A day after defeating New Mexico to open the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic, Auburn suffered two losses at the hands of Harvard.
The Tigers fell to the Crimson, 69-51, and saw their third-leading scorer, T.J. Dunans, go down with a knee injury.
Auburn (6-4) was led by Tyler Harris, who recorded a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Cinmeon Bowers paced the Tigers with 17 points.
Harvard (5-6), an NCAA Tournament team last season, locked down on defense throughout the game, holding Auburn to a 30 percent shooting mark.
Kareem Canty, who entered the game averaged 20.8 points per game, scored only three points on one of 15 shooting, and Auburn made just one of its final 18 shots in the game.
“They are a very good defensive team,” said Auburn coach Bruce Pearl. “I told our guys we cannot slop through our stuff and score baskets. We slopped through our stuff from the beginning.”
The Crimson placed five players in double figures, with Corey Johnson leading the way with 14 points.
Dunans, who suffered his injury in the first half, returned to the bench in the second half with ice on his knee, but he did not return to the game. After the game, Pearl said Dunans’ injury “shouldn’t be a long-term thing” and he expects the shooting guard to return for Auburn next contest.
Auburn will return to action on Christmas Day at 5:30 p.m. CST, when they will face the loser of Wednesday night’s semifinal game between Oklahoma and Hawaii.
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