SPOKANE, Wash. — Rylan Griffen remembers what Tennessee did to Alabama basketball, and he's using it as a reminder of why the No. 4 Crimson Tide shouldn't fear what's likely to be a hostile environment against No. 12 Grand Canyon in the Round of 32 on Sunday.

The Vols walked into Coleman Coliseum on March 2 and handed the Crimson Tide a seven-point loss. The defeat, in front of a friendly home crowd, all but knocked Alabama out of the hunt for the regular-season SEC championship. Tennessee secured the title four days later.

"The game is going to be played on the court, not in the stands," Griffen said of his team's upcoming matchup with the Antelopes on Sunday (6:10 p.m. CT, TBS). "If they have a big crowd, you should just tune it all out and you should get the win because that's where the game is going to be played − the court. We can control whether we win or not. Of course, fans are a big boost always. But at the end of the day, the game is played on the court."

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Grand Canyon (30-4) had the most impressive fan turnout of any of the eight teams who played in Spokane Arena on Friday. The crowd roared each time the Lopes got a stop − No. 5 Saint Mary's was held to a 38.8% shooting mark − and it reached an intimidating octave amidst a 17-1 Grand Canyon run in the second half.

The Lopes built their advantage up to 17 during their big swing. The Gaels never again cut the deficit below six.

"They're on the West Coast and their administration has done a really good job, whatever method they have of emphasizing getting the crowd here," Alabama coach Nate Oats said. "It's kind of a road game with the crowd they had last night. The good thing is we've played a lot of tough road games.

"We don't always do it, but we tell our guys: The scoreboard is irrelevant to how hard we should be playing. It's really a distraction. Well, the crowd should be a distraction, too. Just focus on what's going on the 94x52 (court) right here and what we're doing."

Alabama (22-11) finished with a 5-6 record in away games this season, with notable victories over LSU, Mississippi State and Ole Miss. Against top teams − Auburn, Florida, Kentucky and Tennessee, among others − the Crimson Tide struggled away from Coleman Coliseum.

"Whether there's 15,000 people in Coleman or whether we're in a practice where nobody but us is in the gym, it should have zero effect on your effort," Oats said. "Now, we're human and sometimes that doesn't happen. If you don't turn the ball over and give up a bunch of highlight reel plays going the other way, I don't know that you can totally keep the crowd out of it, but you can keep them down."

It's about a three-hour flight from Phoenix, Arizona, to Spokane. The trek from Alabama, which often requires at least one layover, takes upwards of eight hours. It's natural for more Grand Canyon fans to be in attendance, and that's not even mentioning the neutral fans who will be rooting for the mid-major Cinderella story instead of the SEC powerhouse.

The building will likely be against Alabama, and Oats is fine with that.

"I like having a crowd, whether it's an away crowd or a home crowd, pack the place and let's play in front of a bunch of people," Oats said. "I think the band, the crowd, the student section, it's a better crowd than professional sports and I think it's one of the things that makes college basketball, college basketball.

"I'm looking forward to having a good crowd in here tomorrow."

Richard Silva is a sports reporter for the USA TODAY Network. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rich_silva18.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Alabama basketball focusing on court, not crowd ahead of Grand Canyon