Film Room: How Auburn went nearly 10 minutes without allowing a single FG vs. OU
A 15-possession stretch of defensive dominance showcased all the pieces that make the No. 1 Tigers so dangerous on that end of the floor.
PG/SG Zep Jasper (Matthew Shannon/Auburn Athletics)
On Saturday, with 16:28 left on the clock in the first half, Oklahoma’s Jordan Goldwire answered a K.D. Johnson 3-pointer with a layup.
The next time Oklahoma would see one of its shots from the field go through the net came at the 7:07 mark, when Umoja Gibson hit a tough midrange jumper.
For 9:21 of game time — almost half of the first half, in time — Auburn did not allow a single made field goal. Goldwire’s layup trimmed an early Auburn lead to four points. Gibson’s jumper nearly 10 minutes later made it an 11-point game.
Oklahoma had 15 possessions between the two made shots. It only scored on three of them, thanks to shooting fouls on Auburn. Those three scoring trips accounted for five points, giving Oklahoma just 0.3333 points per possession for nearly a full “quarter” of game time.
The stats from Auburn’s defensive stranglehold on Oklahoma are quite impressive:
Possessions: 15
Points: 5 (0.3333 per possession)
Scores: 3 (20.0%)
Turnovers: 5 (33.3%)
Shooting: 0-9 (0%), 0-4 3PT (0%)
Offensive Rebounds: 2 (13.3%)
Second-Chance Points: 0
Shots Blocked: 2
Opponent Steals: 3
Time Elapsed Between FGs: 9:21
This nearly 10-minute stretch of game time was a perfect snapshot of what makes Auburn’s defense, which currently ranks No. 18 nationally in effective field goal percentage allowed and No. 12 in opponent-adjusted efficiency, such an elite unit.
All nine of Auburn’s main rotation players were involved for significant stretches of the Oklahoma field goal drought. The Tigers constantly rotated in substitutes, like they usually do in the first half of games, and there wasn’t a drop-off in defensive play.
In fact, the two free-throw trips allowed by the mostly second-unit defense were directly caused by offensive mistakes — turnovers that led to quick changes and fast-break fouls from Jaylin Williams.
Auburn had a similar run earlier in the week against Missouri, when the visiting Tigers forced the host Tigers to miss eight straight shots in a second-half drought that lasted 8:32.
But this was a longer and more involved stretch of defensive dominance, and it came against a top-30 Oklahoma team that currently ranks No. 13 nationally in effective field goal percentage this season.
In this week’s edition of the Film Room, we’re going to take a possession-by-possession look at all 15 trips down the floor for Oklahoma and what Auburn did to shut the Sooners down offensively.