Women's basketball caps 'big day' at Tipoff at Toomer's

Women's basketball caps 'big day' at Tipoff at Toomer'sWomen's basketball caps 'big day' at Tipoff at Toomer's

AUBURN, Ala. – Unique Thompon's Thursday began in Birmingham and ended at the intersection of College and Magnolia.

From SEC Tipoff 20 to Tipoff at Toomer's, the Auburn junior represented the Tigers in a variety of venues.

"Media Day was very fun," said Thompson, who was joined by teammate Daisa Alexander and coach Terri Williams-Flournoy at the SEC's annual preseason media session. "It was different. They had a lot of stuff that we didn't have last year.

"We left there, we went straight to practice. After practice, we came straight here. It was great. It was a fun experience. I'm glad that it worked out how we planned it."

Surveying the downtown setting after 75 minutes of introductions, skills competitions and even an impromptu dance-off with Auburn's men's basketball team, Thompson marveled at the turnout.

"I did not know this many people were in Auburn right now," she said. "It's great to see them all here. We see [the men's basketball team] every day. We share the same arena. It was just fun being outside of the arena doing the thing that we love."

"It's absolutely awesome," Coach Flo said. "It was unbelievable. What a great way for this Auburn community to welcome their women's basketball team and their men's basketball team.

"It's been a whole full day of Auburn women's basketball. It has been a big day. It started early this morning at 9 o'clock at the SEC. When you can talk about Auburn women's basketball, and talk about your players and the season, it's a great time."

Coach Flo tips off her eighth season at Auburn on Nov. 6 against Wofford at Auburn Arena.

"They're going to see some young kids out on the floor," said Williams-Flournoy, whose freshman class features five highly touted guards. "They're going to see some experienced kids out on the floor, but you're going to see us having a whole lot of fun."

A summer trip to Italy provided international competition and an opportunity to bond.

"We're going to do great," said Thompson, who averaged a double-double (12.2 points, 10.3 rebounds) last season. "We want to go to the tournament. We're going to exceed in the tournament. We have a lot of newcomers, and we're all meshing. Italy helped us a lot. Practice has been going great. Practice has been going smooth and we're just ready to play."

Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer