Late-game heroics weren't enough to salvage a win in Auburn's final exhibition game against Columbus State Monday night in the Auburn Arena.
After falling behind 50-42 with 3:46 left in the game, sophomore forward Kenny Gabriel scored twice, followed by a three-pointer by sophomore guard Earnest Ross that tied the game at 50.
However, Columbus State's Steve Peterson sank a fade-away with 15 seconds left that gave the Cougars the win.
"We know we're not satisfied by what happened," Gabriel said. "But one thing we're satisfied with is that we played with poise at the end of the game, and we showed that we had heart. But yeah, it doesn't count on our win-loss record, and we're still showing that we've got a lot of stuff to work on in practice."
As the game began, Auburn quickly drove up the score 10-2.
However, Columbus State scored 11 unanswered points, ending the half with a 32-27 lead.
"With this team we are going to be offensively challenged this year," said coach Tony Barbee. "I thought we did some good things defensively. We did hold them to 29 percent shooting from the floor, which is a great number, but then we gave up 15 offensive rebounds. If you cut that number in half, that is probably 22 percent.
"We are a team that is not going to out-jump people. We better put bodies on people."
Auburn continued to struggle going into the second half, scoring only once as the Cougars built a 41-29 lead.
The Tigers fought back, scoring eight straight to put the score at 41-37, but Columbus State continued to capitalize on Auburn's mistakes to make it 50-42.
"We talked about playing your role and doing what you need to do to make this a successful team," said Columbus State coach Robert Moore. "I thought we played well and built some great momentum. Auburn did not quit tonight and kept fighting back."
Despite the loss, Auburn held the Cougars to a 29.6 shooting percentage from the field which Barbee attributed to his team's aggressiveness on defense.
He acknowledged that improvement is needed before the Tigers begin the regular season Friday.
"We have a long way to go," Barbee said. "Like I told our guys, the best thing about this game tonight: It doesn't count.
"I thought we did some good things when we got down 12. I thought at that point, we played with a little bit of desperation and a sense of purpose that we have to from the tip."
Auburn opens the season against UNC-Asheville at 8 p.m. Friday in the Auburn Arena.
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