. ||||||