No. 1 Auburn comfortably took care of business against Oklahoma on Saturday, taking down the Sooners 86-68.
Oklahoma trailed by a dozen at halftime and cut the Auburn lead to three at one point in the second half, but Auburn maintained the lead the whole way and never let up.
Takeaways from the win:
Jabari and Walker combine for a big day
Auburn's frontcourt duo led the way for Auburn on Saturday, combining for 44 of the teams 86 total points.
Jabari Smith, coming off the worst game of the season against Missouri, went for 23 points and 12 rebounds.
"He's a pro. That's what pros do," Bruce Pearl said. "He's been in the gym, just doing what he does."
While Walker Kessler put up 21 points, nine rebounds and four blocks, while shooting 9-of-11 from the floor.
"They're the best frontcourt I've ever coached for sure," Pearl said.
Auburn went into the game with a size advantage against Oklahoma and used it, feeding Kessler inside and Smith knocking down a lot of contested jumpers over smaller Sooner defenders.
A new role for Devan Cambridge
Over the past two games, Devan Cambridge has found himself in a little bit of a different role off the bench.
Against Missouri he had nine offensive rebounds, and against Oklahoma he hauled in four more.
"He’s got heart and that’s what it takes to get those rebounds," Kessler said. "Being a guard and getting those kinds of rebounds, it sets the tone for our team."
Cambridge also drew a charge during one of his first plays of the game.
It doesn't always show up in the stat-sheet, but Cambridge has quietly improved and is doing a lot of the little things right. Whether it be on defense or hauling in offensive boards, Cambridge's play off the bench has been crucial the past few games.
Allen Flanigan still isn't quite there, but don't jump ship
After coming back from Achilles surgery, Allen Flanigan has shown flashes of his previous self, but hasn't really strung it together for a full game.
Against Missouri, due to turnovers or missed shots, Flanigan accounted for half of Auburn's empty possessions in the first half.
Fans were quick to panic and even called for Cambridge to step back into the starting lineup.
Saturday's game against Oklahoma wasn't anything flashy — three points on 1-of-4 shooting — but he finished a team-high +26 and also had a team-high four assists.
In a game where Wendell Green Jr. struggled to get anything going and Zep Jasper had just one assist, Flanigan was a steady presence out there.
Obviously Auburn would like to start getting more out of Flanigan sooner rather than later, but don't be quick to panic and jump ship on Flanigan. He was on NBA draft boards for a reason.
