TUSCALOOSA, Ala – Following losses to the Vanderbilt Commodores and Kentucky Wildcats, the Alabama Crimson Tide cruised past the Georgia Bulldogs 72-57 to improve to 5-4 in SEC play.
The Crimson Tide came out of the gates red hot in the first quarter, shooting 62% from the field, and 5-9 from beyond the arc. Alabama’s success continued into the second quarter, as 14 team assists lead to a 49-22 lead at halftime.
Aaliyah Nye served as the central cog in the Tide’s well oiled offensive machine in the first half, putting up 22 first half points. Nye was a stunningly efficient 6-9 from three point land and 8-11 from the field in the first half. Nye scored as many points in the first half as the entire Georgia Bulldogs team combined.
“In practice, we worked on moving the ball and finding the open person against zone coverage,” said Nye post game. “Just getting comfortable communicating on and off the court.”
Following a dominant first half performance, it seemed as though the Tide would easily run away with the game in the second half, but just as they’d done in their last couple of games, Alabama struggled mightily in the third quarter. The Bulldogs outscored the Tide 20-8 in the third period, and gave themselves a slight chance heading into the fourth. Alabama slightly improved in the fourth, enough to still take down the Bulldogs by double digits.
Coach Kristy Curry addressed the third quarter struggles after the game.
“I think that’s just the SEC, I think it’s more of a credit to Georgia than what we didn’t do. There’s certainly some areas we need to continue to work on, coming out in the third and consistently putting four quarters together,” she said.
Essence Cody was a dominant force in the paint once again for the Crimson Tide, notching 17 points and a season high 13 rebounds. Cody scored five times in the paint, and went 7-10 from the free throw line.
“It feels good to just help my teammates out,” said Cody when asked about her success in the paint. “I just played my game and looked for what was open for me.”
Alabama’s bench was stellar during today’s game, outsourcing the Bulldogs bench 19-16. Diana Collins, JeAnna Cunningham, Eris Lester, and Christabel Ezumah contributed impactful minutes to today’s win.
Coach Curry praised her bench’s effort post game.
“I thought all of them came in and did some really positive things. It’s a growth process. I think those that can buy into that are really going to see great futures ahead of them.”
With today’s win, the Tide improve to 5-4 in SEC play, and now are firmly in 7th place in the SEC, following Oklahoma’s loss to Kentucky. The Crimson Tide start a two game road trip on Thursday night with a trip to Gainsville to take on a Florida Gators team that they beat early in the year, and travel to Starkville to face Mississippi State for the first time this year on Sunday afternoon.
