Jan. 7, 2007
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Auburn struggled to keep two double-digit leads, but a final-minute steal from Sherell Hobbs and four free throws from Whitney Boddie secured Auburn's (14-4, 1-1) first SEC win of the season, 63-58, over Alabama (10-7, 0-2) Sunday in Tuscaloosa.
"I'm really proud of how we grinded this one out," Auburn head coach Nell Fortner said. "We made plays when we had to have them."
Hobbs led Auburn with 15 points, while Jordan Greenleaf notched a double-double with 12 points and a career-high 12 boards. Boddie also netted 12 points to round out the double-digit scoring for the Tigers.
Auburn grew its lead to 11 with a pair of Greenleaf free throws at the 13:43 mark of the second half. In the next 12-plus minutes, Alabama outscored the Tigers 22-12 to make the margin only one with less than a minute to play.
After both teams failed to score on their next possession, Hobbs missed a short jumper with 17 seconds to play, but hustled down the floor and poked the ball from Alabama's Nikki Davis. Boddie saved it from going out of bounds and was knocked to the floor by the Tide's Leah Drury. She went to the line and nailed both free throws to give Auburn a 61-58 lead.
On Alabama's next possession, Davis crossed midcourt again and lost the ball out of bounds. Alyson Butler fouled Boddie after the inbounds pass, and she again stepped to the line and knocked down two free throws to put the game out of reach.
Auburn had only a four-point halftime lead after surrendering an 8-1 run to the Tide in the final minutes of the first half. The Tigers were on top by as many as 10 in the period, thanks to a six-minute, 12-2 run that gave them a 31-21 lead with 4:07 to play.
Alabama jumped out to an 11-4 lead early in the game before Auburn battled back to tie the score at 19 with 10:37 on the clock.
The Tigers shot 80 percent (20 of 25) from the free-throw line in the game, their best performance at the line since a 16-of-19 effort vs. UC Riverside on Dec. 2nd.
Navonda Moore scored 15 points to lead Alabama before fouling out with 8:53 remaining.
Auburn has reached the first of two six-day breaks in its SEC schedule. The Tigers return to action Jan. 14th against Arkansas at Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. CT.