Auburn looks to rebound from a last-second loss when it hosts reeling Ole Miss in Southeastern Conference play on Wednesday.
The Tigers (18-9, 8-6 SEC) lost for the sixth time in their past eight games when Vanderbilt’s Ezra Manjon made a go-ahead layup with 0.8 seconds remaining, lifting the host Commodores to a 67-65 victory on Saturday.
After Auburn tied the game at 65-all on K.D. Johnson’s 3-pointer with 10 seconds left, Manjon dribbled the length of the court to win the game for Vanderbilt.
The Tigers went 5 of 10 from the free-throw line, while Vanderbilt went 20 of 27.
“To win in the end, you’ve got to get stops and you’ve got to get to the foul line,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “We never even got to the bonus in the second half. You win by getting stops and getting to the free-throw line.”
The Tigers, who were up 55-49 with less than eight minutes remaining, were led by Johni Broome’s 20 points and six rebounds. Jaylin Williams added 17 points and six rebounds.
Wendell Green Jr., who averages 13.6 points per game, was held to five points on 2-of-14 shooting, with a team-high eight rebounds.
Ole Miss (10-17, 2-12) is coming off a 69-61 overtime setback to visiting Mississippi State on Saturday, the Rebels’ third straight loss and eighth in their past nine games.
After Myles Burns’ layup gave the Rebels a 56-54 lead with 38 seconds left in regulation, Mississippi State’s Tolu Smith hit a layup to tie the game with 29 seconds remaining. Matthew Murrell missed a jumper and a 3-pointer in the final seconds for the Rebels, sending the game into overtime.
In the extra session, Mississippi State scored the first five points and Ole Miss never recovered.
Jaemyn Brakefield, who averages 10.5 points per game, had 20 points and eight rebounds, while Murrell, who averages a team-high 14.4 points and 2.6 assists per game, added 15 points and six assists.
“A lot of it is just point-blank looks that we couldn’t finish,” Ole Miss coach Kermit Davis said. “So tough of a loss for us, our guys are hurting, I hated it for our players. We just got to keep our heads up and stay in the moment.”
Ole Miss hosted Auburn on Jan. 10, when Broome had 19 points and 11 rebounds, with Green adding 23 points and seven assists to power the Tigers to an 82-73 win. Murrell had 24 points and six rebounds for Ole Miss, while Tye Fagan and Brakefield added 13 and 12 points, respectively.
–Field Level Media