Alabama
Tulane University
Alabama Women’s Basketball Gears up for WNIT Rematch with Tulane
3/22/2017 3:22:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Crimson Tide and Green Wave to face off in Coleman Coliseum on Thursday at 7 p.m. CT in the third round of the tournament
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama women's basketball team (21-13) will host Tulane (18-14) in the third round of the Women's National Invitation Tournament on Thursday, March 23. Tip is set for 7 p.m. CT at Coleman Coliseum. General admission tickets are on sale for $6 on RollTide.com, and the first 100 students in attendance will receive a free ticket courtesy of Coca-Cola.
THE BROADCAST
Thursday'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 Thursday's game with a 21-13 overall record after advancing past Little Rock in the second round, 55-53. 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 7-5 in WNIT games.
Alabama and Tulane are meeting for the 12th time in the series on Thursday and the second year in a row in the WNIT. In the 2016 tournament, the Green Wave edged the Tide by one point, 53-52, in the first round on Tulane's home court.
The Crimson Tide reached the 20-win milestone on Thursday, March 16 in its victory over Mercer, marking the first time Alabama has won 20 wins in a season since the 1998-99 campaign.
Junior Ashley Williams has paved the way for Alabama in the WNIT, averaging a double-double of 17.0 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.
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 85 for the season, which is already eighth most in a career. She's ranked 18th in the nation, and first in the SEC, in overall blocks and 23rd nationally and second in the league on blocks per game at 2.5.
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 TULANE
Tulane heads into Thursday's game with an 18-14 overall record and advanced to the third round of the WNIT with wins over UT Arlington (62-53) and Grambling State (66-49).
The Green Wave is led by junior Kolby Morgan and senior Leslie Vorpahl. Morgan averages a team-high 18.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, while Vorpahl chips in 11.8 points and 6.2 assists per contest.
Tulane nearly pulled off an upset over top-ranked UConn as the Green Wave fell by only three, 63-60, to the Huskies.
Tulane is under the direction of Lisa Stockton, who is in her 23rd season as head coach of the Green Wave and 26th season overall as a head coach. While part of Conference USA, Tulane finished first in the league six times. Her squads have advanced to the postseason 18 times, including 11 trips to the NCAA tournament.
