OXFORD, Miss. – After trailing by seven in the fourth quarter, the Alabama women's basketball team drained three-consecutive threes to take control of the game and edge Ole Miss, 57-56, on Sunday afternoon inside The Pavilion in Oxford, Miss. The victory is the third Southeastern Conference win for the Crimson Tide (13-9, 3-6 SEC), while the Rebels (7-15, 0-9 SEC) are still seeking their first victory of 2020.

The Tide used a balanced scoring effort with five players scoring eight or more points. Junior Ariyah Copeland led the team with 11 points, while sophomore De'Sha Benjamin and senior Ashley Knight each added 10 points off the bench. Knight also grabbed eight boards while blocking three shots.

From Coach Curry

"I thought our bench really helped us," head coach Kristy Curry said. "Cierra (Johnson) came off the bench and really played well. She made some great decisions, played smart and showed some maturity. We have some kids that need to play better earlier in the game and down the stretch I went with Cierra's experience. De'Sha (Benjamin) was really good today, we shortened our bench in the second half and I think that was the difference."

Quarter-by-Quarter

The Crimson Tide found themselves in a battle from the start as the Rebels kept it close in the first quarter and only trailed 18-15 after the first 10 minutes of action.

The two sides went back-and-forth in the second quarter with Alabama only leading by as many as five at the beginning of the period. Ole Miss took the 30-28 lead with just over two minutes left in the half, before a jumper by Benjamin knotted things at 30-30 at the break.

Neither team could separate itself from the other in the third period, until the Rebels scored the final five points of the quarter to go up 48-42.

Ole Miss held the 51-44 advantage with over seven minutes to go when Alabama knocked in three-straight three-pointers to take the 53-51 lead with 5:59 to go. The Rebels countered with a three of their own to gain the 54-53 edge. Copeland scored two buckets in two minutes to put Alabama back on top 57-54 with under four in the game.

The Rebels cut the lead to 57-56 with 1:44 to go, however, the Tide held on for its third SEC victory of the season.

Player Spotlight

The post players for Alabama showed out as Copeland and Knight combined for 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting to go along with 13 rebounds.

Sophomore Megan Abrams contributed solid minutes while putting in nine points and three assists.

Stats of the Game

The Crimson Tide tends to get to the free throw line more than its opponent and it did so against the Rebels. Alabama went 14-of-17 (82.4 percent) from the line, while holding Ole Miss to just three attempts.

Alabama won the battle in the paint, outrebounding the Rebels, 39-30. The Tide also scored more points in the paint, 30-16 and second chance points, 24-8.

The UA bench outscored its opponent for the 21st time this season. The Alabama reserves outscored the Rebels' bench, 24-12.

Up Next

Alabama will return fly to Lexington, Ky., to play No. 13/13 Kentucky for the second time this season. The game between the Crimson Tide and Wildcats will be streamed live on SEC Network+ and tipoff at 6 p.m. CT in Memorial Coliseum.

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