TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Senior preseason All-American Allison Hightower scored 29 points, including a career-high six three-pointers, as the 18th-ranked LSU women’s basketball team continued its dominance of Alabama with a 78-41 rout of the Crimson Tide on Sunday afternoon at Coleman Coliseum.
LSU (15-5, 4-4 Southeastern Conference) snapped a two-game losing streak and improved to .500 in league play with its 11th consecutive win over the Crimson Tide. The Lady Tigers shot a conference season-high 8-of-18 from 3-point range and finished 46.3 percent from the floor. The eight threes were the most by LSU since making 10 in the season-opener against Centenary.
“We did a lot of great things today and came out ready to play,” LSU head coach Van Chancellor said. “I thought we rebounded well, shot the ball well and played great defense. This was a good win for our confidence, but we have to keep playing and get ready for Georgia on Thursday.”
Alabama (9-13, 1-8) dropped its third straight and lost for the eighth time in the past nine games. The Tide remained winless against LSU since 2002. Ten of the last 11 losses to the Lady Tigers have come by double-digits.
Hightower scored 19 of her 29 points in the first half and she finished 11-of-18 from the floor for the entire game. Her six 3-pointers tied for the seventh-most in LSU single-game history and the most since Quianna Chaney drained six against Arkansas on Feb. 28, 2008. It was also Hightower’s highest scoring output of her career in an SEC game.
“I’ve struggled shooting the ball lately, but I came out today and knocked down some open shots,” Hightower said. “This was an important win for us.”
“Allison Hightower was just outstanding and the difference in the game,” Chancellor added.
Sophomore forward LaSondra Barrett added 13 points and 11 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season. Freshman guard Adrienne Webb, playing in front of dozens of family members in her home state, chipped in 11 points in her best SEC performance of the season.
LSU took it right to Alabama’s defense with an 11-0 run in the first three minutes of the game. Courtney Jones and Barrett converted layups and Hightower nailed back-to-back 3-pointers. Hightower scored 12 of LSU’s first 16 points culminating with another 3-pointer at the 15:00 mark. Dedrea Magee’s 3-pointer with 16:51 finally put the Tide on the board.
Katherine Graham‘s two free throws extended the LSU lead to double-digits, 22-12. Hightower closed out the half with seven of LSU’s final nine points, including her fourth 3-pointer with 23 seconds on the clock. The Lady Tigers held their largest lead, 33-16, into the locker room.
Hightower continued her stellar play into the second half with another 3-pointer at the 12:11 mark in the second half to give LSU a 57-28 advantage. She connected for her final points on a jumper with 7:51 to play before being lifted from the game with the Lady Tigers comfortably ahead.
Webb knocked down LSU’s eighth from beyond the arc that extended the margin to 35 points. Taylor Turnbow‘s jumper gave the Lady Tigers their largest lead, 78-40, with 1:03 to go. LSU outscored the Tide, 45-25, in the final period.
Defensively, the Lady Tigers held Alabama to 33.3 percent for the game while dominating the boards, 41-29.
LSU travels to No. 9 Georgia for a 6 p.m. CST Thursday tip. The game will be televised live by College Sports Southeast (CSS) and carried by Cox Sports Television (CST) affiliates.