Mar 29, 2024

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Alabama basketball under Nate Oats has achieved something it hasn’t done in 20 years.

Alabama basketball secured a berth in the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight on Thursday, beating North Carolina 89-87 in the Sweet Sixteen at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Grant Nelson led the way for the Crimson Tide, finishing with 24 points and 12 rebounds.

Alabama might have been the underdog entering Thursday’s matchup, but the Tide was going down swinging if at all. Both teams had 10-0 runs at different times in the first half.

The fourth-seeded Crimson Tide had stuck with No. 1 North Carolina all game, never letting the matchup get out of hand. After a three-point scoring barrage from the Tar Heels in the first half, UA put the clamps on in the second, and UNC made just one of its first 11 from deep in the second, giving Alabama a chance to pull off the upset and move on to its second Elite Eight in program history.

With the victory, Alabama equaled its best run ever in the NCAA Tournament. The Crimson Tide’s lone previous Elite Eight run came under head coach Mark Gottfried in in 2004.

The Crimson Tide will face another team that pulled off an upset on Thursday. Clemson, the No. 6 seed in the West region, beat No. 2 Arizona just before Alabama’s game.

The Tigers beat the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa early in the 2023-24 regular season. Clemson took that one 85-77.

The Tide and Tigers will meet on Saturday in the Elite Eight game at the same venue, for a chance to move on to the Final Four in Phoenix. CBS announced during Thursday’s game that Saturday’s matchup is scheduled for approximately 7:50 p.m. CT on TBS and TruTV.

Tuskegee University will introduce a new flight school in the fall, allowing students to train on the field used by the Tuskegee Airmen, thanks to $6.7 million in federal funding.

The flight school will offer a bachelor’s degree in aviation science, pending approval from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, according to the news release.

The degree program will have two components — one that focuses on aviation sciences like aerodynamics, aircraft structures and meteorology, while the other will provide flight training, giving students the skills to earn their private and commercial pilot certificates.

The school hopes to not only continue the tradition of excellence in aviation set by the Tuskegee Airmen - the first Black flying unit in the United States military who fought in World War II and were one of the most highly decorated units in the Air Force - but to also help with the nation’s worsening pilot shortage.

The university said it will start the aviation program with about 25 students and expects to grow to more than 200 in the future.

James Spann, chief meteorologist for ABC 33/40 in Birmingham, preached the noon sermon at the Cathedral Church of the Advent on Maundy Thursday, drawing one of the largest crowds of the Lenten preaching series.

It’s a time to show love and share blessings, he said.

“This is the most special time of year for Christians,” Spann said. “We should show the love of God in a tangible way.”

Spann leads the weekly children’s worship service for 5 to 12-year-olds at Double Oak Mountain Community Church at the Mt. Laurel campus, but missed the service last weekend to attend a commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Palm Sunday tornado.

The storm killed 20 people, including six children, and injured 70 at Goshen United Methodist Church in Piedmont.

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