Alabama women's basketball dominates defensively in Friday's victory against Winthrop
Alabama women's basketball showed out defensively on Friday in a 79-50 win against Winthrop at Coleman Coliseum.
The Crimson Tide's (2-0) defense never allowed the Eagles (1-1) to stage a comeback by forcing a lot of turnovers and holding them to 40% shooting from the field.
Sarah Ashlee Barker led Alabama in scoring with 19 points, followed by Aliyah Nye with 17 points and Jessica Timmons with 11 points.
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Here are three takeaways from Alabama's win:
Alabama's lethal first-half shooting
Once again the Crimson Tide got off to a hot start scoring the ball in all facets of the game.
Aliyah Nye was scorching from the 3-point line in the first half, scoring five of nine attempts, including knocking down three straight early in the first quarter. Nye recorded all of her first-half points from beyond the arc.
The Crimson Tide shot 47% from the field and 39% from 3 in the first half, led by Aliyah Nye with 15 points and Sarah Ashlee Barker with 12 points at the break.
Dominance defensively
Alabama made a presence defensively all game, particularly in the first half, holding the Eagles to 5 of 19 shooting from the field and limiting them to just five points total in the second quarter.
Alabama also held Winthrop scoreless for 6:13 in the second quarter while also forcing 18 turnovers in the first half.
The Crimson Tide was able to control the paint defensively all game, forcing just 10 points in the painted area.
Coach Kristy Curry said that protecting the paint is a key part of the Crimson Tide's success.
"We made it a point of emphasis this week in practice, and it's very difficult to protect the paint in college basketball nowadays with the level of athleticism and scoring. We want to make shots as difficult for other teams as we possibly can," Curry said.
Winthrop ended the game with 28 turnovers.
First-half points off turnovers
Alabama's defensive prowess was further highlighted by points scored off turnovers.
At the half, the Crimson Tide led 18-2 in points off turnovers, as well as 10-0 in points off the fast break.
The Crimson Tide ended the game with 26 points off turnovers.
Up next
Alabama faces Morehead State (0-1) at 2 p.m. CT Sunday at Coleman Coliseum on SEC Network+.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Alabama women's basketball's defense shines in victory against Winthrop
