Observations: Auburn 76, Florida 67

Despite losing an 18-point second-half lead, the Tigers showed plenty of heart to earn one of the program's biggest true road wins in a long time.

(Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — If, after watching Florida rally from 18 down to tie Auburn ahead of a media timeout with 7:50 left, you were thinking any variations of the following…

• “Here we go again.”

• “There’s no way Auburn wins this game now.”

• “This Auburn team is going to miss another chance at a big victory.”

• “They don’t have what it takes to bounce back.”

• “I mean, it’s been 30 years since Auburn last won in Gainesville.”

…then it’s safe to say you weren’t in the Tigers’ huddle.

In the face of overwhelming pressure and when the expected response would be one of panic, Steven Pearl looked at his players and just reminded them of the opportunity that was still right there.

“They tied the game with 7:50 left, and that’s an eternity in college basketball,” Pearl said. “They had all the momentum in the world. We were in a timeout, and we were like, ‘You guys, if I were to tell you that with 7:50 left, we’re gonna be tied against one of the best teams in college basketball on the road, would you take it?’”

The response, using more colorful language than we print here, was an emphatic yes.

As they broke the huddle, Pearl told his Auburn players that the next time they came to the sideline, they were going to be up by five points.

Technically, they were only up four — but that would turn to six after Filip Jović hit both of his free throws out of the timeout.

“Our guys responded and did a great job of taking that team’s punch,” Pearl said. “Three weeks ago, our team would’ve folded and let all that pressure get to us. Our team did a great job of hanging in there and staying together.”

From the moment Thomas Haugh tied the game until the final minute of regulation, Florida went 0-4 from 3 and 0-5 from 2 with three turnovers.

Auburn went 6-9 from the field and hit 10 of its last 11 free throws.

(It went 19-21 overall from the charity stripe, which was massive in a game like this.)

Instead of letting a historic opportunity melt away in one of the only places in the United States where it isn’t freezing cold right now, Auburn rallied and pulled off a 76-67 win at Florida — the fourth in the last five games after an 0-2 start in SEC play, and the first for the program in Gainesville since 1996.

And, as Pearl noted afterwards, that might have been the best version of Florida to host Auburn in a long time.

“That's an unbelievable win for our ball club,” Pearl said. “We've been here for 11 years, and that might be the best road win that we've ever had as a program. If you look back at Auburn basketball history, that might be one of the best road wins we've ever had as a program.”

It was fitting for Pearl — the son of Auburn’s legendary turnaround architect and the target of heavy criticism during what has been a challenging season — to get a signature win that shifted on a single decision of his.