DeWayne Reed had his jersey pulled over his head as he walked into the locker room. Quantez Robertson was lying face down on the court. Most of their teammates had their heads down. This arguably wasn't how the Auburn Tigers wanted their season to end.
Reed's two missed free throws with seconds remaining proved to be costly as Baylor upset Auburn 74-72 in the National Invitation Tournament Quarterfinals at Beard-Eaves Tuesday night.
"It hurt," Reed said after the game, as a tear rolled down his left cheek. "It was a close game to lose by two. I came up to the line and missed two free throws to either tie the game or win it. It hurt bad."
Free throws proved to be Auburn's Achilles' heel, as the Tigers (24-12) converted a measly 60.5 percent of their attempts this season. Before the Baylor game, Auburn ranked second to last in Division I free throw percentage.
"We have had numerous games where free throw shooting has cost us, and this one was another one," said Auburn head coach Jeff Lebo after the game.
After the two misses, Baylor rebounded and Auburn fouled Curtis Jerrells, who made 1-of-2 free throws with 6.9 seconds remaining.
Auburn got another opportunity to come back after Jerrells' miss. Robertson rebounded and pushed the ball down the court before feeding it to fellow senior Rasheem Barrett, who missed a 3-pointer with less than three seconds remaining. Time expired, and the Bears won a trip to New York for the NIT Final Four.
"I had a wide-open look and just hit back rim," Barrett said. "I just didn't knock it down. I was taking whatever they were going to give me. To tell you the truth, it looked good. It looked real good."
For the most part, the game was tight. There were 11 ties and eight lead changes. Baylor led by as many as 10 in the first half, but Auburn clawed back and trailed by only one point at halftime.
Auburn never led in the second half, but tied the game three times.
Baylor led by seven with 1:07 remaining, but a 3-pointer by Tay Waller and another by Barrett cut the lead to one point with 19 seconds remaining. However, the Tigers couldn't find their shot when the pressure was on.
"It is difficult and that is why basketball is so hard to play," Lebo said. "Most teams leave the court with a loss. It is not like a [football] bowl game where half of the teams win. It's a hard thing and it is always hard for the seniors because they always leave with a disappointment in their mouth."
The Bears were led by guard LaceDarius Dunn, who scored a game-high 19 points. Forward Kevin Rogers added 15 points and pulled in 12 rebounds.
In their final games as Tigers, Barrett led the Tigers in points with 16, while Korvotney Barber added 11 with 13 rebounds.
In his fifth season, Lebo led his team to 24 wins this year, second most in school history. After missing out on the NCAA Tournament, the Tigers entered the NIT as a No. 1 seed and hoped to move to the tournament's semifinals for the first time.
"I think that Coach Lebo has done a tremendous job all year long and that everyone in the SEC really respects the program here, said Baylor head coach Scott Drew. "We are very fortunate that we won."
Baylor (23-14) moves on to play the winner of Wednesday's St. Mary's-San Diego State game in the NIT Semifinals Tuesday.
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
