Alabama
Little Rock
Alabama Women’s Basketball Welcomes Little Rock for WNIT Second Round Matchup on Sunday
3/18/2017 1:03:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Crimson Tide and Trojans to tip at 2 p.m. CT in Coleman Coliseum
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama women's basketball team (20-13) hosts Little Rock (25-8) in the second round of the Women's National Invitation Tournament on Sunday at Coleman Coliseum at 2 p.m. CT. General admission tickets are currently on sale on RollTide.com for $5 and will also be available at the ticket office on Sunday beginning at noon.
THE BROADCAST
Sunday's game will be streamed on RollTide.com and can also be heard on the Crimson Tide Sports Network with Roger Hoover and Tyler Williams calling the action.
OPENING TIP
Alabama heads into Sunday's game with a 20-13 overall record after advancing in the WNIT for the first time since 2011. The Crimson Tide is making its second straight appearance in the WNIT and sixth overall. Alabama also competed in the tournament in 2011 and in three consecutive seasons from 2000-02. UA holds an overall record of 6-5 in WNIT games.
Alabama and Little Rock are meeting for the first time in program history.
The Crimson Tide reached the 20-win milestone on Thursday in its victory over Mercer marking the first time Alabama has won 20 wins in a season since the 1998-99 campaign.
Freshman Ashley Knight set the Alabama single season block record on March 1 in the Tide's victory over Vanderbilt in the SEC tournament. Knight now has 79 for the season, which is tied for 10th most in a career. She's ranked 19th in the nation, and first in the SEC, in overall blocks and 25th nationally and second in the league on blocks per game at 2.4.
Both junior Hannah Cook and Ashley Williams scored their 1,000th career point at the SEC tournament. Cook recorded hers in Thursday's game against Tennessee, while Williams followed up the next day in Friday's contest versus Kentucky.
Jordan Lewis was selected as the Southeastern Conference Newcomer of the Year by the Associated Press. She is the first freshman from Alabama to earn the award since its inception in 1997.
ABOUT LITTLE ROCK
Little Rock stands at 25-8 on the season after defeating Southern Miss, 72-62, in Thursday's first round game in the WNIT. The Trojans had five finish in double figures, led by senior Kaitlyn Pratt's 18 points off the bench. For the game, Little Rock shot 53.6 percent.
The Trojans are led by Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year Sharde' Collins, who averages 15.2 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. She is joined in double figures by Pratt, who averages 14.3 points per game. Freshman Kyra Collier leads the team in rebounds at 6.8 per game, while junior Monique Townson dishes out a team-best 4.2 assists per contest.
As a team, Little Rock averages 62.1 points per game while giving up only 55.2 points. The Trojans average 33.9 rebounds per contest along with 12.6 assists, 14.4 turnovers, 7.3 steals and 1.9 blocks
Little Rock is under the direction of Joe Foley, who is in his 14th season as head coach. Foley has earned four Sun Belt Coach of the Year honors, receiving the award in 2010, 2011, 2015 and 2017, and has led the program to at least 20 wins in 10 of the last 11 seasons. The Trojans have made the postseason in nine of the last 10 seasons and won their second outright Sun Belt Championship in 2017. Foley holds an overall record 745-233 in 29 seasons as a head coach, which includes a 289-152 mark at Little Rock in his 14 years.
