No. 9 Tennessee breezes past Alabama 96-69

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Bashaara Graves had 19 points and eight rebounds Sunday to help No. 9 Tennessee trounce Alabama 94-62 for its 39th consecutive victory over the Crimson Tide.

Alabama hasn’t beaten the Lady Vols since an 85-66 victory in the 1984 Southeastern Conference tournament.

Meighan Simmons had 16 points as the Lady Vols (15-3, 6-0 SEC) earned their eighth straight win. Isabelle Harrison, Jasmine Jones and Taber Spani each added 14 points.

Daisha Simmons scored 19 points, Kaneisha Horn added 14 points and Shafontaye Myers had 12 points for Alabama (11-7, 1-4).

This was the last day of the SEC’s “We Back Pat” week to support former Lady Vols coach Pat Summitt’s foundation and its fight against Alzheimer’s disease. Tennessee coach Holly Warlick and her assistants wore “We Back Pat” T-shirts under their blazers.

Before the game, Tennessee’s coaches and players hugged Summitt, who sat in the front row at midcourt.