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A spirit that is not afraid

Late comeback falls short against West Virginia

Johni Broome (#4) dunks against GSU at Neville Arena on December 14th 2022
Johni Broome (#4) dunks against GSU at Neville Arena on December 14th 2022

Despite a tremendous effort to compete in the second half, Auburn ultimately fell short of an incredible comeback against West Virginia. 

The Mountaineers improved their record to 13-8, while Auburn fell to 16-5, dropping their last two games. The Tigers trailed by as many as 17 points at one point.

"Disappointing loss. Worked really hard to battle back in the second half from being down 16," said head coach Bruce Pearl. "(The) last four minutes, didn't get the defensive stops we'd gotten for the second half."

The story of the game was Mountaineer guard Erik Stevenson who had a career high 31 points. He hit almost any shot he took, shooting 70% from the three point line. Auburn had no answers for Stevenson, and his success was a big part of why the Mountaineers took home the victory. 

West Virginia took the lead from the first possession and never looked back, leading for the entire game except a single minute of play where the Tigers tied things up.

Auburn had a chance to tie the game late, but missed free throws were detrimental. That helped get Stevenson the ball where he would nail another three, one of his seven on the day. West Virginia made just two three pointers outside of Stevenson's. 

Auburn had a hard time getting out of the gate. The first half was not very kind for the Tigers. Every time something big happened for Auburn, West Virginia had the perfect counter. Auburn shot just 40% from the field by the end of the half. West Virginia on the other hand, had a fantastic first half, shooting 56% from the field and took a 16-point lead into the break. 

Auburn began to roar back into the game as the Tigers started holding West Virginia to tougher shots and forcing more turnovers in the second half. The Mountaineers shot just 37% in the second half.

Johni Broome helped swing the second half in the Tigers' favor. He was held scoreless in the first half but that changed in the second half — he had 15 points, finishing his game with seven rebounds and five assists.

Jaylin Williams finished the game with 18 points and five rebounds, going 7-of-11 from the field in 32 minutes of play. Allen Flanigan and K.D. Johnson were the only other Auburn players in double digits, scoring 13 and 10, respectively. 

"I'm pleased that K.D. played better. He's been patient," Pearl said. "Trying not to turn it over, trying not to do too much. He's been in the gym a little extra this week."


Any time Auburn came close to taking a lead, Stevenson would arrive. But Auburn kept fighting and had a chance to tie the game to send it to overtime. Down three as time expired, Wendell Green Jr. launched up a three-point shot that came up short.

Following this defeat, Auburn will host Georgia on Wednesday, a rematch of when Auburn lost on the road to the Bulldogs on Jan. 4. 

The rest of Auburn's schedule is extremely difficult, the next four games in particular. First it will be Georgia, then Auburn travels to Tennessee, where it lost in Knoxville last season. It then goes to Texas A&M, who just defeated Auburn this week. Then Auburn will host the No. 2 Alabama. 

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TP Hammock | Sports Writer

TP is a senior from Montgomery, Alabama, majoring in journalism. He started with The Plainsman in fall 2022.

Twitter: @tp_hammock


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