Losers of two of the last three, Alabama men’s basketball missed the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time in nearly two years on Monday.

The Crimson Tide was unranked, though received votes, after previously being at No. 23. Nate Oats and co. started the season at No. 24 but has struggled defensively with a new-look roster and a 5-2 start. Alabama lost to Clemson last Tuesday, the first non-conference home defeat in three years.

UA will welcome back a familiar face to Coleman Coliseum as former assistant Bryan Hodgson brings his Arkansas State Red Wolves (2-6) to Tuscaloosa. Starting on Dec. 9 in Toronto, Alabama will play three ranked squads in a row: No. 1 Purdue, No. 15 Creighton and No. 2 Arizona, the latter of which are road games.

Some underlying metrics aren’t as bullish on the Tide as the voters, comprised of media members across the country*. Through KenPom’s adjusted-efficiency margin — an overall ranking of teams based on playing an “average” Division I team — Alabama is 13th. In the NCAA NET rankings, a team-value index used to build a team’s resume, UA was 12th.

There were three Southeastern Conference teams listed on the AP Poll: No. 16 Kentucky, No. 17 Tennessee and No. 21 Texas A&M. Ole Miss, Arkansas and South Carolina received votes.

*Nick Alvarez is a reporter for Alabama Media Group. He is also an AP men’s basketball voter. Follow him on Twitter @nick_a_alvarez or email him at [email protected].