Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Five players scored in double figures Tuesday night and No. 13 Auburn shot 76 percent from the field in the second half to stomp Missouri 101-74 in a Southeastern Conference clash of Tigers in Columbia, Mo.
Jaylin Williams led the way with 17 points, while Johni Broome and Chad Baker-Mazara each added 15. Dylan Cardwell hit for 12, while Denver Jones netted 10 points as Auburn (23-7, 12-5 SEC) kept its long-shot hopes for a regular-season conference title alive with its third win in four games.
Sean East II scored a game-high 21 points for Missouri (8-22, 0-17), which has dropped 20 of their last 21 games. Missouri needs a win in its regular-season finale Saturday night at LSU to avoid going winless in conference play.
Tamar Bates added 12 and Nick Honor contributed 11 points for Missouri, which kept it close for a half before wearing down against a deeper opponent in the second half. Missouri simply couldn’t make enough shots to keep it competitive, going 9 of 29 (31 percent) from the field after halftime.
Auburn started the second half with a 10-2 run, getting a three-point play from Williams to take a 54-41 lead with 17:02 left. East’s three-point play at the 9:36 mark got Missouri within 72-61 but Auburn sealed it with a 13-2 burst.
Auburn reached 100 points for the fourth time this season when Cardwell made a 3-pointer in the last minute. The visitors owned significant advantages of 41-28 in rebounding and 48-22 in points in the paint, while also collecting 18 fastbreak points.
Nothing about the first half hinted at the lopsided ending. Missouri answered every Auburn run, rallying from a 10-point deficit to pull within 37-35 on two foul shots by East with 2:45 remaining. It was excellent at the line, going 15 of 16 in the half.
Broome made two foul shots with 32 seconds left, enabling Auburn to take a 44-39 lead into halftime. It overcame 2-of-14 shooting from 3-point range to earn the advantage.
–Field Level Media