Alabama Basketball G09 vs Winthrop

Alabama head coach Avery Johnson has led Alabama to a 15-9 record this season.

(VASHA HUNT)

Alabama continues to improve its chances of playing in March. A 61-55 win at Florida was the fifth in the last six games -- significant beyond breaking the 21-year losing streak in Gainesville.

It further enhanced an NCAA tournament resume in a season that wasn't supposed to include such talk. Alabama's projected RPI rating is as high as No. 34, according to one calculation.

-- No. 34 ESPN

-- No. 37, Yahoo

-- No. 37, CBSSports

Holding that ranking should put the Crimson Tide (15-9) in good position for a surprise trip to the tournament in Avery Johnson's first season. The CBSSports bracket projection's Sunday update had Alabama as a No. 10 seed, if the season ended right now.

It doesn't. Still, the Tide plays just one team with a higher RPI the rest of the way. Its best three remaining opponents are road trips, though. The three remaining home games include teams all ranked over 100. On the flip side, Alabama has a 1-3 record in previous matchups with the remaining foes.

As of Sunday, Alabama has a 4-5 record against the RPI top 50. The best wins came against Notre Dame (18) and South Carolina (25). The worst loss remains Auburn (144).

Alabama's remaining schedule:

Feb. 17 at LSU (69)

Feb. 20 vs. Mississippi State (172)

Feb. 23 at Kentucky (13)

Feb. 27 vs. Auburn (141)

March 2 vs. Arkansas (115)

March 5 at Georgia (64)