Texas A&M Women's Hoops starts fast, takes down Alabama, 69-48

"I think that we played harder tonight because of what we were playing for in the breast cancer survivors," said senior point guard Curtyce Knox, whose mother survived the disease. "We just wanted to show them how hard we could work on defense and offense. We wanted to entertain them tonight and show our appreciation for them. With what they are going through every day, it makes us appreciate our life a little bit more."

The story of the game was the Aggies' fast start. They out-scored the Tide 20-11 in the first quarter and convincingly took the second quarter, 14-9. They carried that momentum into the third quarter, scoring 18 points in the frame. The ladies controlled the paint throughout the game, outscoring Alabama, 34-18, down low.  

"A lot of my success was my teammates finding me. I just tried to get to the open spot, sprint to the spot and beat any defenders around me," said Anriel Howard. "My teammates all found me, so kudos to them."

Three Aggies scored in double-figures as Danni Williams and Khaalia Hillsman both contributed 19 points in the victory, while also adding seven and four rebounds, respectively. Howard notched a double-double, putting up 18 points and 10 boards. Knox added four points, five rebounds and a team-high 12 assists.  

"I think Coach Wright did a great job on the scout. Our in-bounds plays were great. Knowing they switched off the ball, we got a lot of slips with Anriel and Jasmine open on the in-bounds," said Knox.

"They switch a lot on defense too, so I noticed they were confused which led to open shots." 

A big positive in this game was getting some key players rest.

Starter Taylor Cooper played only 20 minutes, and Jasmine Lumpkin tallied 11 minutes in the win.

Nearly every player on the roster played in this one, which was an added bonus.  

"Cooper only played 20 minutes with five assists and no turnovers. The thing with Cooper is that the ball doesn't rest in her hand. She is able to move the ball around and understand spacing to get the easiest shot we possibly can," said head coach Gary Blair. "It was a huge win, considering the gauntlet with the five that we have left. We did a tremendous job of focusing on Alabama, and not Tennessee."

With the win, the Aggies moved to 18-6 overall and 8-3 in SEC play. The ladies will hit the road this weekend and travel to Knoxville to take on the Volunteers. The game will be played Sunday at 1:00 p.m. and will be televised on ESPNU.