AUBURN, Alabama – Auburn had their full roster of 11 players for only the second time this season. Still, the Tigers looked tired at the end of their win on Saturday night, their head coach said.
Auburn held home serve, beating Florida 85-73. The score was balanced again in the lineup, with four players scoring in double figures and the bench contributing 35 points. Auburn now has a combined 75 points from its bench over the past two games.
Corn Bruce Pearl felt that his team was not showing maximum energy consistently. Two factors could have been at play: the standard “grind” of a long season that is now well into the meat of SEC competition, and that Pearl upped the intensity last week in practice for a scrappy team from the Gators.
“I thought we were a little tired tonight,” Pearl said. “I thought for the first time that the grind of the season might have been a factor. Maybe I practiced them too much this week in preparation for Florida. We just didn’t have our legs.
Auburn (14-1, 3-0 SEC) led until 13 before Florida tied in one possession midway through the first half. Auburn’s big men struggled to defend flawlessly, with a starting center Walker Kesler foul late in the game and save Dylan Cardwell end the game with three fouls. Florida All-SEC Center, Colin Castletonhad 17 points and nine rebounds in the second half alone.
But as they have done for most of the season, the Tigers found extra gear when they needed it. A contested 3-pointer from Jabari Smith sparked a 16-4 run that cut Auburn’s lead to 13. The Tigers then shot 6 of 11 to close the game, including 7 points in the final 2 minutes of K.D. Johnsonwho finished with a game-high 23 points.
“I think Florida probably ran out of gas as well at the end of this game,” Pearl said.
There were seven games Saturday in the SEC, and the Tigers got the late tip, along with Mississippi State at Ole Miss. Not only that, but they now have a quick turnaround for their midweek road game, playing Tuesday instead of Wednesday. in Alabama.
“After a late night game tonight, I don’t see us doing much tomorrow,” Pearl said. “We only have to go there on Monday, the day of our trip. We’ll train during the day and get them on the bus. So it’s a bit difficult to have the game late on Saturday and then play again on the road on Tuesday. But that’s how it worked. So yes, I will definitely take it down tomorrow. They need to recover. »
Alabama (11-4, 2-1 SEC) is considered an upper crust team in the conference this season. The Tide beat three of the top 11 teams in the NET Rankings (Gonzaga, Houston and Tennessee), although they lost Saturday on the road to the SEC’s lowest-ranked team, Missouri.
Auburn has lost at Tuscaloosa the past two seasons — including its first loss to the SEC in the 2019-20 season, when it was ranked No. 4 in the nation entering the game.
“Obviously we have to play our best game Tuesday night in Alabama,” Pearl said. “They have amazing wins. Their speed, their liveliness, their athleticism, their ability to shoot the 3, their way of guarding. Talk about a dangerous team – they manipulated Gonzaga. So again, we’re going to focus on this one coming up and try not to go too high, try not to go too low.
Auburn is 3-0 to start play in the SEC for the third time in the Pearl era, and is currently the No. 1 seed in the conference; Texas A&M is the only other undefeated team in the SEC at 2-0.
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