AUBURN | Tahaad Pettiford looked anything but a freshman in Saturday night’s 74-69 win at No. 4 Houston.

He led Auburn in scoring with 21 points including 15 points over the final 12 and a half minutes to help erase a nine-point deficit.

“Tahaad is a special young man,” said AU coach Bruce Pearl. “He's got great talent. And, sometimes when you talk about someone's talent, they haven't worked at it. He's worked at it. He's worked at his game. He's absolutely not afraid of the moment.”

Pettiford shot 7 of 12 from the floor including 5 of 8 3-pointers. He added three rebounds, three assists and didn’t commit a turnover in 24 minutes.

It was a stunning performance, but it was also just the second college game of his career. And Pearl knows it’s important for any freshmen to keep things in perspective.

That shouldn’t be too difficult for Pettiford, who was held without a point on 0 of 4 shooting in the Tigers’ opening 94-43 win over Vermont.

“So he's gonna be like the Dow Jones. He'll be up and down some,” said Pearl. “But he's really coachable. He's been a great teammate. He wants to get better, and he comes from a great family.

“But Tahaad's got work to do, you know? He's definitely got work to do. But, boy, oh boy. If he can see it, he can make it. That ball wasn't even touching the net. That's how that thing was going through the cylinder. He's gotta build on it.”

Pettiford will have that opportunity to build on his performance against the Cougars Wednesday night as No. 5 Auburn hosts Kent State. The Golden Flashes are 2-0 on the season with a tight win over Louisiana and a blowout of Miami-Hamilton.

Kent State is led by senior VonCameron Davis, who is averaging 17.5 points on 10 of 16 shooting from the floor.

“So, I thought the guys came back to practice yesterday humble and hungry. They recognize that we've got a Kent State team coming in tomorrow that is picked third in the MAC and has been to the NCAA Tournament several times,” said Pearl. “They're old, and they're experienced, and they're deep. Quick. They're very well-coached.

“For us, it's going to be if we can play with the same energy and the same sense of urgency.”

Tip-off at Neville Arena is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT on SECN+/ESPN+.