Auburn wins, 77-71.

Auburn now is 30-9 overall.

It has won 12 consecutive games.

AUBURN BY THE NUMBERS
2FG: 19-of-42 (45%)
3FG: 7-of-23 (30%)
FT: 18-of-24 (75%)

Kentucky grabbed more rebounds, 41-37.

Auburn is 13-6 this season when being out-rebounded.

KENTUCKY BY THE NUMBERS
2FG: 22-of-40 (55%)
3FG: 5-of-21 (24%)
FT: 12-of-21 (57%)

MY AUBURN PLAYER OF THE GAME
G Jared Harper: 26 points (7-of-18 shooting), 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks

FROM THE KENTUCKY SIDE

"Congratulations to Auburn. Did what they had to do to win the game. They played aggressive and tough, they bumped, and it was a grinding kind of game. Two of their guys had 50 points. Think about that. They deserved to win the game. We got outplayed, got outcoached, and still had a chance to win the game. I thought we were going to win the game the whole way until the one or two plays in overtime. Never entered my mind we weren't going to win the game." — UK head coach John Calipari

"They pressured us on defense. They tried to make all the catches hard, and they were boxing out and getting rebounds. They forced us to get one shot up and got back in transition and scored every time." — UK forward P.J. Washington

"I mean, they're a scrappy team. We knew even if we had a lead, that's a team that can get hot quick. Felt like there were some plays that balls we didn't come up with, they able to get 3s out of it, get free throws and fouled. Right on the brink of kind of changing that lead, they were able to come back and get hustle plays and felt like that really sparked them going forward." — UK forward Reid Travis

" ... " — UK assistant coach Tony Barbee

FROM THE AUBURN SIDE

• Well, Auburn indeed became greater than the sum of its parts Sunday. As we pondered the North Carolina win and the subsequent news that Chuma Okeke was out indefinitely with a torn ACL, my initial thought was that Kentucky had been gifted a path to the Final Four. Okeke out? He'd been the Tigers best player in March. Yet as Saturday unfolded and the team clearly had chosen to use Okeke's injury as a call to arms rather than an obstacle to its own aspirations, well, my feelings changed. I wrote a column late Saturday night postulating that Auburn may go into this all-or-nothing game with an emotional advantage that changes the game's dynamic. I believe that's exactly what happened. The longer Auburn could weather UK's quick start and force its way back into the game, the more likely it became that the Tigers would start expecting to crush Kentucky.

• Okeke was wheeled to the bench a few minutes into the second half, which was the perfect time if you were scheduling such a thing. As the Tigers raised their level to catch and later pull ahead of UK, players were forced to look Okeke in the eye. That provided instant accountability. That's not to say Auburn's roster is loaded with guys who need some kind of tangible reminder to do their jobs, but seeing their teammate anchored to a wheelchair had an effect. It coaxed every last bit of effort from every player. In fact, I'd say this was the high-water mark for Horace Spencer, Ant McLemore, Jared Harper and Malik Dunbar in terms of emotional investment into a game. That's not coincidence.

• Harper and Bryce Brown were the difference Sunday — just like everyone expected. With Okeke out, it had to be those two. Brown was OK-ish during the first half (7 points on 2-of-6 shooting), but was perfect (17 points on 6-of-6 shooting) during the second half. He was being overplayed. He adjusted by dribbling out of jams and either firing away on the run or making key passes that led to assists. Harper was jittery as the second half approached its conclusion, committing a pair of silly turnovers late, yet scored 12 points in overtime — mostly on big-boy drives to the hole.

• He won't get as much attention because his numbers aren't on par with those put up by Brown and Harper, but McLemore did what he needed to do Sunday. He was aggressive. He kept looking for chances to swat or deflect shots. And unlike a lot of previous games in both Nashville and Salt Lake City, McLemore didn't look scared. He looked energetic, bouncy, willing. He looked like the guy we knew before the leg injury last season. He didn't directly guard P.J. Washington much, but McLemore still protected the rim and played 30 minutes and stayed out of foul trouble. It was a next-level effort for him — and one Auburn desperately needed.

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• Another guy who changed the game in ways many don't realize is Samir Doughty, who spent his day chasing UK sharpshooter Tyler Herro around the court. Herro leads the Wildcats in three-point makes and led his team with 19 points in their regional semifinal win against Houston. Doughty's task was difficult and straightfroward: Stay with him and don't give him space. Herro finished with seven points on 3-of-11 shooting. He was 1-of-5 from long range. UK was forced to look elsewhere for scoring punch and P.J. Washington wasn't quite enough.

• Auburn's limitations are known. As such, it's useful to watch the analytics as its games progress because they'll tell the story. Most games for these Tigers come down to rebounding margin, turnovers created versus turnovers conceded, ability to push pace. When Kentucky was running the table during portions of the first half, all those metrics were favoring UK. Things changed in the second half — Auburn actually out-rebounded a taller and bigger UK team after halftime. Auburn was +5 on turnovers overall, which is merely adequate by its standards, but the key number there is that UK point guard Ashton Hagans finished with seven turnovers. He was being hounded all afternoon and really struggled to make thoughtful passing decisions while working his way out of pressure. As the pace heated up and the rebounding evened up, Auburn took command of the game. That's no coincidence.

• The crazy thing is that UK came into the game using the same-ish defensive strategy it used during the February blowout in Lexington — extending high with the guards and pressuring Brown enough to keep him from getting catch-and-shoot shots in rhythm. That plan worked like gangbusters in Lexington approximately one month ago, but this team has changed since then. Brown made a mess trying to dribble his way out of trouble in December, January and February, but those follies helped him understand his limitations. He was smart about how he used the dribble today — eschewing the stationary crossovers of yestermonth and instead dribbling with a purpose. Also useful is Doughty and Dunbar being able to create a bit in space as well.

• Pearl seemed to take umbrage during the postgame press conference when a New York reporter asked if Pearl was surprised by Harper and Brown's huge contributions during the second half. "Jared Harper is not on the Bob Cousy (Award) Watch List. He just isn't. The question would be why? He's one of the best -- Second Team All Conference in the SEC last year," he said. "I don't think there was anybody talking in the preseason about the fact that this was one of the better backcourts in college basketball. The question is why not? Because they truly are. They have been all season long."

• This is the first time Auburn has won 30 games in a season.

• Auburn will resume play Saturday night against Virginia in Minneapolis. The game will be televised by CBS and is scheduled to tip at 5:08 p.m. CDT.