Coach Steven Pearl and the Auburn Men’s Basketball team faced two pretty strong opponents this past week, with the Texas Longhorns making the trek to Neville Arena this past Wednesday night, and then on Saturday made the pilgrimage up to Knoxville to face-off with the Tennessee Volunteers. Wednesday’s result was very good, but Saturday’s result on the other hand was not so much a good result….
Auburn 88, Texas 82
Wednesday’s competition was expected to not be an easy one. Coach Sean Miller and the Longhorns came in at 3-4 in league play, with 3 top 25 wins under their belts from Georgia, Vanderbilt and Alabama. In the first half of play, it seemed that Texas could not miss a 3, going 8-14 from behind the arc, starting out 5-6. Auburn wasn’t terribly far behind them, going 5-12 from 3 point range, but the inside play in the paint was lacking. Kevin Overton led the Tigers in the first half with 8 points, but Dailyn Swain of Texas more than doubled that output with 17 points. But it was about to be a tale of two halves.
Action for Auburn went from lukewarm in the first half, to scorching hot in the second half. Keyshawn Hall and Kevin Overton took over the lease at Neville Arena and owned the points production levels. Out of every possession in the second half for the Tigers, they scored on every trip down the floor except for 4 times, a staggering 85.7% of the time.
Keyshawn Hall led all scorers with 31 points for the Tigers, shooting 7-13 from the field and 3-6 from 3 point range, and 14-17 on free throws. Kevin Overton finished with 25 points, going 6-9 from the field, 5-7 from 3 point range, and 8-8 on free throws. Dailyn Swain was the scoring leader for Texas with 30 points.
Coach Steven Pearl postgame said of his team: “I thought our guys hung in there, found a way to beat a really good Texas team. I was really worried about this game. Obviously, coming off two really good road wins, understanding how dangerous that team is… I’m proud of the guys.”
The Tigers are 14-7, 5-3 in SEC play headed into Saturday.
Tennessee 77, Auburn 69
Saturday’s trip to Knoxville was a cold one. Winter Storm Gianna had dumped a large amount of snow in the Knoxville area, and travel was questionable, but that didn’t stop the Food City Center from being packed to the rafters for what is considered to be one of the toughest rivalries in SEC basketball. Tennessee came into the night with a 51-9 record at home against Auburn, and they proved why they are extremely tough to play in Knoxville.
Tennessee came out against the Tigers with guns blazing, showing their size and physicality. Throughout the first half, they imposed their will, hitting 3’s consistently and scoring in the paint at will as well. Auburn’s 3 point shooting woes reared its ugly head again, going 3-13 in the first half with Elyjah Freeman, Kevin Overton, and Tahaad Pettiford each banking one. Keyshawn Hall, Pettiford, and Freeman were the first half scoring leaders with 5 points each for the Tigers, while Nate Ament and Jaylen Carey led Tennessee with 11 points each in the first half.
Second half action improved some for Auburn, with defensive adjustments made in the locker room showing themselves well. But in turn, the scoring output didn’t pick up like we thought. Several clean looks were missed in the paint as well as from behind the arc.
Tennessee was able to get to the foul line a few more times than Auburn, which turned out to be a difference maker. Tennessee went 25-31 total on free throws, while Auburn only went 14-20 from the line. Keyshawn Hall led the Tigers in scoring again with 21 points, going 7-17 from the field, 3-9 from 3 point range and 4-5 from the charity stripe. Freshman Nate Ament led Tennessee with 22 points.
Auburn now sits at 14-8 overall, 5-4 in SEC play.
The Week Ahead
This upcoming week only has one game on the slate for Auburn. This upcoming week brings Coach Nate Oats and the Alabama Crimson Tide to Neville Arena this coming Saturday, for a 3:00 scheduled tip time. The broadcast network has not been announced yet for the matchup.
Let’s all hope for a clean, crisp rendition of Reverse Rammer Jammer when the clock hits 0:00.
