Auburn Stuns No. 21 Alabama in Rivalry Thriller with Clutch Defense, Perfect Free Throw Shooting
AUBURN, Ala. - Rivalry games bring out a different kind of energy-and on this night, Auburn matched the moment with grit, poise, and just enough polish to take down No. 21 Alabama, 58-54, in a wire-to-wire battle that came down to the final seconds.
From the opening tip, Auburn played with the kind of edge that head coach Larry Vickers, wearing a sharp suit and tie for his first Iron Bowl showdown, clearly wanted to see from his team. The Tigers didn’t just show up-they showed out, especially on the defensive end, where they held Alabama nearly 20 points under its season scoring average.
“I’m super proud of my team,” Vickers said after the game, still holding the game ball his players handed him in a jubilant locker room. “They came out from the top with a different level of intensity and did a tremendous job of making Alabama work for everything they got.
Defensively, I thought we were pretty amazing today. This is by far our most complete game.”
Complete is right. Auburn didn’t flinch when the game got tight, and they didn’t miss when it mattered most-literally. The Tigers went 10-for-10 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter, including a pair from Ja’Mia Harris with three seconds left to seal the win.
But before the final buzzer, this one had all the drama you'd expect from a rivalry game.
With 51 seconds left, Khady Leye calmly knocked down two free throws to put Auburn up five. Alabama’s Jessica Timmons answered with a clutch three to cut it to two.
Then, with 15 seconds left, Auburn turned it over, giving Alabama a golden opportunity. That’s when Syriah Daniels stepped up and drew a game-saving charge on Timmons with just four ticks remaining.
“She’s one of our better defenders,” Vickers said of Daniels. “She did an excellent job of being low, sliding over and taking the charge.”
That stop set the stage for Harris to ice it at the line, giving Auburn its first win over a ranked opponent since toppling No. 7 LSU back in 2024.
Leye led the way for the Tigers with 16 points and nine boards, doing her work on both ends of the floor and delivering in the clutch. She hit 7 of 15 from the field and was the steadying presence Auburn needed throughout.
“We were all focused on getting this W,” Leye said after the game. “We worked for it. This is a great feeling.”
Auburn’s defense set the tone early, forcing seven first-quarter turnovers and turning them into nine of the team’s 11 points in the opening frame. Mya Petticord drilled a three to give Auburn a brief lead, and Leye followed with a steal and layup to make it 11-8 after one.
The Tigers kept the pressure on in the second quarter, going on a 7-0 run that included a Harris corner three and a transition layup from Harissoum Coulibaly off a steal-stretching the lead to 26-17, their biggest of the first half.
Alabama responded with back-to-back threes to close the gap, and eventually took a one-point lead before Leye scored in the paint to give Auburn a 30-29 edge at the break.
Leye opened the third with a pair of jumpers, and A’riel Jackson buried a three to push the lead back to six. Kaitlyn Duhon added a strong drive for a lefty layup, giving the Tigers a 43-37 advantage heading into the fourth.
Jackson opened the final quarter with another three, giving Auburn a nine-point cushion. But foul trouble changed the momentum.
Duhon, who had been a steady two-way contributor with 10 points, six rebounds, two steals, and a block, picked up her fourth foul and went to the bench. Alabama capitalized with an 8-0 run to cut the lead to one, forcing Vickers to bring Duhon back in.
She fouled out with just over five minutes remaining, but Auburn didn’t fold.
“Next-man-up mentality,” Vickers said. “Our group did a good job of rebounding together.
After that, everybody picked up off that energy. I’m proud of that group.”
Alabama briefly took the lead, but Petticord responded with two free throws, and Coulibaly knocked down a jumper to swing it back in Auburn’s favor. Alabama pulled within one again, but Auburn closed the door by going a perfect 6-for-6 from the stripe in the final 67 seconds.
Now sitting at 13-6 (2-3 SEC), Auburn gets a break before heading to No. 5 Vanderbilt next Thursday.
After that, they’ll return home to Neville Arena on Jan. 25 to host No. 13 Oklahoma.
But for now, they’ve earned the right to celebrate-not just because they beat a ranked team, but because they beat that team.
And as Vickers recalled, it’s a win that checked a very important box. When he first took the job, Auburn legend DeWanna Bonner had a simple request: “I don’t care what you do, just beat Alabama.”
Mission accomplished.