No. 21 Alabama women’s basketball played host to No. 13 Ole Miss on Thursday night and came away with a last-second 64-63 win. The victory made this year’s team the fastest in program history to reach 20 wins.
“We’ve done historic things all year long,” guard Karly Weathers said. “We just care about getting that next game, because we want to continue to play for the girl next to us.”
It was a gritty battle throughout, and several aspects could be deemed the story of the game: Alabama weathered falling behind at several consequential moments in the fourth quarter, won despite shooting 15 fewer free throws than the Rebels and picked up its second victory over a top-15 team this season.
But perhaps most prominent is the performance of guard Jessica Timmons.
The spearhead of the Crimson Tide offense, who averages 16 points per game, had only 2 points at the midway point of the third quarter. When the final buzzer sounded, she had 23, nearing her season high of 25.
“I think it’s her character,” head coach Kristy Curry said about Timmons’ resurgence after her low output early on. “She’s pretty stubborn, but what’s special about her is when she can channel that in the right direction.”
Her offensive outburst in the second half boosted an Alabama attack that to that point had struggled. In reality, it was a challenge for both teams offensively — the score was 28-25 in favor of Ole Miss at halftime, marking one of the lowest-scoring combined halves in any game for Alabama this season. The second quarter in particular was rough for Curry’s squad, which didn’t score until after the mid-quarter media timeout. Leading 18-14 after one quarter, the team only scored 7 in the second, all of which were in the final 4:00.
After the break, neither team was able to create a lead bigger than 6 points, which Ole Miss held at 35-29 with 6:50 to go in the third. From there on out, it was a physical and hard-fought duel that never let up.
More than just a notable win for the Crimson Tide in terms of team caliber — Ole Miss was No. 13 with wins over then-No. 5 Oklahoma and No. 7 Vanderbilt — the game was a demonstration of resilience. The fourth quarter featured a bevy of lead changes, with nine in total and three in the final minute alone.
In that final minute, Timmons made a layup to take a 62-61 advantage; Rebels forward Latasha Lattimore rebounded an Ole Miss free throw, got fouled, and made her own free throw to make it 63-62; and Alabama guard Diana Collins hit a layup with 18 seconds that would be the final lead change. Timmons took a charge to prevent a layup on the other end, and following a pair of missed free throws, the Crimson Tide got another stop at the buzzer to seal the deal.
“We had a different level of toughness about us and made some really big plays,” Curry said.
Guard Karly Weathers complemented Timmons’ 23 points with 14 of her own. Guard Ace Austin had 6, but they were both crucial 3s in the third quarter that helped keep Alabama in the game.
The Crimson Tide will play next at Texas A&M on Sunday at 5 p.m. CT, and the game can be watched on SEC Network.
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