Alabama
14-17
Auburn
22-8
Alabama Falls in Hard-Fought, 53-52, Loss Against Auburn in the Second Round of the SEC Tournament
3/7/2019 10:55:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Senior Shaquera Wade finished with 19 points and nine rebounds in her final game with the Crimson Tide
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Alabama led by as many as seven point in the fourth quarter, however, UA could not hold on as No. 6 seed Auburn took the 53-52 win in the second round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament on Thursday night inside the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, S.C. The Crimson Tide (14-17) finishes its 2018-19 campaign, while the Tigers (22-8) will go on to face Texas A&M in the quarterfinals on Friday night.
"Really proud of our team," head coach Kristy Curry said. "We came up a little bit short. I loved what this team has done this weekend. We certainly continued to improve."
Senior Shaquera Wade finished her Alabama career with 1,028 points and tied for sixth all-time in UA history in steals. Wade put in 19 points and nine rebounds in her last game with the Tide and ended the tournament averaging 22.5 points and nine rebounds in two games. Junior Cierra Johnson ended the night with 17 points, five rebounds and four assists, while sophomore Ariyah Copeland added 11 points and seven rebounds.
Alabama jumped out to the 12-8 advantage after the first 10 minutes, sparked by Johnson's seven points. In the second quarter, the Tide pushed its lead to 21-15 after Johnson and Wade connected on back-to-back three-pointers. UA continued to control the pace and tempo, while holding the 27-23 advantage at the half.
The Crimson Tide led the entire third quarter and took the 38-32 lead into the final 10 minutes of action. Alabama extended its advantage to 44-37 after Wade knocked down two-straight three-pointers. Auburn responded with a 12-1 run over the next five minutes to go up 49-45 with just over four minutes to go. Wade hit another huge three-pointer to end the run and make it 49-48.
With Auburn leading 51-48, Wade knocked down a mid-range jumper to make it 51-50 with 2:09 remaining. The two teams did not score until the 11 second mark with the Tigers going 2-of-2 from the free throw line extend the lead to 53-50. The Tide could not hit a three in the final seconds, as UA fell 53-52.
For the game, Alabama shot 44.4 percent (20-of-45) and 41.7 percent (10-of-24) from beyond the arc. The Crimson Tide won the rebounding battle 32-26 and had 14 assists on 20 made baskets.
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