Auburn was unable to get it done on the road on Sunday, falling to Alabama 56-53 in its first SEC game of the season. It’s the 17th consecutive conference loss for the Tigers and the first in the Johnnie Harris era.
It was the first game in nearly two weeks for Auburn and it showed in the offensive performance, especially early on. Auburn scored a season-low 21 first-half points, while allowing Alabama to take a double-digit lead into halftime.
Auburn shot 30% from the field throughout the game, its second-worst shooting percentage of the season, only behind the Old Dominion game.
Once Alabama took a 9-8 lead in the first quarter, the Crimson Tide maintained their lead for the remainder of the game. The Tigers tried to climb back into the game with multiple scoring runs, but Alabama shut Auburn down repeatedly.
After a somewhat close first quarter, the Crimson Tide were able to pull away in the second. They were led by starting guard Brittany Davis, who had six points and four rebounds in the quarter.
The Alabama defense kept Auburn’s top scorers in check in the second quarter, only allowing nine points. No Auburn player had more than two points in the second as Alabama pushed its lead to 11 at halftime.
Honesty Scott-Grayson was Auburn’s leading scorer at the midway point, with nine points. Second-highest was Annie Hughes with five, while everyone else had two or fewer points.
Out of the locker rooms, Auburn began to cut into the lead, getting it down to as little as three points. Auburn trailed by seven heading into the final quarter, but Alabama pushed the lead back out in the early goings.
By the midway mark of the fourth quarter, Alabama’s lead was 11 points. But Auburn made one final push.
The Tigers went on a 7-1 run, with the help of an Alabama technical foul, doing most of the damage at the free-throw line to bring the game to a two-possession game. It kept time on the clock while allowing the deficit to get narrower.
Sania Wells made it a one-possession, three-point game with her 3-pointer less than a minute until the final buzzer.
Aicha Coulibaly played a large part in the comeback effort, as the Tigers’ leading scorer finally got going. It wasn’t enough and Coulibaly finished her day with 17 points and 12 rebounds, good for her third double-double of the season.
But Alabama used its biggest weapon to finish off its in-state rival — the free-throw line. As Auburn missed shots and fouled to keep the game alive, Alabama made its free throws down the stretch.
Eight of Alabama’s 24 second-half points came at the free-throw line, where the Crimson Tide has been the conference’s best team.
It was only fitting that Alabama finished the game off in that way, winning its fifth straight against Auburn.
Harris and the Tigers will get another shot at an SEC victory later this week when it travels to Missouri on Jan. 6. That game will start at 7 p.m. and be broadcast on SEC Network-plus.
This story will be updated by The Plainsman.
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Originally from Helena, Ala., Caleb Jones is a senior studying journalism at Auburn University. He has been on staff with The Plainsman since 2019.
You can follow him here on Twitter: @calebjsports
