Murray State came in with one of the top offenses in the nation, ranking sixth in college basketball by scoring 86 points per game. However, Auburn and its menacing defenders had another idea for the Racers as the Tigers ran away with a 71-58 victory.

The Racers' 58 points tied a season-low, and a second-half surge pushed Auburn to its 11th win of the season. Everyone played a part on the defensive end, including guard Wendell Green Jr., who had a double-double after posting 13 points and 10 rebounds.

"Green with 10 rebounds, that's crazy for a guard — nine defense," Bruce Pearl said after the game.

Auburn shut down any chance of a Racers comeback in the second half. Tevin Brown, who Pearl called one of the best shooters in the nation, scored just six points after halftime after breaking out for 16 in the first 20 minutes.

"Murray State is a really good offensive team that we just didn't allow to — made it difficult on them to run their offense," Pearl said. "If you let Brown get open, if you let (Tevin) Hill get downhill, if you let KJ Williams get tight catches, they're going to score 86 points a game."

Hill finished with eight points on 3-of-9 shooting. Williams ended 4-of-18 from the floor for 12 points. It was a complete effort from Auburn's defense against an opponent that has given the Tigers trouble in the past.

And, when a Murray State player got close to the basket, the size advantage took over for Auburn. Led by Walker Kessler with seven, the Tigers blocked 11 shots and made any player inside the paint think of attempting a bucket.

"They're just so much size at the rim that with some other teams is a high-percentage shot, it's not a high-percentage shot against us because of our length and our ability to block shots and change shots," Pearl said.

The most important stat, perhaps, was rebounding. The Tigers outrebounded the Racers 48-33, a big switch from Saturday when Saint Louis had control of the boards. It was an emphasis for Pearl before the game about crashing the glass, and his team got the message.

"We got outrebounded badly at Saint Louis, and Saint Louis was the more physical team," the coach said. "It was important tonight that we do a better job on the boards."

Pearl was adamant all week on that subject. The Auburn coach came away delighted.

"I'm pleased with the rebounding and pleased that the kids responded to the coaching because it was an issue for us," Pearl said. "It just tells you that they're listening."