Alabama announces Nate Oats as new head basketball coach

Ben Stansell, Assistant Sports Editor
March 27, 2019

The search is over.

Alabama has hired former Buffalo coach Nate Oats as the new men’s basketball coach, according to an announcement made by the school on Wednesday afternoon.

Athletics Director Greg Byrne tweeted out the news.

Oats, who compiled a 96-43 record over four years at Buffalo, will serve as the 21st head coach in program history.

He was named the 2018 and 2019 Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year and went 32-4 overall with the Bulls this season.

At a press conference on Monday, Byrne made it clear that he wanted to make a quick hire, and he has done just that. The announcement comes only a few days after it was announced that Alabama would be parting ways with former coach Avery Johnson.

The announcement also comes days after Buffalo was eliminated in the second round of the NCAA tournament by Texas Tech and barely over a week after Oats signed an extension with the Bulls.