FAYETTEVILLE – Arkansas’ 19th-ranked women’s basketball team advanced to 13-6, overall, 3-5 in the SEC  defeating the Auburn Tigers, 77-67 Sunday afternoon at Walton Arena.

 It was smooth sailing for the Hogs after the first quarter, as Arkansas dominated the Tigers 68-49 from the second quarter until the final horn and dropped Auburn to  5-11 overall/0-8 in the SEC.

 Arkansas guard Amber Ramirez did her thing against the Tigers, tallying a game-high 19 points thanks largely to five three-pointers. She also chipped in with four rebounds and three assists. The Razorbacks’ big three was firing on all cylinders as Chelsea Dungee and Destiny Slocum also came up big for the Hogs, going for 16 and 14 points, respectively.

TURNING POINT

Auburn’s full-court press defense forced some early turnovers, and the Razorbacks had their lowest-scoring first quarter of the season. Arkansas worked past the Tiger defense in the second quarter, though, guided by the steady hand of Jailyn Mason, who hit two jumpers from deep in the frame. The Razorbacks ended the half on a 22-4 tear, erasing a 13-point deficit to secure a 33-28 halftime edge.

The Hogs spread the floor well in the second half, as four Razorbacks went for seven or more points in the final two frames. The visiting Tigers stayed in the fight in large part due to a dominant performance in the paint by forward Unique Thompson, who notched 18 points and 19 rebounds. However the monster performance wasn’t enough, as Arkansas was able to make winning plays late.

Despite 20 offensive rebounds by Auburn, Arkansas held the Tigers to 34 percent shooting from the field, including just 14 percent from three-point range.

Arkansas next plays Missouri in Thursday night’s SEC game in Columbia, Mo.