CLEVELAND, Tenn. – The West Alabama men’s basketball team overcame a 16-point deficit in Saturday’s matchup, but it was not enough to keep its winning streak alive. The Tigers fell 66-63 to Lee University inside Paul Dana Walker Arena in Cleveland, Tenn.

This week’s Gulf South Conference Player of the Week, Kortrijk Miles, led UWA in the effort with a 27-point, 10-rebound game for his fifth double-double of the season. The Dallas, Texas native hit 7 of 17 from the floor and 12 of 12 at the free-throw line for the game-high.

Two other Tigers scored in the double-figures, with Shardarrion Allen and Justin Allison picking up 10 points each. Other contributors include Robert Davis and Te Smith, with 9 and 7 points, respectively.

As a squad, West Alabama hit 19 of 59 (32.2%) from the floor, including 5 of 19 (26.3%) in three-point range. The Tigers made 95.2 % of their shots at the line, missing only one on 21 attempts.

The Flames were more accurate than UWA from the floor. Lee hit 23 of 46 shots (50.0%) from the field, with 8 of 17 (47.1%) from beyond the arc. The Flames had a little less success at the line, hitting 12 of 14 at 85.7%.

Lee dominated the first half, serving West Alabama its second-lowest scoring period of the season and outscoring the Tigers by 13 points.

The first couple of minutes of the competition started with a scoring back and forth, until the Flames went on a 7-0 run for a 13-8 lead with 14:27 left in the half.

After a three-minute scoring drought, Miles added points for UWA on a driving layup, cutting Lee’s lead to 13-10.

Despite several attempts to get back in the game, the Tigers closed the first half trailing the Flames, 37-24.

Coming back from the break, UWA struck first and kept the energy up to stage a slow comeback. With 7:24 left, the Tigers trailed Lee by three (50-47).

West Alabama received its first lead of the competition since the opening minutes. A jumper by Allen and back-to-back free throws by Miles gave UWA a 51-50 advantage with under five minutes remaining.

In the period, the Tigers outscored Lee 39-29. The Flames did not give up and outpaced UWA in the final minutes for the 66-63 victory.

UWA will look to rebound from Saturday’s loss as it travels to Montgomery, Ala., on Wednesday, Jan. 12. The Tigers face Auburn Montgomery at 7 p.m. inside the AUM Athletics Complex.

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LIVINGSTON – West Alabama women’s basketball player Tazsa Garrett-Hammett has been named Gulf South Conference Player of the Week based on her performance against West Florida on December 31 and against Valdosta State on January 2.

Garrett-Hammett leads the Tigers offense, averaging 15.6 points per game and 6.3 rebounds per game.

The LaGrange, Georgia native saw a season-high game, leading the Tigers with 31 points, seven rebounds, and three steals in the 70-57 victory over West Florida on December 31.

The senior forward also scored eight points, brought down six boards, and dished out four assists against Valdosta State on January 2.

Garrett-Hammett and the rest of the Tigers will be back in action Saturday, Jan. 8. The Tigers battle Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.

To stay connected with the UWA women’s basketball team, follow @UWAwbb on Instagram and @UWA_WBB on Twitter. General athletic news, along with game recaps and box scores, can be found at uwaathletics.com. Additional updates and information are available @UWAAthletics on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

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CLINTON, Miss. – The University of West Alabama Women’s basketball team got off to a second slow start in as many games, but once more the Tigers persevered and found a way to grind out a 60-54 victory over the Mississippi College Lady Choctaws Tuesday night in Gulf South Conference West Division action in A.E. Wood Coliseum.

Mississippi College (3-4) got out to a strong start and outscored UWA (5-3, 4-3 GSC) 15-9 in the opening quarter while limiting the Tigers to 33.3 percent (4-of-12) from the floor. However, the Tigers completely reversed the trend from that point going 56.4 percent (22-of-39) the rest of the way.

“MC played great defensively to start the game. They gave us some looks that we had to adjust too early, “said Head coach Rusty Cram. I thought our defense got us going. Really proud of the effort. We pushed the ball up the court better and got some mismatches inside as a result. This was a solid win on the road.”

West Alabama went on the finish the game 51 percent (26-of-51) from the floor and 50 percent (8-of-16) from the free throw line. The Tigers didn’t connect from beyond the arc going and missed five attempts

“They pressured us all night and took the threes away. Our Defense won it tonight,” said Cram.

The UWA defense limited the Lady Choctaws to just 32 percent (16-of-50) from the floor and 22.2 percent (4-of-18) from three. Free throws kept MC in the game as the team was 81.8 percent (18-of-22) from the line.

Bria Dent led all scorers with 17 points along with five rebounds and two steals. Naelyn Rios contributed 14 points and a team leading eight rebounds along with two assists while Tazsa Garrett-Hammett finished with 12 points, seven rebounds, a block, one steal and an assist. Jala Williams led the team with five assists will chipping in with eight points.

After outscoring MC, 14-11, in the second quarter to cut MC’s lead to 26-23 at the half. The Third quarter is where the Tigers really shined and where Dent did most of her damage. The junior from Birmingham, Alabama scored 10 of the team’s 18 points in the quarter to help give UWA.a 41-34 lead heading to the fourth.

The final quarter went back and forth with the Tigers hitting seven of 14 shots in the period coupled with five throws while the Lady Choctaws were 4-of-13 from the floor but 11-of-12 from the free throw line to win the quarter 20-19, however the Tigers did enough to earn the 60-54 win.

The Tigers must now focus on two more road games to end the week with a trip to Jackson, Tennessee in store to face Union University in GSC West Division action. The Jan. 29 contest is set for a 6 p.m. start while the Jan. 30 game is set to tipoff at 3 p.m. in Fred Delay Gymnasium. Links to live video and live stats will be available on uwaathletics.com.

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JACKSON, Tenn. – The University of West Alabama Men’s basketball made 17 free throws and needed every one as the Tigers collected their first road win of the season in a 73-67 win over the Union University Bulldogs Saturday in the Fred DeLay Gymnasium in Gulf South Conference action.

UWA (3-1) finished the game 94.4 percent (17-of-18) from the free throw line. West Alabama also shot a season best from the floor going 59.1 percent (26-of-44) from the floor.

“I told the guys, “don’t worry about getting on the bus if they weren’t ready for a fight.” They were all on the bus, so I figured they were ready,” said Head coach Nick Woodruff. “We had a really tough film session this morning and our guys bounced back in a great way. They responded to the coaching, didn’t pout and got our team a very important win on the road.”

Robert Davis led the Tigers in scoring with 16 points the effort from the line as he went 8-for-8 in free throws including four down the stretch to ice the game away. Davis also finished 2-for-4 from three and added and team leading three steals and three rebounds.

“It was a team effort. We made an effort to get the ball inside and felt we had an advantage there. That in turn led to open shots and driving lanes for our guards. Rob made some key free throws down the stretch,” said Woodruff.

Shardarrion Allen and Kortrijk Miles both scored 14 points each. Allen added a team leading four assists and two rebounds. Miles also provided four rebounds, two assists and two steals.

“Kortrijk and Phat (Allen) are finding their spots and opportunities within the offense,” said Woodruff. “This time of year, our Defense is ahead of our offense and we are okay with that. The offense will continue to get better as we play together and get more experience.

Justin Allison rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 points along with five rebounds and two assists. CJ Melton led on the boards with six rebounds.

The Bulldogs (5-3) took an early lead going up 12-7 at the 14:37 mark in the first half before the true back and forth started. The lead changed five of the six times it did all game between that point and with 1:21 remaining where Allison hit a free throw to go up 30-29. UWA stretched the lead to 32-29 at the half.

With 14:55 left in the game, Union tied the contest off a three-pointer by Hunter Vick at 43-43. However, the Tigers outscored the hosting Bulldogs 40-24 the rest of the way on the way to the 73-67 victory.

Tylandrius Parks led all scorers with 20 points while Vick scored 19 as the two were the only Bulldogs in double figures.

As a unit, Union shot 52.9 percent (27-of-51) from the floor, 39.1 percent (9-of-23) from behind the arc and 80 percent (4-of-5) from the charity stripe.

The Tigers won the battle of the boards 25-19 and scored 24 points on turnovers compared to 17 for Union. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs committed 15 turnovers and UWA had 16.

“We still have a long way to go and it doesn’t get any easier this week at Huntsville,” said Woodruff.

After the four games in five days marathon, West Alabama will have a few days off just in time to get ready for another road trip as the Tigers will face the University of Alabama in Huntsville Chargers on Jan. 22 and Jan. 23.

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LIVINGSTON – Four Union players scored in double figures and the Lady Bulldogs shot 61 percent in the second half on the way to an 87-68 women’s Gulf South Conference basketball victory over West Alabama Friday at Pruitt Hall Gym.

Union improved to 5-2 with the win and has now defeated UWA, who dropped to 3-2, nine straight times. The Tigers and Lady Bulldogs finish the two-game series Saturday at Pruitt Hall. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.

“It was the turnovers that kicked our butt tonight,” UWA head coach Rusty Cram said. “That and they outscored us by 19 points in the third quarter and that was the final margin of victory.”

After taking a 40-39 lead into the half, West Alabama was outscored 27-8 in the third quarter, making just 2-of-12 shots from the floor. Conversely, Union was 9-for-13 in the third period (69 percent).

West Alabama turned the ball over 18 times compared to just eight miscues for Union. The Lady Bulldogs won the points off turnovers battle 23-1 and Union’s bench outscored the Tigers 25-14. The two teams combined for 64 points in the paint.

“We just shot ourselves in the foot in the third quarter and then got mentally down,” Cram said. “Union is a good basketball team that doesn’t make mistakes often. That’s why they play for championships every year.”

Jaelencia Williams led all scorers with 23 points for Union. Shanique Lucas chipped in 17 points, followed by Jordan Little with 12 and Leah Cauble with 11. Sadie Knee dished out a career-high 11 assists and Lucas collected four of Union’s 10 steals.

Bria Dent notched her second double-double of the season for UWA with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Tazsa Garrett-Hammett added 18 points and Naelyn Rios had 11.

Union led for over 28 minutes in a game that was tied nine times and had eight lead changes. West Alabama won the rebounding battle, 37-23.

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LIVINGSTON, Ala. – Roger Davis scored 21 points to lead four West Alabama players in double figures on the way to a 67-49 Gulf South Conference men’s basketball victory over Mississippi College Wednesday at Pruitt Hall Gym.

West Alabama improved to 2-0 with the win. Mississippi College dropped to 0-4.

Shardarrion “Fat” Allen chipped in 15 points, followed by Robert Davis with 14 and Kortrijk Miles with 10. Allen led all rebounders with eight as the Tigers outrebounded the Choctaws 37 to 25. Davis had five assists for UWA.

“To hold Mississippi College to 49 points is a great effort defensively because it takes a big time effort to guard that team,” Woodruff said after his Tigers limited MC to 15 points under their season average. “I am extremely proud for our guys because we work really hard.

“This was a good test for us, but we are a long way from getting it done,” Woodruff said. “Right now it is more about us and how we defend than it is about the other team.”

It took West Alabama over four minutes to record its first points, a Roger Davis layup at the 15:28 mark in the first half. It was a different story over the next eight minutes with the Tigers converting eight straight field goal attempts.

Neither team could locate the bottom of the bucket as the first half wound to a close with West Alabama holding a 25-20 lead. The Tigers did not score for the final 3:25 of the half, making just 2-of-10 field goal tries. The Choctaws were blanked for the last 2:18.

For the second consecutive night West Alabama hit the accelerator in the second half, converting 53 percent (14-of-26) from the floor while limiting MC to 39 percent (10-of-26). Robert Davis scored all 14 of his points in the final 20 minutes and Allen had 11 of his 15 in the second half.

“I am thrilled for Roger to have that kind of night and Fat is also playing really well,” Woodruff said. “One thing that goes unnoticed sometimes is that CJ Melton is like Swiss Army Knife as a defender. He is good wherever we ask him to be.”

Brandon Boston was the only Choctaw to score in double figures, but led all scorers with 27 points on a 12-of-19 shooting night. He also led Mississippi College rebounders with seven.

West Alabama travels to Jackson, Tennessee to take on Union (4-2) in back-to-back games Friday and Saturday. Mississippi College doesn’t play again until hosting Union on Jan. 22 and 23.

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LIVINGSTON – It took nine months, nine days and over 70 practices, but new West Alabama head Nick Woodruff finally earned his first win as the head coach of the Tigers, a 70-64 come-from-behind decision over Mississippi College Tuesday at Pruitt Hall Gym.

“Not that I am counting,” Woodruff said.

West Alabama (1-0) and Mississippi College (0-3) finish the season-opening series for the Tigers Wednesday at 5 p.m. at Pruitt Hall.

Mississippi College got off to a fast start, shooting 83 percent (10-for-12) from the floor in the first 11 minutes to build a 22-15 advantage, but missed their next eight shots as the Tigers cut the Choctaw lead to 24-21 with just over four minutes to play in the first half.

West Alabama continued to defend well as the half wound down, holding the Choctaws to 3-for-14 from the field down the stretch with Mississippi College taking a 30-26 lead into the half.

“They punched us in the mouth early, but we rallied back,” Woodruff said. “We have waited so long to play this game. I mean here we are opening our season on January 12 due to different COVID precautions.

“That’s a resilient group of kids in that locker room, a good group that really wants to play,” Woodruff said. “It’s been a rollercoaster ride so far, but now we have to get going and do it all again tomorrow (Wednesday).”

The Tigers came out firing on all cylinders to begin the second half, tying the game at 30-30 at the 19:24 mark before a three-pointer by Roger Davis with 18:53 left gave UWA its first lead at 33-30. UWA outscored MC 20-9 over first eight minutes of second half.

Mississippi College ended up shooting 54 percent (26-for-48) from the floor, while West Alabama rebounded from a slow start to convert 44 percent (27-of-61). The Tigers recorded nine steals and forced 17 Choctaw turnovers.

The game was tied at 61-61 with 2:14 left, but a jumper from Shardarrion Allen and a pair of free throws each from Justin Allison and CJ Melton stretched the UWA lead to 67-61 with 1:53 to play. Three free throws from Antonio Cowart helped MC cut the lead to 67-64 before a three-pointer from Allison provided the final margin with 7.5 seconds left.

Allison led all scorers and three West Alabama double-figure scorers with 20 points. Allen chipped in 18 on a 9-of-12 shotting night. Davis chipped in 14. Allison, the UWA point guard, also collected a team-high seven rebounds and five assists. Allen had four steals.

“Justin had a great game and I am proud of him,” Woodruff said. “It’s been a rough stretch of practice for him because I have coached him really hard over the last week, but he is tough enough to handle it and I am so proud of his coachability.”

Brandon Boston scored 18 points and Cowart chipped in 17 to lead Mississippi College, Marko Jovanovic collected a game-high eight rebounds, for MC. Boston made 7-of-10 from the field. The Choctaws outrebounded UWA, 33-27.

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LIVINGSTON, Ala. – The top defense in the Gulf South Conference came up big again Saturday, allowing West Alabama to sneak by Alabama Huntsville, 55-54, in women’s basketball at Pruitt Hall Gym.

Allowing just 54.3 points per game coming into Saturday’s game, West Alabama limited the Lady Chargers to just 29 percent shooting (17-for-57) on the way to splitting the weekend series with UAH. Bria Dent iced the winner cake for the Tigers by stealing the UAH inbounds pass with 3.7 seconds left to play to preserve the victory.

“The big thing is we didn’t quit and I really like that about this team,” UWA head coach Rusty Cram said. “I am really proud how we kept our poise at the end of the game.”

West Alabama improved to 3-1 and continues a six-game homestand Friday by hosting Union. UAH dropped to 3-3 and is host to Delta State Friday in the first of four straight games against the Lady Statesmen.

West Alabama got off to a slow start for the second consecutive day against the Lady Chargers, allowing UAH to convert 4-of-8 from behind the three-point line while recording six steals in the first quarter on the way to a 17-11 lead after 10 minutes.

For a second consecutive day against UAH the Tigers rallied in the second quarter to take a 29-27 lead at the half. UWA picked up the pace while holding the Lady Chargers scoreless for just over three minutes as time evaporated into halftime.

The Lady Chargers took a 43-28 lead after three quarters, thanks in part to forcing 11 Tiger turnovers in the period. UWA finished with 22 turnovers in a game that was tied nine times and had five lead changes.

“There were a lot of bright spots in this game, but we need to learn to enjoy prosperity,” Cram said. “Still, we are always pleased to get a “W”. We are definitely getting better every time we play.”

West Alabama hit 6-of-11 from the floor in the fourth quarter while limiting the Lady Chargers to just 3-of-12 , including a 0-for-9 stretch at one point.

Tazsa Garrett-Hammett was the only UWA player to score in double figures, finishing with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Garrett-Hammett also had four assists and three steals. Dent led all rebounders with 16.

“Tazsa is focused on becoming that player we all know she can be,” Cram said. “She has goals that she wants to accomplish and she is playing like it.”

Alexis Woods notched a double-double for UAH, scoring 19 points and grabbing 15 boards. Selena Pruitt chipped I 13 points and Sloan Mann had 11.

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LIVINGSTON, Ala. – After 26 days of celebrating the Promise of Christmas and observing the protocols of COVID-19, the University of West Alabama women’s basketball team returned to action Friday at Pruitt Hall Gym, losing to Alabama Huntsville, 62-58.

“I could tell we have been off for a month,” UWA head coach Rusty Cram said. “It was mental mistake after mental mistake and we put ourselves in a huge hole early that we had to dig out of.”

Alabama Huntsville improved to 3-2 with the win. The loss was the first for West Alabama, who dropped to 2-1. The Tigers and Lady Chargers play again Saturday at Pruitt Hall. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.

A UWA four-minute scoring drought, coupled with four turnovers over that time, enabled UAH to build a 22-11 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Tigers and Lady Chargers each scored 11 points in the second period, giving UAH a 33-22 halftime advantage.

West Alabama put together a 7-0 run and Alabama Huntsville failed to score for 2:30 late the third period, allowing the Tigers to cut the UAH lead to 44-39 after 30 minutes.

The Tigers pulled to within one point at 55-54 on a Jala Williams layup off a steal by Bria Dent with 2:33 left in the game. It was as close as UWA would get.

Two free throws from Alaina Taylor gave UAH a 61-55 lead with 17.3 seconds to play before a three-pointer from Naelyn Rios pulled UWA within three at 61-58 with 10.6 seconds left. A free throw from Selena Pruitt with 9.4 seconds to play iced the game for the Lady Chargers.

“We couldn’t take advantage of the opportunities they gave us,” Cram said. “The press got us back in the game, but give UAH credit for adjusting. They did a good job of getting us out of some things we like to do and do well.

“Our kids never quit and I was proud of them for that,” Cram said. “We have come back and be ready to play again tomorrow. We have to learn to play through adversity. Good teams do that.”

Led by Pruitt with 15 points and Holly Harris with 14, UAH led for 38:06 of a game where the lead only changed hands twice. Alexis Woods rounded out UAH double figure scorers with 11 points. Harris had seven rebounds to lead UAH.

Rios scored 18 points to lead four West Alabama players in double digits. Tazsa Garrett-Hammett had 14, followed by Dent with 11 and Zoe Watts with 10. Dent had eight boards as the Tigers outrebounded the Lady Chargers, 37-33.

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Junior Alexis Woods earned Player of the Week in the GSC West and Freshman Olivia Smith was named Freshman of the Week in the West.

Woods averaged a double-double in UAH’s split with No. 15 Union. Her 32 points in Friday’s win was the most by any player in the league this season and the most by a Charger since 2016. Woods is the first UAH player to win this award since Dina Saunders during the  2015-16 season.

Smith had nine points and four steals in UAH’s game with No. 15 Union on Saturday. She is the first Charger to win this award since teammate Holly Harris did so in two seasons ago.

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