On Thursday afternoon, the Auburn Tigers entered Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina looking for what would be their biggest win of the season.
A victory over the Georgia Bulldogs in the second round of the SEC Tournament would avenge Auburn’s loss to Georgia at home earlier this season, a game in which the Tigers shot a season-low 24 percent from the floor. A win would also cement Auburn’s 900th victory in team history, for a program founded in 1971.
Most importantly, Auburn needed to win to move on to the next round of the conference tournament and ultimately increase their chances of making the big dance.
The same common themes and inconsistencies that plagued the Tigers in losses all year long saw to their downfall on Thursday, as Georgia bested Auburn, 56-52 in the opening game of the tournament for both squads.
Offensive woes beset Auburn early and often. The Tigers were shooting 36 percent from the field at the half, yet led the Bulldogs by seven. Auburn finished 29 percent shooting for the game to UGA’s 41.
“We got shots, we just couldn’t score,” Auburn head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy said. “We missed a few shots, then people started getting a little tentative with their shots. You have to be confident to shoot the ball.”
Auburn matched their season-low for turnovers with seven and forced 18. The Bulldogs adjusted in the second half however, committing only two turnovers in the third and fourth quarters. Georgia outscored the Tigers 34-23 in the second half, erasing a seven-point deficit at the break.
“I thought we played extremely well in the first half,” Williams-Flournoy said. “I think the defensive pressure and energy wasn’t here in the second half, [we] didn’t score like we needed to.
“I don’t know if they did anything differently. I don’t think our rotation was as quick as it was in the first half. I know they got the ball to the middle a few times.”
Senior forward Katie Frerking and sophomore guard Janiah McKay again paced the Tigers offense, scoring 12 and 13 respectively. Senior guard Brandy Montgomery added 9 and junior forward Jazmine Jones matched her season-high with 10 points off the bench. Frerking, McKay and Montgomery were the only Tigers to find success from downtown, as the rest of the team finished 0-6 from beyond the arc. Auburn as a team shot 23 percent from three.
Georgia won the battle on the glass and dominated the paint, scoring 28 near the hoop to Auburn’s 18. The Bulldogs capitalized on their 15 offensive rebounds with 15 second-chance points.
“It was huge,” said Williams-Flournoy. “It played a big role in the first game we played against them. They had 15 offensive rebounds in the first game, which gave them 19 points.
“We knew we had to box them out. They do a very good job on second-chance points getting to the boards. We didn’t do a very good job of boxing them out.”
Back to back threes from McKay and Frerking knotted the score at 49 all with 2:37 to play, after Georgia had built its largest lead since the first quarter. Both teams went cold late, as Auburn missed their next five shots following the tie and Georgia didn’t make a field goal for the last 1:51. McKay drilled a three-pointer with 15 seconds remaining, trimming to deficit to one at 53-52, but the Bulldogs pulled away through clutch efficiency at the free-throw line.
Georgia was fueled by Pachis Roberts’ resourceful performance on both ends of the floor. The redshirt senior tallied 15 points, 9 boards and 4 assists. Mackenzie Engram and Caliya Robinson contributed 12 points apiece for the Dawgs. Lying in wait in the next round for Georgia are the top-seeded South Carolina Gamecocks.
Auburn, on the other hand, returns to the Plains, winless in the SEC tourney for the first time in the last four seasons. All Coach Flo and the Tigers can do now is wait for the NCAA Tournament selection on March 13th to determine the fate of their season. Williams-Flournoy believes that Auburn is team that deserves to compete in the big dance.
“We had a great non-conference,” said Williams-Flournoy. “We played some of the best teams in the country. Our strength of schedule was very tough. We’re at least in the 40s in our RPI, even higher in our strength of schedule.
“We’ve done everything we needed to, besides the last win here with Georgia. We have the body of work to get into the NCAA tournament.”
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