AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn opens its 49th season of women's basketball Wednesday, Nov. 6, as the Tigers host Wofford at Auburn Arena. Game time is set for 6 p.m. CT.
The Tigers are coming off their best season in a decade where they finished 22-10 overall, 9-7 in SEC play, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in the last four seasons.
Head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy begins her eighth season at the helm of the Auburn program with a 124-101 record on The Plains and a 267-205 overall mark beginning her 16th season as a collegiate head coach.
Auburn's projected starting lineup includes senior Daisa Alexander, junior Unique Thompson, redshirt sophomore Kiyae' White, sophomore Brooke Moore and freshman Annie Hughes. Alexander is Auburn's leading returning scorer after averaging 12.6 points/game last season; she also leads all returners in steals (2.3/game; 2nd-best in SEC) and assists (1.8/game). Thompson averaged a double-double in 2018-19 (12.2 points, 10.3 rebounds) and enters her junior year with 20 career double-doubles.
Moore, White and Hughes are slated to make their first career starts. Moore played in 25 games last season, averaging 5.2 points, and was third on the team in made 3-pointers with 31. White saw action in 29 games, playing 6.9 minutes per night. And Hughes will be the seventh true freshman to start in her Auburn debut since 2005; Thompson was the last to start her first Auburn game in 2017.
This will be the first meeting between Auburn and Wofford in women's basketball. The Terriers are coming off their best season in nearly two decades after finishing 16-15 last season, 7-7 in Southern Conference play.
Brit Bowen will begin his first season as the radio voice of Auburn women's basketball alongside Larry DiChiara with the broadcast beginning at 5:45 p.m. CT on WTGZ 93.9 FM and online at AuburnTigers.com. Brad Law and Joe Ciampi will call the action on SEC Network+, available via WatchESPN.com or the ESPN app.
For the latest on Auburn Women's Basketball, follow @AuburnWBB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
PROMOTIONS
• Free Auburn Women's Basketball t-shirt for first 500 fans
• 2019-20 schedule poster available to all fans
QUICK HITS
• Auburn is 39-9 all-time in season openers and 27-3 when playing its first game of the season at home
• Auburn has won 40 straight home openers, dating back to 1977-78
• Coach Terri Williams-Flournoy is 7-1 in season-openers at Auburn and 11-4 in her career
• Auburn is in its 49th season of women's basketball and has 936 program wins
• This is the first meeting between Auburn and Wofford in women's basketball
• Auburn is 33-13 all-time against current members of the Southern Conference
• This is Auburn's second all-time game on Nov. 6; the first was last season vs. Grambling
• Auburn is 140-40 all-time in the month of November; Coach Flo is 32-13 in November at Auburn
• Auburn returns three starters and eight letterwinners from 2018-19
• Last season, the Tigers went 22-10 overall, 9-7 in SEC play and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in four years
• Auburn finished the 2018-19 season ranked No. 5 nationally in both steals per game (12.3) and turnover margin (+8.0)
• The Tigers broke three school records last season: single-game 3-pointers (14 vs. Elon, 12/22/18); single-season 3-pointers (193) and fewest turnovers in a season (417)
• Auburn is 79-31 in non-conference games under Terri Williams-Flournoy and has won 19 of their last 21
• Senior guard Daisa Alexander (coaches) and junior forward Unique Thompson (coaches & media) were named Preseason All-SEC (2nd team)
• Alexander is Auburn's leading returning scorer after averaging 12.2 points/game in 2018-19; she also ranked 2nd in the SEC with 2.3 steals/game
• Thompson averaged a double-double with 12.2 points/10.3 rebounds in 2018-19; she's the first Auburn player to average a double-double since DeWanna Bonner in 2008 and the fifth in program history
• Thompson enters her junior season with 20 career double-doubles, which ranks 7th in Auburn history and is 2nd among active SEC players
• Auburn is one of eight programs nationwide with 3 or fewer upperclassmen on the roster
• Coach Terri Williams-Flournoy begins her eighth season at Auburn, her 16th as a head coach, and her 28th overall in college coaching
• In SEC preseason polls, Auburn was picked to finish 7th by the media and 8th by the league's coaches
AN AUBURN WIN WOULD...
›› Boost the Tigers' record in season openers to 40-9 overall, 27-3 when opening the season at home.
›› Be Auburn's 41st straight win in a home opener.
›› Improve Coach Flo's record in season-openers at Auburn to 7-1 and her overall record in openers to 12-4.
›› Be Auburn's 14th consecutive home non-conference win.
SCOUTING WOFFORD
›› Wofford finished the 2018-19 season at 16-15 overall, 7-7 in SoCon play. It marked their best regular-season record since 2001-02 and the fifth-best season in program history.
›› The Terriers were picked to finish fifth in the SoCon media poll and second in the league's coaches' poll.
›› Senior guard Chloe Wanink was named the SoCon's preseason player of the year; she averaged 18.8 points/game last season as a junior. Da'Ja Green returns as the SoCon's leader in assists after averaging 5.2/game last year.
›› Wofford sophomore forward MaryMartha Turner and Auburn sophomore guard Robyn Benton were high school teammates at Greater Atlanta Christian School.
SCOUTING AUBURN
›› Auburn returns three starters (Daisa Alexander, Erin Howard, Unique Thompson) and five other letterwinners from its 2018-19 team that finished 22-10 overall, 9-7 in SEC play, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in four seasons.
›› Senior guard Daisa Alexander is the Tigers' leading returning scorer after averaging 12.6 points/game last season. She also leads Auburn returners in assists (1.8/game) and steals (2.3/game); she ranked 2nd in the SEC in steals last season. She is slated to start the season-opener at point guard, a position she has played sparingly in her college career. Alexander was a preseason All-SEC second team selection.
›› Junior forward Unique Thompson averaged a double-double (12.2 points, 10.3 rebounds) as a sophomore. She has 20 career double-doubles which ranks 7th in Auburn history and is currently 2nd among active SEC players. Thompson finished the 2018-19 season ranked 6th in the nation with 4.0 offensive rebounds per game. Thompson was a preseason All-SEC second team selection.
›› Sophomore Brooke Moore, redshirt sophomore Kiyae' White and freshman Annie Hughes are slated to earn their first collegiate starts in the season opener.
›› As a team, Auburn averaged 71.6 points per game last season while giving up 63.6/game. The Tigers were one of the nation's top defensive teams, ranking 5th nationally in steals per game (12.3) and turnover margin (+8.0).
UP NEXT
›› Auburn has a week off before its next game when the Tigers host Old Dominion on Thursday, Nov. 14, at 6 p.m. CT.