Observations: Auburn 87, Texas 82
It got a lot closer than expected in the final minutes. But the Tigers made the clutch shots late to win on a night of big SEC road losses.
(Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers)
AUSTIN, Texas — The record-breaking 214th win at Auburn for Bruce Pearl was far from the prettiest one in his tenure.
But it was a win that his Tigers needed, in more ways than one.
“We needed a close game and to have to step up… and do the things we had to do,” Pearl said Tuesday night after Auburn held onto an 87-82 win at Texas.
Then, from the podium in Austin, Pearl let out a small sigh — perhaps one of relief, perhaps one before an important explanation. It likely was some of both.
“Guys, it's going to be a grind in this league, now,” Pearl continued. “Nobody can get too high with wins. We're on the road again Saturday. Tennessee comes in here Saturday. Take it one at a time. Wins could be precious and few. Every win in this league is going to be one that you earn.”
There’s no denying that Auburn earned this win, its first on the road in what is shaping up to be a historically brutal SEC schedule.
Auburn led by as many as 21 points in the second half against Texas. The Tigers’ top-rated offense was firing on all cylinders, and their defense was making life quite difficult on a talented scorer-heavy Longhorns roster. Plenty of home fans inside the state-of-the-art Moody Center had already made their way towards the exit.
But Texas, determined to not lose its first two games in the SEC by a bunch, chipped away. There was an 8-0 run, followed closely by a 7-2 one. Then came a 12-4 surge.
When Auburn pulled ahead by 10 with 1:28 to play, it responded — with a little help from a technical foul call on an arguing Johni Broome — with a 9-2 run to make it a one-possession game for the first time since the first six minutes of the game.
Texas’ highly efficient offense was getting buckets and trips to the free-throw line at will. Auburn was just going to have to match that away from home to survive.
And it did. Fifth-year senior Denver Jones, just seconds after his lone turnover of the game gave Texas a chance to cut it to 3, nailed a pair of free throws. Then it was true freshman Tahaad Pettiford’s turn to do the same in his first-ever SEC road game.
“(Texas) hit a lot of tough shots down the stretch,” Broome said. “They had a run in the first half and a bigger one in the second half. But the game got to one possession, and we showed our togetherness and ability to overcome adversity.”
While Auburn fans watching at home might have panicked or had their doubts, the feeling for the visiting players and the coaches on the floor was the complete opposite. The Tigers exuded calm and carried nerves of steel through the finish line.
“It's just all about maturity,” senior Miles Kelly said. “We have 10 seniors, so we have guys that have been through some adversity. It's about staying tough in tough times.”
The home stretch of the Texas win was far from what Auburn wants to show moving forward. There will be bigger road games in tougher environments against better teams over the next couple of months. The Tigers weren’t as sharp as they should be.
But walking out of someone else’s arena with a Quad 1 victory — the first for Auburn in SEC play since it clinched the conference title 34 months ago — is cause for some celebration.
The Tigers shared that with Pearl, who received the game ball and danced with his players in the locker room. He posed for pictures and laughed with proud family members of his players back on the court before his postgame radio interview.
Pearl took it all in, because there was historical and immediate significance to the victory. Not only is he the winningest head coach in the history of Auburn basketball, but he is the head coach of the team with the best road win so far in SEC play.
And it came on a night of monumental road losses elsewhere in the conference.
“I mean, look around the league. It's tough to win on the road,” Pearl said. “Kentucky, obviously, lost at Georgia. Tennessee, obviously, got hammered at Florida. ... And Texas will beat almost everybody here. They may not win them all, but they'll beat almost everybody.
“This is a good team. Coach does a really good job. Really talented. Really talented team.”
Here are four Observations from Auburn’s 87-82 road win at Texas, along with the Rotation Charts, Nerd Stats and the Quote of the Night.
(Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers)
The offense was so clutch late
A lot can, should and will be made about the fact that Auburn’s defense gave up points on 10 straight Texas possessions to end the game. The only reason the Longhorns had a chance late was because of the defensive struggles. Texas scored 55 in the second half alone.
“We made some mistakes,” Pearl said. “Some of them were forced. We'll learn from them. But road wins against the better teams in our league are going to be few. There aren't going to be many — and we got one tonight.”
That’s because Auburn scored 48 in the second half, including several makes that proved to be oh-so-important in the end.