Alabama Women's Basketball Has Strong Showing to Upset No. 12 Tennessee, 74-64

Alabama played a complete game on both ends of the floor to take down the Lady Volunteers at Coleman Coliseum.

Author:
Clayton Connick
Publish date:
Feb 17, 2022 9:13 PM EST

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Amidst the rain, wind and tornado warnings, Alabama women's basketball squared off with No. 12 Tennessee for the second time this season. This time, the Crimson Tide brought the storm to the Lady Volunteers, protecting the home floor with a 74-64 upset victory Thursday night.

The win was Alabama's first ranked victory of the season.

"I thought we really battled on every possession tonight," Alabama head coach Kristy Curry said. "We had some loose balls go our way, made our free throws. Just having our entire team, we've had a couple close losses and some things happen to us where there was Covid or injury. Tonight it was great to have our depth at all five spots."

Alabama improved to 13-11 and 4-9 in the Southeastern Conference. With the SEC Tournament just two weeks away, the win was vital for the Crimson Tide's confidence and resume with three regular season games remaining.

Alabama began the game with a visible chip on its shoulder, as the Crimson Tide was flying around trying to shut down the talented Lady Volunteers on defense. With the exception of stellar shooting from Tennessee forward Rae Burrell, Alabama was able to stifle Tennessee through the first quarter.

However, the Crimson Tide had not yet found its offensive groove yet. The Alabama lead was 16-14 after one quarter, as the defensive effort had it set up well.

The threes finally began to fall for Alabama in the second quarter, as Megan Abrams and Brittany Davis took the action to the Lady Volunteers. With five minutes remaining in the half, the Crimson Tide went on an 11-0 run with just Davis and Abrams doing the scoring.

"We were fortunate enough that our shots were falling," Abrams said. "I know that offensively we've had our ups and downs the past few games, but we've been working on it in practice and I think that's where our confidence comes from.

"That along with our toughness really helped us get the win."

021722_WBB_AbramsMe_Tennessee_RS6752 — Alabama Athletics

021722_WBB_DavisBr_Tennessee_RS7045 — Alabama Athletics

Alabama took a 38-29 lead into the half, displaying more intensity than the No. 12 Lady Volunteers with 10 second chance points and nine points off turnovers. The Crimson Tide also exhibited responsibility with the basketball with just two turnovers in the half.

The three point barrage did not stop as the second half began. Hannah Barber and Khyla Wade-Warren splashed shots from deep on back-to-back possessions, as the Crimson Tide established control right out of the break. Abrams and Davis traded scoring opportunities throughout the third, as each guard had over 20 points with one quarter to play. Alabama took firm control heading into the fourth, leading 63-45.

Tennessee (21-5, 10-3 SEC) made things interesting in the fourth, splurging for an 11-2 run to cut the Alabama lead to 11 points with just under four minutes to play. Alabama did not make a field goal for nearly an eight minute stretch in the fourth, but confident free throw shooting kept Alabama in front.

The team gathered at mid-court to relish in the marquee win, making sure that Abrams knew how dominant of a game she played.

Th guard tied her career high with 27 points on 9-of-14 shooting, and she was a perfect 7-of-7 from the free-throw line. Davis put up 23 including four shots from beyond the arc, as the guard tandem combined for more than two-thirds of the Crimson Tide's scoring production.