Tyrese and Tra'cee Tanner aren't your average sisters.
At 6-foot-1 and 6-foot-3, respectively, both girls have become keys to the success of the Auburn women's basketball team.
"It's pretty fun," Tyrese said about having her younger sister with her on the court. "But it can be challenging at the same time."
Tyrese said the challenges of having a sibling on a college basketball team are the same as just having a sibling at home.
"We fuss at each other in practice, but it's just like your fussing at a teammate," Tyrese said.
Individually, Tyrese, a senior, and Tra'cee, a sophomore, are both having great seasons.
Tyrese has had four 20-point games, one of which came against then No.10 Kentucky on Jan. 19 when she put up an in-conference career high of 28.
"I was definitely proud of her," Tra'cee said. "Kentucky has this reputation of being a great scoring program, so for her to be able to do that, to come out and show people who she really is, I feel like that's great for her."
Tra'cee has been scoring in bunches as well, putting up 15 points of her own against Kentucky, and Florida.
"This year has really been a good year for her," Tyrese said. "I'm glad she came to play on the team."
But for all those individual performances, the team itself has little to show.
Two times this season, against then No. 10 South Carolina, and then No.10 Kentucky, Auburn has mounted a substantial lead early in the first half, only to see it be wiped out by halftime.
"It's the lack of focus in the second half," Tyrese said. "You get up so much, and you think we've got it in the bag, but the team doesn't lie down."
A large part of the problem for the Tigers in those losses to Top 10 opponents, as well as other defeats on the season, has been players not being able to stay in the games when they need to due to foul trouble.
The Tanner sisters have been in the midst of Auburn's late-game foul trouble for several key games this season.
Tyrese fouled out against Florida with 3:40 left in the second half, while Tra'cee fouled out against Kentucky after scoring 15 points in just 17 minutes.
"Just imagine what she could have done had she been able to stay in the game," Auburn head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy said after the home loss to Kentucky.
Tyrese said the way Auburn plays defense is aggressive, and that gets them into trouble sometimes.
"Sometimes we get over aggressive," Tyrese said. "We want the ball so bad, and sometimes we go the wrong way to get it."
Both Tanner sisters are fierce competitors.
As sisters on the same college basketball team, they said their sibling rivalry is amplified that much more.
"Me and my sister are competitive in every aspect of our life," Tra'cee said. "That's kind of how we were raised."
Tyrese said since the two started playing together at Auburn, it's become more about the team than the sisters competing against one another.
"Growing up, it was who could do something first or who was the best at something." Tyrese said. "Now we're both competitive together. We want to win. It's about who scores the most points."
Both sisters said they will cherish the opportunity they had to play alongside each other.
"Not many people can say they had the opportunity to do that," Tra'cee said. "To have somebody there for you at all times is great."
"We've had some good times and some bad times," Tyrese said. "I'll miss it."
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.