Auburn (9-2) took the lead at the 13:24 mark in the first half and never looked back en route to a 74-70 victory over Oklahoma (6-5) at the Basketball Hall of Fame’s Birthday of Basketball Wednesday.
Auburn extended their lead to as big as 17 in the second half with freshman point guard Jared Harper and senior T.J. Dunans leading the way with 21 points apiece.
Dunans, who celebrated his 24th birthday Wednesday, finished 8-14 from the floor to go along with four rebounds and five assists.
“Everybody is happy and excited to pull this win out,” Dunans said. “We played together as a team so it’s real good in the locker room right now.
“It was a battlefield out there. We were being hit every play. I got scratches everywhere. I was like, ‘We got to be physical tonight.’”
With Auburn struggling to score in the first half, the veteran provided a boost off the bench with 13 first half points. His 21 points set a career-high for the Atlanta, Ga. native.
“Dunans was a very calming influence and he was talking to all his teammates. We had a lot of young guys out there,” said head coach Bruce Pearl, who had four true freshmen in his starting lineup.
Harper scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half, finishing 11-12 from the free-throw line. After Oklahoma closed the Auburn lead to just four with 9:40 to go, Harper scored five straight points for the Tigers, including a long three-pointer to keep the Sooners at bay. His 21 points tied a career high, which was set against UAB on Dec. 3.
Mustapha Heron, playing just 65 miles from his home in Waterbury, Conn., finished with 15 points and 12 rebounds. The 12 rebounds set a career high for the freshman.
“Mustapha Heron with the double-double and gets 10 defensive rebounds,” Pearl said. “He was much more of a factor driving and getting tough twos. He only got to the foul line four times but I thought he got fouled a ton. And that’s the best defensive effort he’s given us.”
Freshman Austin Wiley made his first career start in his second career game, finishing with six points and three rebounds in 18 minutes. He also added two blocks and one steal.
"It's amazing he's out there for 18 minutes," Pearl said.
Auburn out-rebounded the Sooners 45-41, with freshman Heron and Danjel Purifoy leading the way on the glass. Purifoy, who battled foul trouble all night, finished with six points and seven rebounds in just 18 minutes.
After Auburn pushed their lead to 17 with 16:41 to play, Oklahoma went on a 16-2 run to close the gap to just three with 10:23 remaining. Auburn then answered with a 11-2 run over the next 3:12 to push the lead back to 12.
“This was a big stage and tonight the bright lights didn’t bother our freshmen quite as much,” Pearl said. "It's a great win for our program."
The Tigers turned the ball over 23 times, but limited the Sooners to just 17 points off turnovers. The Tigers also held Oklahoma to nine second chance points off 17 offensive rebounds.
“We just scraped together enough offense,” Pearl said. “The 23 turnovers is awful. The shooting percentage was not good, but boy that defensive rebounding can carry us. Defensive rebounding wins championships.”
Sophomores Horace Spencer and Bryce Brown, who were taken off suspension earlier in the week by Pearl, dressed out but did not play for Auburn.
Oklahoma, which was without leading scorer Jordan Woodard due to an injury, was led by Jordan Shepherd with 13 points and Rashard Odomes with 12.
Auburn is now 9-2 for the first time since the 2008-09 season, when the Tigers were a No. 1 seed in the NIT. Auburn will stay in the state of Connecticut to take on UConn on Friday in Hartford, Conn. The Huskies are just 5-5 this season, but will pose as a tough road test for the Tigers. Tip-off is set for 1:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
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