<p>GREENSBORO, S.C. — Ariyah Copeland scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds on Thursday night and seventh-seeded Alabama turned back 10th-seeded Missouri 82-74 in the second round of the Southeastern Conference tournament.</p>
<p>The Crimson Tide (16-8), who have lost seven times to ranked SEC opponents, faces second-seeded and seventh-ranked South Carolina in the quarterfinals on Friday.</p>
<p>Missouri (9-11) weathered Alabama’s red-shot start to tie the game at 71 on Haley Troup’s 3-pointer with 5:14 to play. Allie Craig Cruce answered with a 3-pointer, her only points of the game and Copeland had a three-point play. Meanwhile the Tigers were just 1 of 10 to finish the game.</p>
<p>Megan Abrams added 19 points, Jordan Lewis 16 and Hannah Barber and Jasmine Walker 11 each for Alabama.</p>
<p>Aijha Blackwell had a career-high 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Missouri and Shug Dickson scored 12 points. Blackwell had four 3-pointers and five teammates had two each.</p>
<p>Alabama made its first nine shots, going 4 of 6 behind the arc and 6 of 6 inside, and used the 83.3% shooting to take a 28-18 lead after one quarter. Missouri trailed by as many as 13 despite making 4 of 5 3-pointers and shooting 80%.</p>
<p>Both teams cooled off in the second quarter, the Crimson Tide going 4 of 13, and the Tigers closed within 40-30 at halftime.</p>
<p>Blackwell had a 7-0 run, capped by a three-point play at the 2:51 mark that gave Missouri it’s first lead at 53-52. Blackwell had 13 in the quarter which ended tied at 52.</p>
<hr />
<p>More AP women’s basketball: <a href="https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball">https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/AP_Top25">https://twitter.com/AP_Top25</a></p>
