Alabama
Kentucky
Women’s Basketball Welcomes in No. 14 Kentucky on Thursday Night
1/8/2020 4:25:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Crimson Tide and Wildcats will tip off at 7 p.m. CT in Coleman Coliseum
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama will host its second consecutive top-15 team when the No. 14 Kentucky Wildcats come to Coleman Coliseum on Thursday at 7 p.m. CT. The Crimson Tide (10-5, 0-2 SEC) has dropped its first two conference games, while the Wildcats (12-2, 1-1 SEC) picked up their first of the season after defeating then-No. 22/24 Tennessee on Sunday.
The matchup on Thursday is the first of two against the Wildcats and 49th overall meeting. The Wildcats have won the last seven matchups, including the last five in Tuscaloosa. Then-No. 17 Kentucky defeated the Tide last season, 68-53, in its lone meeting of the year on Feb. 11, 2019 in Coleman Coliseum.
Promotions
• Welcome Back Student Event
• Free T-Shirts, food and raffle prizes
Follow Along
• The game will be broadcast live on the SEC Network+ via the WatchESPN app. Eli Gold (play-by-play) and Rick Moody (analyst) will be on the call.
• On the radio, Roger Hoover (play-by-play) and Gray Robertson (analyst) will have the call on 100.1 FM/1230 AM, while also being available on the TuneIn app.
• Fans can also follow along via live stats on RollTide.com.
Opening Tip
• Over the last five games, redshirt junior Jordan Lewis has been averaging 15.8 points per contest, while shooting an efficient 50 percent (26-of-52) from the floor. For the season, she leads the team in points (13.4), assists (3.3) and 3-point percentage (39.3). In addition, Lewis is just 38 points away from 1,000 for her career.
• The Alabama bench has outscored its opponents, 498-266 (33.2 avg. - 17.7 avg), in 15 games this season. The Tide reserves leads the SEC in total bench points and bench points per game. The reserves have accounted for 45 percent of the Tide's scoring, with its third and fourth scorers in senior Cierra Johnson (9.1) and sophomore De'Sha Benjamin (8.3) leading the bench.
• Seven different Alabama players average seven points or more. Lewis is tops on the team (13.4), while junior Jasmine Walker is second with 10.5 points.
• Benjamin has put up solid point production off the bench over her last six games with 10.8 points during that span. Over her last six, Benjamin is shooting 59.5 (22-of-37) from the field and after starting the season 3-of-20 (15.0 percent) from beyond the arc, the sophomore is now 5-of-7 over the last four games. A season ago, Benjamin led the team in three-point percentage at 36.5 (27-of-74).
• Alabama comes in at No. 5 in the SEC and 16th in the country in free throws attempted, while coming in at No. 4 in the conference and No. 13 in the country in free throw makes. The team is also fourth in the SEC in free throw percentage at 70.3 percent. The Tide is top-5 in the SEC in three different categories from the three-point line, including attempts No. 5 (307), No. 4 in makes (102) and No. 4 in makes per game (6.8).
About Kentucky
• The Wildcats have impressed this season with their only two losses coming against top-10 teams. Kentucky fell to then-No. 7 Louisville, 67-66 on Dec. 15 and then dropped a game on the road to then-No. 4 South Carolina, 99-72 on Jan. 2. UK started the season 10-0 in non-conference play.
• Kentucky is first in the Southeastern Conference in scoring defense, only allowing opponents 54.2 points per game. The Wildcats are also No. 1 in the SEC in turnover margin (+9.5) and turnovers forced (22.3)
• Rhyne Howard is in her sophomore campaign after unanimously being named the 2019 National Freshman of the Year. Howard is averaging fifth-most points per game in the nation with 22.6 per contest, to go along with 5.7 rebounds and 2.1 steals. Sabrina Haines also averages 10.1 points per game.
• Head Coach Matthew Mitchell is in his 13th season with UK while compiling a 293-127 record and a 323-156 career record. Mitchell has led the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament in nine of the last 10 seasons.
SEC Active Career Leaders (as of Jan. 8)
• Points - Jordan Lewis: 962 (No. 8)
• Rebounds - Jasmine Walker: 435 (No. 10)
Ashley Knight: 401 (No. 12)
• Assists - Jordan Lewis: 336 (No. 2)
• Blocks - Ashley Knight: 196 (No. 1)
Ariyah Copeland: 55 (No. 10)
• Steals - Jordan Lewis: 118 (No. 6)
For all the latest information on the team, follow AlabamaWBB on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. General athletic news can be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and Alabama Athletics on Facebook.
