AUBURN, Ala. – The Auburn women's basketball team is back on the road this weekend, making the cross-state trek to Tuscaloosa to face the Alabama Crimson Tide Sunday afternoon. Game time is set for 1 p.m. CT at Coleman Coliseum.
The Tigers are coming off one of their best all-around efforts of the season Thursday night when they battled No. 12 Kentucky for 40 minutes before coming up just short in a 76-71 loss at Auburn Arena. Senior Unique Thompson recorded her ninth straight double-double, scoring 22 points and pulling down 10 rebounds.
Alabama was off Thursday; the Crimson Tide dropped their last contest 82-56 to No. 23 Tennessee last Sunday. Auburn leads the all-time series with Alabama 53-40, but the Tide won both meetings last season.
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ON THE AIR
›› Brit Bowen and Larry DiChiara will have the radio call of Sunday's game beginning at 12:45 p.m. CT. The game can be heard locally on WQSI 93.9 FM and online at AuburnTigers.com and the official Auburn Athletics app.
›› Sunday's game is slated for a national broadcast on ESPNU. Sam Gore and Tamika Catchings will call the action.
LAST TIME OUT
›› Auburn battled the nation's 12th-ranked team for a full 40 minutes Thursday night, but a late rally fell just short in a 76-71 loss to No. 12 Kentucky at Auburn Arena.
›› The Tigers got 22 points from senior Unique Thompson – 13 of them in the fourth quarter – and never let the Wildcats out of their sights in Auburn's most complete effort so far in SEC play.
›› Auburn was nearly at full strength with 12 players dressed for Thursday's game, and the added depth was readily apparent as the Tigers' bench scored 27 points, their most since dropping 29 against North Florida on Dec. 17.
›› Thompson led all scorers with 22 points and picked up her ninth straight double-double with 10 rebounds as well. Jala Jordan had her best performance in SEC play with 11 points, and Honesty Scott-Grayson added 10 points and eight rebounds. Romi Levy contributed a career-high seven assists, the most by an Auburn player this year, along with five points and four rebounds.
AN AUBURN WIN WOULD...
›› Snap a six-game losing streak.
›› Break a two-game skid against Alabama.
›› Be Auburn's fourth win over Alabama in the last six meetings.
AUBURN-ALABAMA SERIES
›› This is the 94th meeting between Auburn and Alabama in women's basketball, the first of two this season. It is the second-most played women's basketball series in the SEC, behind only Ole Miss-Mississippi State.
›› Auburn is 53-40 all-time against Alabama, but the Tide own a 24-18 advantage in Tuscaloosa. The teams have split the last four meetings at Coleman Coliseum.
›› The Tigers have won 8 of the last 12 and 11 of the last 16 meetings between the teams, dating back to 2013.
LAST MEETING: Feb. 9, 2020 in Tuscaloosa
Alabama 68, Auburn 64
›› Three Tigers finished in double figures, but a back-and-forth game went Alabama's way as Auburn fell 68-64 at Coleman Coliseum.
›› In a game that featured 12 ties and 13 lead changes, Auburn led 61-60 with 1:24 to play. But Alabama, which had missed 11 straight 3-pointers, hit one from the corner to take a 63-61 lead with under a minute to play. Auburn came up empty on its next possession, and Alabama sank 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to earn the win.
›› The Tigers shot 36.1 percent (22-of-61) while Alabama was slightly better at 40.7 percent. Both teams made 22 shots, but Alabama made one more 3-pointer and three more free throws. Auburn committed just seven turnovers, a season-low, but also forced Alabama into only 11, also a season-low. Alabama out-rebounded Auburn 41-34.
UP NEXT
›› Auburn returns home to face No. 8 Texas A&M Thursday night. Game time is 7:30 p.m. CT at Auburn Arena with a national broadcast on SEC Network.
Rivalry time: Auburn women at Alabama Sunday
