GAME 10: ULM (8-1 overall, 0-0 Sun Belt Conference) at Alabama (10-2 overall, 0-0 Southeastern Conference)
Noon Sunday, December 17, 2023 | Coleman Coliseum | Tuscaloosa, Alabama
WATCH: SEC NETWORK | LISTEN: KRJO | LIVE STATS
 
ULM GAME NOTES | ALABAMA GAME NOTES

TIP-OFF    
The ULM women's basketball team will begin a two-game road trip on Sunday (Dec. 17) when the Warhawks play at Alabama inside Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The game is scheduled to begin at noon on the SEC Network.

The Warhawks (8-1) will carry an eight-game winning streak into Sunday's game after defeating Northwestern State on Tuesday (Dec. 12), 76-60. ULM is off to its best start since the 2006-07 season, when the Warhawks began the year with a 10-1 record. 

In Tuesday's win versus the Demons, ULM held Northwestern State to a shooting percentage of 31.1% and limited the Demons to five three-point baskets. The 'Hawks forced 15 turnovers and netted 16 points from turnovers and 15 fastbreak points. Daisha "Nunu" Bradford scored a game-high 23 points and tracked down rebounds. Jakayla Johnson knocked down three shots from beyond the arc in the first quarter to finish with 18 points and added three assists and a steal. Joining Bradford and Johnson in double figures was Katlyn Manuel with 13 points and Sania Wells with 10 points. Manuel was one rebound shy of a double-double and grabbed five boards on the offensive end. Wells sank a trio of shots from the field and tallied one steal.

SUNDAY'S GAME BASICS    
ULM and Alabama meet for the second time in history Sunday at Coleman Coliseum. The Warhawks have won eight-consecutive games, while the Crimson Tide have won three-straight games.

Sunday's game will be broadcasted on the SEC Network with Brenda VanLengen (play-by-play) and Holly Warlick (analyst) on the call. The game also will air on 1680 AM KRJO and the TuneIn app on the Warhawk Radio Network from Learfield with Ben Milam on the play-by-play.

PREVIEWING ALABAMA
Alabama was picked No. 8 in the SEC Preseason Coaches' Poll and has began the 2023-24 season with a 10-2 record. The Crimson Tide knocked off nationally-ranked Louisiville on Nov. 24 by a score of 78-73.

The Crimson Tide have held opponents to a scoring average of 52.8 points per game, which ranks inside the top-20. Alabama holds a turnover margin of 7.25, which is third in the Southeastern Conference. Illinois transfer Aaliyah Nye and Georgia transfer Sarah Ashlee Barker have both totaled more than 20 steals. Nye's 27 steals rank fourth in the SEC while Barker has tallied 21. The duo return to Alabama's roster this season after starting on the 2022-23 team that won 20 games and earned an NCAA Tournament appearance. Nye leads the conference with 39 total three pointers and 3.25 three pointers per game. True freshman Essence Cody has accumulated 22 blocks and is fourth in the SEC in blocks.

Kristy Curry is in her 11th season at the helm of Alabama women's basketball. Curry is eight wins shy of 500 career victories and has coached at a trio of power five institutions. She led Purdue to a pair of Big 10 Conference regular season championships, including an NCAA runner-up finish in 2001. Curry coached at Texas Tech from 2006-2013 and racked up a record of 130-98 and two NCAA Tournament appearances with the Red Raiders. She has taken Alabama to two NCAA Tournaments, including a national tournament appearance in 2023.

Curry is an Olla, Louisiana native and graduated from ULM in 1988 with a bachelor's degree in health and physical education. She began her basketball coaching career in the high school ranks and led Weston High School and Mansfield High School in Louisiana. Curry served as an assistant coach at Tulane and Louisiana Tech before being named the head coach at Purdue.

UP NEXT
ULM women's basketball will travel west and wrap up its two-game road trip at Cal on Thursday, Dec. 21 at 4 p.m. CT / 2 p.m. PT.