Alabama
17-13,6-10SEC
No. 18/15 Tennessee (No. 3 seed)
23-7,11-5SEC
Alabama Women’s Basketball Drops to Tennessee in SEC Tournament Quarterfinals
3/4/2022 11:47:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The No. 11 seed Crimson Tide lost to the No. 3 seed Lady Volunteers, 74-59
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The 11th-seeded University of Alabama women's basketball team dropped to third-seeded Tennessee, 74-59, in the 2022 Southeastern Conference Women's Basketball Tournament Quarterfinals at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. Friday. The Crimson Tide fell to 17-13 (6-10), while the Lady Volunteers improved to 23-7 (11-5) in 2021-22.
Megan Abrams scored a team-high 19 points on 5-of-11 from the field and 8-of-10 from the free-throw line. She added four rebounds and one assist in 36 minutes of action. Allie Craig Cruce, who made her fourth start this season, rallied 12 points on 4-of-9 from the field and a perfect 3-of-3 from the line.
JaMya Mingo-Young led the team in rebounds and steals with six and three, respectively, while Hannah Barber paced the Crimson Tide on four assists.
Alabama trailed Tennessee for the entire game, with the Lady Volunteers earning its largest lead in the first quarter after jumping out to a 15-5 lead. The Crimson Tide shot 31.7 percent from the field on 19-of-60, while the Lady Volunteers shot 46.4 percent from the field, making 25 of their 56 attempts. The Tide made five three-point field goals and 16 free throws in the game, compared to the Vols' six from long range and 16 makes at the line.
News and Notes
- Alabama is in its 48th season with an 808-627 (.563) all-time record.
- The Crimson Tide is 17-13 (6-10 SEC) in 2021-22.
- Kristy Curry is in her ninth season as the head coach of the Crimson Tide, holding a 150-131 record in her time at The Capstone.
- Curry is in her 23rd season as a head coach in her career, holding a 459-280 mark all-time.
- Alabama's starting combination included guards Megan Abrams, Hannah Barber, JaMya Mingo-Young and Brittany Davis, and forward Allie Craig Cruce, marking the fourth straight time UA has used that starting combination.
- Allie Craig Cruce scored first for Alabama in the game.
- Taylor Sutton and Jada Rice were the first subs for the Crimson Tide.
- Tennessee won the opening tip.
- Megan Abrams has recorded her third straight game of at least 19 points after putting up 19 points against the Lady Volunteers.
- She has led the team in scoring 12 times this season, which is tied with Brittany Davis for the team lead.
- Allie Craig Cruce had three straight games of scoring double digits in just her fourth start this season, putting up 12 points against the Lady Volunteers.
How It Happened
- Alabama got off to a slow offensive start, making just one of its nine attempts from the field and zero of its five attempts from long range in the first five minutes.
- Tennessee led Alabama, 8-3, in that time, while the Lady Volunteers made four of their nine attempts from the field to start the game.
- The Lady Volunteers led the Crimson Tide, 15-5, at the end of the first quarter.
- The Lady Volunteers went on a 5-0 run before the buzzer.
- Alabama shot just 12.5 percent from the field in that quarter on 2-of-16 from the field and 0-of-7 from long range, compared to Tennessee's 46.7 percent shooting on 7-of-15 from the field.
- Tennessee went on a 7-0 run to start the second quarter, which was capped by a Hannah Barber three-point field goal.
- Tennessee responded with a three-point field goal for themselves.
- Brittany Davis went on a 4-0 run for herself near the bottom of the second quarter, while Alabama managed to keep Tennessee from scoring for more than two minutes before halftime.
- Tennessee led Alabama, 34-20, at halftime.
- The Crimson Tide shot 21.9 percent from the field in the first half, but 31.3 percent from the field in the second quarter.
- The Lady Volunteers shot 43.3 percent from the field in the first half.
- Alabama scored 12 points in the first five minutes of the third quarter on 57.1 percent shooting thanks to four makes on seven attempts.
- Despite the early success, UA didn't score a field goal for the final five minutes in the third quarter.
- Tennessee led Alabama, 56-37, at the end of the third quarter.
- The Crimson Tide improved its shooting to 30.8 percent in that period, thanks to 4-of-13 from the field, including a three-point field goal by Allie Craig Cruce.
- Cruce led the Crimson Tide in scoring that quarter with seven points.
- The Crimson Tide led the Lady Volunteers, 22-18, in the fourth quarter, while the Tide kept the Vols scoreless from the field for the final two minutes and 30 seconds in the game.
- Megan Abrams paced the team in that period, scoring seven points on 3-of-4 from the field, including a three-point field goal.
Up Next
Alabama women's basketball will await its postseason fate. The NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament field will be released Sunday, March 13 at 7 p.m. CT, while the WNIT bracket will be announced Monday, March 14 by 1 p.m. CT.
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.
