Poor field goal shooting doomed the Auburn men's basketball team Saturday afternoon to a 73-57 loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa.
SEC leading scorer Chris Denson scored a season-low six points while the rest of the team shot just 27.5 percent from the field in the loss.
The Tigers' troubles started early on in the first half, as it took over 16 minutes for a player not named Denson or KT Harrell to record a point. Harrell was just 3-of-10 from the field in the first half but led Auburn (13-14, 5-11 SEC) in scoring with seven points.
Auburn turned the ball over 10 times in the first period of play and only managed to make eight total field goals.
Meanwhile the Crimson Tide (12-17, 6-10 SEC) shot 48 percent from the field in the first half on their way to a 36-21 halftime lead.
The Tigers shot about the same percentage in the second half, but 24 total offensive rebounds allowed Auburn to keep the deficit around 15 for most of the final half.
Harrell finished the afternoon with 21 points on 7-of-19 shooting and was the only Tiger to reach double digits in points. Senior center Asauhn Dixon-Tatum contributed eight points and managed to reel in 11 rebounds in the loss.
The Crimson Tide were led by junior guard Levi Randolph, who recorded 24 points and eight rebounds. Senior point guard Trevor Releford contributed 16 points and seven assists in the victory.
Auburn will return to action in the Auburn Arena on March 5 when the Tennessee Volunteers (18-11, 9-7 SEC) come to town. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.
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