NASHVILLE | Jared Harper made just one field goal in the second half but it was one of the biggest shots of his career.
The junior point guard nailed a 3-pointer with 12 seconds left to lift Auburn to a 65-62 win over Florida and send the Tigers to the finals of SEC Tournament for only the fourth time in program history and the first time since 2000.
"With the amount of time left in the game, I just wanted to open the floor up for Jared and whatever he did, I’m going to live with," Auburn coach Bruce Pearl told ESPN. "If he felt like he could go by, go by, we had a backside rebound. If he wanted to pull, I’m going to die with my guys. They’re the ones that got us here, and Jared Harper had a historic game. He lined them up, he knocked it down."
With Auburn clinging to a one-point lead, Harper dribbled at the top of the key as he’s done time and again late in games. But instead of driving in for a layup or foul, Harper pulled up for a long 3-pointer to give AU a 64-60 lead.
Florida quickly converted a layup and fouled Harper after the inbound pass. Harper made the first free throw, but missed the second with six seconds left, which allowed the Gators to get off a long 3-pointer at the buzzer that fell short.
“I worked so hard this summer and in the offseason to get myself in the best position to make plays,” Harper told ESPN. “My teammates believe in me, my coaches believe in me and they give me the ball and I make plays.”
Harper finished with a game-high 20 points with 16 coming in the first half. After going scoreless in the first half, Bryce Brown scored 11 after the break including three key 3-pointers.
Auburn improves to 25-9 with its seventh consecutive win and remains undefeated in March.
The Gators led 34-30 at the break after shooting 70 percent from the floor in the first half, and then came out and made their first four shots of the second half. Florida shot 60.5 percent for the game but Auburn had 18 more field goal attempts.
Auburn built a 54-47 lead with a 7-0 run with 7:39 left in the game, which coincided with 6:22 scoring drought by Florida.
The Tigers will take on either No. 2 seed Kentucky or No. 3 seed Tennessee on Sunday in the finals of the 2019 SEC Tournament at Bridgestone Arena. The game is scheduled for noon CT on ESPN.
Auburn lost to Kentucky twice this season, 82-80 at home Jan. 19 and 80-53 on the road Feb. 23, and beat Tennessee at home 84-80 March 9.
Auburn's lone SEC Tournament championship came in 1985.
“We’re playing our best basketball in March,” Harper said. “I’m excited for tomorrow.”
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Jared Harper shot 7 of 11 from the floor, 5 of 7 from 3-point range and 1 of 2 from the free throw line to total 20 points. He added two rebounds, two assists, four steals and one turnover in 35 minutes.
PLAY OF THE GAME: Bryce Brown made back-to-back 3-pointers late in the second half with the second coming with 5:59 left to give Auburn a 57-49 lead. Brown missed all four of his 3-point attempts in the first half before making 3 of 5 in the second.
STAT OF THE DAY: Auburn had just four turnovers while forcing 19 by Florida. The Tigers scored 20 points off those turnovers.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: Bruce Pearl on Jared Harper via ESPN: "Every little guy out there has got to be rooting for Jared Harper — Undersized, under-appreciated, under-valued. He’s not on the Bob Cousy watch list. He’s not. Why not? I’ll tell you what, he’s got courage, he’s not afraid of the moment, he’s our leader, he makes other guys better and he’s got a big chip on his shoulder."
