The women’s basketball team earned its third win of the season on Wednesday night over the Mercer Bears, 55-48. Alabama improves to 3-2 on the season. 

First Quarter

It was a more typical start for the Crimson Tide. Alabama got off to one of its trademark fast starts. The team started the game on an 8-0 run. Guard Brittany Davis scored all eight points. For almost half of the first quarter, Davis was the lone scorer for the Crimson Tide. 

Then, with just over five minutes left in the first, guard Megan Abrams sunk a 3-pointer for her first points of the game. 

It was the Davis and Abrams show for the first 10 minutes of the contest. After one quarter, they were the only players to score points for the Crimson Tide. 

Second Quarter

Things slowed down a bit for both teams in the second quarter. 

The Mercer Bears went on an 11-point run that started at the end of the first quarter and carried into the second. This run cut Alabama’s lead down to just two points, 19-17. 

Both teams went cold after that, missing some easy looks and not capitalizing on defensive opportunities. 

A layup from guard JaMya Mingo-Young ended the scoring drought for both teams and put the Crimson Tide up 21-17 with five minutes left in the second quarter. 

A free throw from Mercer guard Shannon Titus and a layup from forward Jaron Doughetry cut the Crimson Tide’s lead to just one point. 

Alabama forward Allie Craig Cruce then went on a 5-0 scoring run to give the Crimson Tide the 26-22 advantage heading into the half. 

Third Quarter

The second half saw a slightly cleaner effort from the Crimson Tide. 

Alabama went on a 12-2 run to start the third quarter, and scoring was more balanced in the second half. The Crimson Tide saw contributions from guard Hannah Barber and center Jada Rice. Rice scored nine points during that run. 

The Crimson Tide had its largest lead of the night, 38-24, and had all the momentum on its side, but the Bears kept clawing their way back into the game. 

After Alabama’s 12-2 run, Mercer went on a 6-0 run to cut the lead to eight. The Bears didn’t get any closer than that in the third quarter. Both teams exchanged jumpers and 3-pointers to end the quarter. 

Alabama finished the third quarter on top, 44-35. 

Fourth Quarter

The 12-2 run in the third quarter was too much for the Bears to overcome. Despite turnovers and fouls, the Bears did not come any closer to the lead in the fourth quarter. Alabama earned a victory in a tough, gritty match. 

Alabama head coach Kristy Curry said this game will help her team get better. 

“I thought we grew from Duke,” Curry said. “We’ll grow from today.”  

Abrams once again led the team with 17 points and three rebounds. Davis scored 13 points and snagged nine rebounds, while Rice scored 12 points and had five rebounds. 

“It’s great to see Meg produce the way she has the past couple of games,” Curry said. 

Alabama now turns its attention to Western Carolina. The Crimson Tide will host the Catamounts at Coleman Coliseum on Friday, Nov. 26, at 2:00 p.m. CT. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network+.