Women's Basketball Hosts Ole Miss Thursday
2/18/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 18, 2009
ALABAMA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL (12-14, 0-11 SEC) vs. OLE MISS REBELS (15-11, 4-7 SEC)
Thursday, Feb. 19 (Coleman Coliseum)
Tipoff: 6:00 p.m. (CST)
TV: WVUA (Tape Delayed - will air on Friday, Feb. 20 at 7:00 p.m. CST)
Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network
Promotions: WBCA Pink Zone game to promote breast cancer awareness. Wear your pink!
Alabama and Ole Miss:
The Crimson Tide and Rebels will face off for the 48th time in history today. Ole Miss leads the overall series 31-16 and has won the last eight straight. Alabama's last win against the Rebels came on Jan. 15, 2004 in Coleman Coliseum when the Tide won 67-62. Below is a listing of the past 10 meetings between Alabama and Ole Miss.
| Jan. 18, 2009 | L, 73-43 | Oxford, Miss. |
| Feb. 24, 2008 | L, 70-54 | Tuscaloosa, Ala. |
| Feb. 3, 2008 | L, 76-47 | Oxford, Miss. |
| March 1, 2007 | L, 78-49 | Duluth, Ga. |
| Feb. 11, 2007 | L, 84-43 | Oxford, Miss. |
| Feb. 9, 2006 | L, 77-66 | Tuscaloosa, Ala. |
| Feb. 13, 2005 | L, 68-54 | Oxford, Miss. |
| March 4, 2004 | L, 63-56 | Nashville, Tenn. |
| Jan. 15, 2004 | W, 67-62 | Tuscaloosa, Ala. |
| Jan. 26, 2003 | W, 81-70 | Oxford, Miss. |
Scouting Ole Miss:
The Ole Miss women's basketball suffered a pair of losses last week and fell to 4-7 inside the conference. The Rebels opened the week with a 66-50 setback Thursday night to Mississippi State. Senior Shawn Goff led the way for Ole Miss on offense with 17 points and six rebounds. Bianca Thomas and Shantell Black also scored in double figures as the duo finished with 13 and 11 points, respectively. The Rebels wrapped up the week Sunday by falling 70-59 at Arkansas. Sophomore Kayla Melson scored a season-high 15 points for Ole Miss. Goff fell one rebound shy of a double-double as she tallied 13 points and nine rebounds. In addition, Goff hit her first career three-pointer and finished with two blocked shots. She is only two blocks shy of 200 for her career.
Leading Ole Miss on offense is Thomas who averages 14.7 points per game. Goff is the Rebels' top rebounder with 6.0 boards per outing, while Black dishes out the most assists for Ole Miss with an average of 5.5 assists per game.
Alabama and the Southeastern Conference:
The Tide's all-time record against league foes is 120-190 (.387). Alabama's last winning record in the SEC came during the 1997-98 season when the Tide went 10-4. Below is a list of how Alabama has finished each of its conference seasons.
| Year | Record | Conference Finish |
| 2008-09 | 0-11 | ---- |
| 2007-08 | 1-13 | 12 |
| 2006-07 | 0-14 | 12 |
| 2005-06 | 3-11 | 11 |
| 2004-05 | 4-10 | T9 |
| 2003-04 | 4-10 | 10 |
| 2002-03 | 3-11 | 10 |
| 2001-02 | 7-7 | T7 |
| 2000-01 | 5-9 | T8 |
| 1999-00 | 5-9 | T8 |
| 1998-99 | 7-7 | T5 |
| 1997-98 | 10-4 | T2 |
| 1996-97 | 10-2 | 2 |
| 1995-96 | 7-4 | T3 |
| 1994-95 | 7-4 | T4 |
| 1993-94 | 7-4 | T4 |
| 1992-93 | 6-5 | T4 |
| 1991-92 | 7-4 | 3 |
| 1990-91 | 3-6 | T8 |
| 1989-90 | 4-5 | T6 |
| 1988-89 | 1-8 | T9 |
| 1987-88 | 5-4 | T4 |
| 1986-87 | 2-7 | T8 |
| 1985-86 | 3-6 | 8 |
| 1984-85 | 3-5 | 4 (West) |
| 1983-84 | 5-3 | T2 (West) |
| 1982-83 | 2-6 | 4 (West) |
| 1981-82 | 4-3 | NA |
| 1980-81 | 4-3 | NA |
| 1979-80 | 3-5 | NA |
Who to Watch:
Junior Dedrea Magee has stepped up for Alabama in the last two games. Against Tennessee on Feb. 12, she scored a career-high 21 points. She followed that up with a 12-point performance at South Carolina on Feb. 15. She is leading the team in assists dishing out 5.3 per game in SEC contests. Magee ranks fifth in the conference in assists per game (conference games only) and fourth in assists/turnover ratio at 1.7
Last Time Out:
Alabama fell to South Carolina 68-57 Sunday afternoon at the Colonial Life Arena. The Tide was led offensively by sophomore forward Tierney Jenkins, junior guard Dedrea Magee and freshman guard Ericka Russell, all with 12 points. Sophomore forward Katie Hancock and sophomore guard Varisia Raffington led Alabama with seven rebounds each. The Tide shot 38 percent from the field and 11 percent from behind the arc. Alabama was 56 percent from the free throw line. South Carolina shot 42 percent from the field and 41 percent from behind the three point line. The Gamecocks shot 68 percent from the free throw line. South Carolina out rebounded the Tide 40-34.
40 Minute Magee:
Junior guard Dedrea Magee has played three entire games this season for Alabama. The first of her 40-minute performances came at Auburn on Jan. 22 followed by the Tide's road contests at Tennessee on Feb. 12 and South Carolina on Feb. 15.
Jenkins Boasts a Rare Combination:
Sophomore Tierney Jenkins is one of only two players in the SEC conference to rank among the top 20 in scoring, top 10 in rebounding and top 10 in steals in league games. She is currently 20th in scoring with 12.0 points per game, 10th in rebounding with 8.3 boards per game and tied for 10th in steals with 1.7 thefts per contest.
Not so Friendly February:
The Tide has yet to win a game in the month of February this season. In fact, the last time Alabama picked up a W in February was on Feb. 16, 2006 when it escaped 61-59 on the road at Mississippi State.
Raffington Coming Alive in SEC Play:
Varisia Raffington has stepped up to become the Tide's go-to player in conference action. The sophomore is currently tied for second for most three-pointers in a game (seven at Vanderbilt), third in field goal percentage (.486), fifth in scoring (14.8 ppg) and ninth in three-pointers made per contest (1.8).
Alabama Captures 600th win:
Alabama won its 600th victory in program history on Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008 when it beat Ball State in the championship game of the Crimson Tide Holiday Classic 81-75 in Coleman Coliseum. The Tide's overall record currently stands at 602-425 for an overall winning percentage of 58.6.
Point-Production Improvement:
With an average of 64.2 points per game, Alabama is producing just under 10 more points per contest this season compared to last season. The Tide managed just 54.9 points per outing at the conclusion of the 2007-08 year.
The Tide is Turning:
After winning just eight games last season, the Tide has collected 12 victories thus far this season.
Keep the Ws Coming:
With its win against Southeastern Louisiana on Jan. 3, the Tide got off to its best start since the 2000-2001 season when it went 12-2. In addition, Alabama won its last six games in a row prior to the start of conference play. The last time the Tide won five games or more in a row was between Nov. 22, 2002 to Dec. 7, 2002 when Alabama captured six consecutive victories.
Butler and Russell from Downtown:
Freshman Ericka Russell leads Alabama in three-pointers this season with 46. She is 27.5 percent from beyond the arc thus far hitting 46 of 167 attempts. Right behind Russell is sophomore Alyson Butler with 37 threes. Butler has made 27.4 percent of her shots from three-point range having connected on 37 of 135 attempts. Both have taken the majority of their shots from three-point range with Russell shooting 64.7 percent of her shots from outside the line and Butler taking 75.0 percent of her attempts from beyond the arc.
Alabama from Beyond the Arc:
The Tide has hit a three-point shot in 51 consecutive games. In Alabama's game at Vanderbilt on Feb. 1, the Tide connected on 10 attempts from beyond the arc. That was the first time Alabama has hit 10 or more threes in a game since Dec. 4, 2006 when it hit 11 against McNeese State. The last time Alabama went an entire contest without making a three was Nov. 24, 2007 against Washington State. The Tide went 0-3 for the game.
Equal Opportunity Scorers:
In Alabama's 24 games, six different players have led the Tide in scoring. Sophomore Tierney Jenkins has been Alabama's leading scorer eight times, while freshman Ericka Russell has topped the Tide six times. Sophomore Varisia Raffington has led the way four times, while junior Dedrea Magee and sophomore Alyson Butler have twice. Sophomore Katie Hancock and freshman Kayla Robinson have each led in point production once. Jenkins and Raffington collected 13 points each to lead the Tide against Auburn on Feb. 8 and Jenkins, Magee and Russell each collected 12 points to lead the team at South Carolina.
Everyone is Packing the House against the Tide:
Alabama will has taken part in four NCAA Pack the House Challenge games this season. Aside from its own game at home against Auburn, the Tide was a guest for Middle Tennessee, Ole Miss, and South Carolina's Pack the House Challenge game.
Strauthers Hitting Better than .500 for Career:
Junior Courtney Strauthers is currently averaging 51.6 percent from the floor for her career. She finished her freshman season at 51.3 percent followed by her sophomore year at 56.8 percent. She is 61-130 on the season thus far for a 46.9 clip.
Variety is the Spice of Life:
A total of 14 players have seen court time in Alabama's games this season. Twelve of those 14 players are averaging nine minutes or more. Junior Dedrea Magee leads the way with 26.6 minutes an outing.
`Bama on the Boards:
The Tide has been solid on the boards collecting a total of 41.4 per contest. Alabama pulled down 50 rebounds or more in eight games this season, including a high of 60 against Sam Houston State on Dec. 7.
Alabama Places Two on Crimson Tide Holiday Classic All-Tournament Team:
Junior Dedrea Magee and sophomore Tierney Jenkins were both voted to the Crimson Tide Holiday Classic All-Tournament Team selected by participating coaches. Magee took home Tournament MVP honors after scoring 27 points and adding 12 rebounds and five assists over the two games. For the tournament, Jenkins notched 31 points, including a season-best 23 in the championship game, as well as 17 rebounds and seven steals.
Lucky Number 13:
Junior Courtney Strauthers collected a career-high 13 points in Alabama's win over UCF on Dec. 3. That same night, sophomore Daleisha Carn pulled down a career-best 13 rebounds. In the Tide's next game against Sam Houston State, Carn dished out a career-high 13 assists. Carn then collected a season-high 13 points at Middle Tennessee State on Dec. 14.
Ericka Russell Voted to the Nugget Classic All-Tournament Team:
Alabama freshman Ericka Russell was one of six players named to the Nugget Classic All-Tournament Team. The squad was voted on by the four participating coaches. She finished the two-game Classic with 24 points, eight rebounds, two steals and two assists.
Fresh Faces on the Sidelines:
Wendell Hudson returns to the sidelines after spending the last six years in administration to head up the Alabama women's basketball team. Hudson, who possesses 26 years of basketball coaching experience, is no stranger to Alabama as he was the first African-American scholarship athlete at the Capstone while playing under C.M. Newton. Joining him will be former Tide standouts Joni Crenshaw and Stacey Franklin along with Ty Evans, who enters his second season as a member of the Alabama staff.
Next up:
Alabama will wrap up the week on its final road trip of the regular season when it travels to Arkansas on Sunday, Feb. 22 for a 2:00 p.m. (CST) tipoff.
