The first few minutes of Thursday’s game against Alabama were forgettable for the Auburn women’s basketball team.

Junior DeWanna Bonner’s big performance helped to ensure the final result was much more memorable for the Tigers.

Bonner stepped up on offense and defense, leading AU to a 74-49 win against the reeling Tide. The win gives Auburn (17-7, 5-4 Southeastern Conference) its first winning SEC record in head coach Nell Fortner’s four-year tenure.

Fortner has said several times that the Tigers need at least an 8-6 finish in league play to assure themselves an NCAA Tournament berth. Thursday’s victory gives Auburn momentum heading into the final five games of the SEC schedule.

In the early going, such a positive ending looked far from certain.

Alabama (8-17, 1-9 SEC) started the game on an 11-2 run. The Crimson Tide established its inside game early, slipping past Auburn defenders for layups.

On the other end, AU couldn’t get its offense going — a problem that persisted most of the game.

The Tigers shot just 38.7 percent in the first half.

“We started off kind of slow,” Bonner said.

Bonner helped put a stop to those struggles on both ends of the floor. The 6-foot-4 junior finished with a game-high 19 points, but her other contributions were just as important.

With freshman point guard Alli Smalley struggling against Alabama’s pressure defense, Bonner ran the offense for several long stretches. She finished with a career-high eight assists.

Defensively, Bonner and 6-foot-4 freshman Cassie Moore shut down Bama’s inside game. Bonner set a career high with five blocks, and Moore added four.

Fortner credited Moore, who has struggled with consistency this season, for the Tigers’ defensive resurgence.

“That’s a big body to try to get around,” Fortner said of Moore. “They might have gotten the ball in there, but it was tough to score over her.

“I thought we did a good job in that area.”

But Alabama wouldn’t go away.

The Tide’s lead didn’t last long: Sherell Hobbs hit two free throws with 8:17 to play in the first half to give AU the lead for good.

But Alabama pulled within 12 points with 9:23 remaining, thanks in part to Auburn turnovers.

Auburn finished with 19 turnovers, including four by Smalley and five by Sherell Hobbs. Bama’s halfcourt trap forced several of those giveaways.

And though the Tide never pulled within single digits in the second half, AU missed opportunities to put the game away early.

“It concerns me that it wasn’t a pretty win,” Fortner said. “We never really got into an offensive flow, but that’s a credit to Alabama’s defense.”

Alabama coach Stephany Smith said she was pleased with her team’s effort.

“You have to give Auburn a lot of credit for handling the pressure,” Smith said. “Eventually, they just took off.

“What was a very close game and a good battle, Auburn solidified and won large.”

Hobbs had 16 points and Smalley 15 for AU. Dedrea Magee led Bama with 14 points.

Auburn hosts South Carolina at 2 p.m. Sunday.

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