Florida A&M University’s women’s basketball team is preparing for an important week as they return home to face Alabama A&M on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. and Alabama State on Saturday at 4 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on SWAC TV.
The Rattlers have focused their playing style on rim protection, offensive rebounding, and frequent trips to the free-throw line. They average over 21 free throw attempts per game, ranking them among the top teams nationally in this category. Florida A&M also collects about 13.5 offensive rebounds per game, which helps generate second-chance scoring opportunities.
Defensively, the team averages 2.5 blocks per game, with Breazia Robinson standing out as a leader in both total blocks and blocks per game within the conference and nationally.
However, Florida A&M has faced challenges with ball movement and perimeter shooting. The team’s assist-to-turnover ratio is low at 0.48, placing them near the bottom nationally, while turnovers remain high at 18.5 per game. Their three-point shooting percentage stands at just 22.4%, one of the lowest marks in Division I basketball.
On defense, Florida A&M allows opponents to shoot 41.7% from the field and gives up an average of 70.8 points per game.
Key players include Tahnyjia Purifoy, who leads the team in assists (3.4 per game) and free throws made (92), shooting nearly 83% from the line; and Breazia Robinson, who averages more than one block per contest.
Looking ahead to their matchups:
Against Alabama A&M—one of the conference’s most complete defensive teams—the Rattlers will need to limit turnovers against a squad that forces over 20 takeaways per game and excels in field goal defense (37.2%). Alabama A&M also boasts strong rebounding numbers and frequently gets to the free-throw line themselves.
Alabama State presents a different challenge as they lead the league in total rebounds (40.63 per game). To compete effectively, Florida A&M must protect their paint without fouling excessively and focus on limiting Alabama State’s second-chance opportunities while creating their own through offensive rebounding efforts.
For both games this week, late-game execution may be crucial for Florida A&M if contests are close heading into final quarters.
