Alabama is hoping to have its top rebounder back during its trip to Cleveland for the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Veteran forward Grant Nelson will be a game time decision for the Crimson Tide’s matchup against No. 15 seed Robert Morris on Friday.

Nelson suffered a left leg injury in Alabama’s loss to Florida in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament last weekend. Coach Nate Oats gave an update Monday after Nelson saw a specialist and initially ruled him questionable for Friday’s game. Nelson maintained that status and Oats is hoping the forward can bounce back enough to be available by tipoff.

“Our trainers are saying he's day-to-day," Oats said. "Just yesterday, he started doing basketball, still workouts. He did not go in our live play and practice today. Grant wants to play. He's a competitor. He played great in the NCAA Tournament last year. It'll end up being a game time decision based on what he feels like in the morning, but if he does end up playing, he won't have practiced anything live up until then.

“I think it's looking a little better, obviously, for Sunday than maybe Friday, but there's a chance he could play. They're going to wait to make a decision and see what it looks like tomorrow morning.”

Nelson is averaging 11.9 points and 7.8 rebounds while shooting 52.7% from the floor this season. He dealt with nagging injuries towards the end of the regular season but bounced back in Alabama's win over Auburn with 23 points. He's appeared in all 32 games for Alabama with 30 starts.

Alabama (25-8) earned the No. 2 seed in the East Region and will play Robert Morris (26-8) on Friday in Cleveland. If the Tide advances, it will face the winner of No. 7 seed Saint Mary’s (28-5) and No. 10 seed Vanderbilt (20-12) next Sunday