Alabama women’s basketball took down the 10-1 Troy Trojans 77-59 on Sunday in one of its most well-rounded performances of the season.
Troy, which entered Sunday with eight games scoring 80-plus points and two scoring 100, began the game showing its offensive prowess and overall high-octane playstyle.
“We’re also going to see it night-in and night-out in the SEC,” guard Karly Weathers said about the Trojans’ high-tempo attack. “This was a great tune-up game for us.”
On the first possession following tipoff, Trojan guard Emani Jenkins hit a pull-up 3-pointer mere seconds into the shot clock. Forward Fortuna Ngnawo knocked one in less than a minute later, which was indicative of her importance to the game — she scored 12 points in the first half, including another shot from deep later in the first, and grabbed eight rebounds.
The first quarter was a back-and-forth battle played at a pace the Crimson Tide has rarely faced this season. Alabama has not allowed more than 16 points in the opening period since its first game against Stetson in early November, and Troy hung 23 on a defense that had to adjust to such high speed and intensity.
Fortunately for the Crimson Tide, its offense was able to go blow-for-blow with Troy’s relentless pace. After trailing 23-20 at the end of the first, it grabbed some momentum and went up 30-26 going into the mid-quarter timeout of the second. The Trojans seized momentum back, however, riding transition baskets and a Ngnawo jumper to an 8-2 run to close the half. Alabama trailed 34-32 going into the locker room.
The story of the first half was bench depth and rebounding. Troy led bench scoring 11-6, not letting the offensive production drop when second-unit players came into the game, and more importantly, it grabbed nine offensive rebounds.
Alabama head coach Kristy Curry praised the Trojans’ ability on the offensive glass after the Tulane win, and that came through today. For reference, the Crimson Tide gave up its season high in offensive boards on Wednesday against Tulane with 15, and on Sunday it had given that up by midway through the third quarter.
Alabama stormed out of the gate in the second half, going on an 8-2 run of its own to start the third and forcing a Troy timeout with 6:30 to go. With a 4-point lead and momentum on its side, the timeout would prove to be a hingepoint for the game — the Crimson Tide could keep surging, or the Trojans could fight back to even.
It wasn’t clear right away which would happen. The rest of the quarter was a battle that finished with the score 53-47 in favor of Alabama, and the Crimson Tide was in an advantaged — but by no means comfortable — position. Fans did see an early glimpse of what, or who, would decide the game: guard Jessica Timmons, who hit two jumpers before the quarter closed.
The fourth quarter turned out to be the Timmons show. With the lead at 6, she made a fadeaway in the paint to push it to 8, hit a pull-up midrange shot, got to the line and made two free throws, and knocked in an and-1 that put the team up 15 and made the game the Crimson Tide’s to lose.
“Ultimately, it comes down to my teammates. They put me in a position to score,” Timmons said, also praising the coaching staff’s ability to get her good looks.
Timmons’ hot streak bolstered her teammates, who chipped in and helped the team hold onto its lead. In a game that was at 6 points going into the fourth and arguably felt closer, Alabama cruised through the fourth quarter en route to an 18-point win.
“I’m just really proud of them today, because this time of year there’s trap games and they can lose their focus,” Curry said. “Our leadership group did a great job this week, and I’m proud of their approach.”
Timmons finished with 23 points on 8/15 shooting from the field and 2/5 from 3. Forward Essence Cody logged 16 in her return from injury, and Weathers scored 15. After losing the efficiency battle in the first half, the Crimson Tide closed the game shooting 45% from the field compared to the Trojans’ 34%.
With nonconference play over, Alabama will now go on break for Christmas and turn its eyes to the SEC. The Crimson Tide begins the conference gauntlet as tough as it gets, taking a road trip to No. 3 South Carolina on New Year’s Day. The game is set to tip at 1:00 p.m. CT and can be streamed on SEC Network+.
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