Alabama
UCF
Women's Basketball Beats Central Florida 67-53
12/3/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 3, 2008
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Alabama women's basketball team defeated Central Florida 67- 53 Wednesday night at Coleman Coliseum. With the win, the Crimson Tide moves to 5-2 on the year, while the Knights drop to 1-6.
"We played pretty hard, rebounded the ball well and were solid defensively," said head coach Wendell Hudson. "Shots we make every day in practice would just not go down. Some nights you are going to have that happen and have got to find a way to win. I'm proud of this team for finding a way to win."
Freshman Ericka Russell led all scorers with 14 points with 12 of her 14 coming in the second half. Junior Courtney Strauthers contributed a career-high 13 points for the Tide as well as five rebounds. Senior Camilla Blands also racked up 11 points, including a trio of three-pointers and dished out three assists. Sophomore Daleisha Carn led all players with 13 boards setting a new career high.
Alabama got on the board first when Russell sank two free throws for Alabama. Central Florida responded with quick baskets of its own to take the lead at 8-4. Blands answered with a three-pointer to tie the game at 12-12. Sophomore Alyson Butler added a three of her own, her first of two, to give the Tide a 15-14 lead. Another Blands three-pointer tied the game at 18-18. The Knights rattled off four straight points in the closing minutes to go ahead 24-21. Alabama and Central Florida exchanged baskets and a Carn free-throw got Alabama within one at the half with the score set at 25-24.
After the break, sophomore Katie Hancock hit a jumper to give the Tide a one-point lead at 26-25. A Knight free-throw tied the game at 30-30 at the 15:19 mark. Alabama responded with a six- point run to earn the lead at 36-30. Butler drained a three-pointer to give the Tide the 43-36 edge. Central Florida got within three points at the 7:35 mark, but Alabama held strong. A Tamara Williams jumper gave Alabama the biggest lead of the night at 59-44. Russell laid in a shot with six seconds left to give the Tide the lead at 67-53, the final score for the night.
Alabama shot only 23.5 percent from the field in the first half. After the break, the Tide regrouped and shot 44.1 percent. Alabama converted on 63.6 percent of its attempts from the free throw line. The Tide held Central Florida to under 30 percent shooting from the field for the night. Alabama's bench contributed 36 points to Central Florida's 15.
Next up, the Tide will face Sam Houston State at home on Saturday, Dec. 7. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. (CST) in Coleman Coliseum.
Alabama Head Coach Wendell Hudson Quotes
Opening Statement:
"The first half I thought we played pretty good. We played pretty hard, rebounded the ball well and were solid defensively. Shots we make every day in practice would just not go down. Some nights you are going to have that happen and have got to find a way to win. I'm proud of this team for finding a way to win."
On the play of :Camilla Blands
"She stepped up and made three really big three-point baskets early in the game. She played hard the entire time she was in there and gave great effort."
On the play of :Ericka Russell
"She played a lot of different positions tonight. When Dedrea Magee went out, we played Ericka some at the point guard position. She's naturally a two guard because she can shoot the ball so well. She made a couple of really good steals and got some deflections and just did a really good job for us."
On the play of the Tide's bench:
"Players going in off the bench are really stepping up. I think from time to time we can wear the other team down because we play so many people."
