Auburn crushes Bama
AUBURN | Auburn made a 17-0 run at the end of the second half and never looked back.
The Tigers shot lights-out from outside and scored 30 points off 21 Alabama turnovers in an 84-63 blowout win Saturday night at Auburn Arena.
“We beat a really good basketball team tonight in a great environment with ESPN here,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “Our guys really stepped up. I thought the effort and energy defensively was huge to turn Alabama over 21 times.
“I thought the kids were engaged and bought in. That’s the closest we’ve looked to the kind of Auburn basketball I like to see.”
A second-straight win improves Auburn to 15-6 overall and 4-4 in SEC.
Auburn led by 20 points at halftime and maintained a double-digit lead throughout the second half as the Tigers made 13 of 22 3-pointers. The 59.1 3-point percentage is the best this season.
Bryce Brown led the attack with 23 points on 5 of 7 3-pointers. Jared Harper added 19 points and five assists while Anfernee McLemore had 10 points.
“I feel like we pressured the ball really well,” Brown said. “We got into their ball handlers, and that was part of the scouting report. They’re a little loose with the ball, so keeping ball pressure at all times, and being physical with their guards.
“I feel like that led to some easy turnovers and deflections, which led to some easy points in transition.”
Chuma Okeke scored all nine of his points in the first half, adding five rebounds and four steals. Danjel Purifoy had seven points and four rebounds while Samir Doughty had seven points, three rebounds and two steals.
“A lot of guys contributed up and down the roster,” Pearl said. “I thought Chuma was particularly effective in the first half. In a close game, we went to him and he delivered.
“And we’re going to go as far as 1 (Harper) and 2 (Brown) take us. And 1 and 2 showed while size matter, speed and quickness is important too. I just thought we were fast tonight.”
The first half was a string of runs by both teams. Auburn missed its first five shots as Alabama opened an early 7-1 lead. The Tigers answered with a 21-2 run to take a 14-point lead before the Tide struck back on a 15-4 run to get within three. Auburn put together a late 17-0 run to go into halftime up 48-28.
The Tide got within 11 points in the second half before Auburn went on a 7-0 run as Harper completed a 4-point play and Malik Dunbar added a tomahawk slam on a fastbreak.
John Petty led Alabama with 18 points as the Tide fell to 13-8 overall and 4-4 in the SEC.
The Tigers wrap up a three-game homestand Tuesday night against Florida. Tip-off at Auburn Arena is scheduled for 8 p.m. CT on ESPNU.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Bryce Brown made 8 of 12 field goals and 2 of 3 free throws to score his game-high 23 points. He added three rebounds and an assist. His ball pressure helped Auburn force 21 turnovers.
PLAY OF THE GAME: Jared Harper stole the ball from Herbert Jones and found a breaking Bryce Brown for a one-handed slam dunk to cap Auburn’s 17-0 run late in the first half.
STAT OF THE NIGHT: Auburn out-rebounded a bigger Alabama team 31-29 and out-scored the Tide 30-22 in the paint.
QUOTE OF THE NIGHT: Pearl on Auburn’s inside play: “They score 87 percent of their points in the paint. That leads the nation. They’re the leading rebounding team in the league. The closer they get to the basket, the better they look. We had to find a way to not let them destroy us at the rim and they weren’t able to.”