Samir Doughty is from the City of Brotherly Love, and all day on Saturday, Auburn had plenty of love for its basketball team — from fans lining up at 3 a.m. on Saturday to stand in line for College GameDay to the game itself, where The Jungle willed Doughty back to his feet like a prizefighter after every foul he took.
The senior guard when discussing No. 17 Auburn’s 75-66 win over No. 13 Kentucky was appreciative of the fans.
“I think we have the best fans in the country and I think this is the hardest place to play in the country,” Doughty said. “It would not be like that without those guys. That shows how committed they are and how great of a crowd we have for them to get up that early in the morning when we were sleeping. That’s good.”
Doughty made sure that the fans who got to the arena early in the morning left after the game feeling like the lost hours of sleep were well worth it. The senior guard led Auburn with 23 points, a new career-high in SEC play for him.
He also finished the day with just a single turnover, a big improvement over the previous two games where he combined for eight turnovers.
The Philly native quickly took over for Auburn in the first half after getting down by a score of 9-2. Over the course of the next few minutes though, Doughty was a perfect 6-of-6 from the free-throw line to help Auburn tie the game at 10-all.
The guard had to earn it from the line in this game as he only went 4-of-10 from the field but 14-of-15 from the free throw line. His 14 made free throws are the most by an Auburn player since former teammate Jared Harper made 15 against UAB.
“It was good," Doughty said. "They were just fouling and I was just making the free throws. They were struggling at the beginning of the game to stay in front. They were just struggling to stay in front at certain times. I was capable of getting to the rim and they were fouling me. I was making free throws.”
It was fitting that Auburn’s final four points came off his free throws especially after how they had been so crucial in helping Auburn stay in the game to start.
Doughty also didn’t just leave everything out on the offensive side of the ball, he also gave it his all on the defensive end. Early on he found himself in foul trouble but Doughty’s leadership is far reaching on this squad.
The senior guard did what a senior does by leading anyway he can. While Doughty was forced to the bench because of foul trouble, the guard would mostly be standing on the sidelines and helping encourage his teammates. Other times, he would walk around on the sidelines and follow the action that way even if he was forced to sit because of foul trouble.
When head coach Bruce Pearl looked ready to argue with the referees over a call after already getting a technical foul earlier, Doughty put his arm around his coach and helped calm his coach down. This type of leadership was greatly appreciated by Pearl.
“We had great balance," Pearl said. “We had great senior leadership. Samir Doughty played like it and made big plays for us all night long."
Having a tough leader like Doughty is crucial for any team but with the rigor and challenges that the SEC schedule brings, it's necessary to have a player that can spark a run or motivate a team.
The Tigers will get to enjoy this win for now but it will be back to work sooner than later as they prepare for the rest of their SEC schedule and beyond.
“Each and every game is important to us, not just—we wasn’t just focusing on Kentucky; we’re focusing on each and every opponent that we face," Doughty said. "We know the importance of each and every game, how one loss can put you in a worse spot. We’re playing for seeding at the end of the day right now. We’re trying to have a good seed going up into March Madness, so we know each and every game is important to us.”
Even with the 14-of-15 free throw performance and tenacious defense to match, Auburn's tough guard still has a softer side. As the senior headed for the media room exit to probably celebrate somewhere with the team, Doughty turned one final time to the media in the blue concrete room and said, "I love y'all."
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