Auburn’s regular season ends this Sunday at home against the Vanderbilt Commodores, with the chance to finish with a winning season for the first time since 2019.
The Tigers are coming off a loss in their final away game against the Georgia Bulldogs 70-59 — their 11th conference loss and 13th overall.
For the Commodores, they’ve been in a similar position to the Tigers. Both have struggled in conference play this season, Vanderbilt only having three conference wins, while Auburn has four wins. They can finish the season on a high note with a victory on Sunday.
Vanderbilt lost in its last game to the LSU Tigers 82-63 at home. It can tie Auburn in conference wins and upset the Tigers’ opportunity at a winning season. The Commodores can achieve this behind the play of their guards. Their offense has relied on their guards scoring and forwards and centers coming away with the boards
In last years’ matchup between the two sides, the Commodores handled the Tigers at home with an 81-66 victory. Vanderbilt did not have any problem shooting the ball that game with a 58.3% shooting percentage and shooting 7-of-10 from the three-point line.
Auburn has given up 66.3 points a game and allowed opponents to shoot 40.3% this season, while also being out rebounded with a 4.1 difference. Auburn will need its defense to step up and have a strong defensive performance in this year’s matchup to win. The Tigers should aim not to send the Commodores to the free-throw line as they shoot 74% — the best in the SEC.
The Tigers also need an efficient day at the free-throw line and to capitalize off their opponents’ turnovers. They can do all this through junior guard, Aicha Coulibaly. She currently leads the Tigers in nearly all categories.
Vanderbilt’s defense has performed better than the Tigers, giving up an average of 56.5 points a game to its opponents. Also, it has a higher rebounding percentage at 42% and steals at 11.5%. Offensively, the Commodores are shooting 45.8% from the field this season, however they only shoot 28.6% from three.
The Commodores can win this game by relying on senior guard, Ciaja Harbison. She is averaging 19.5 points and 4.4 assists per game. She is currently 24th in the nation in scoring. Vanderbilt can also count on sophomore forward, Sacha Washington. She has down well rebounding the ball this season with an average of 7.2 rebounds and blocking 1.5 shots a game. Harbison and Washington are the team leaders in majority of stats.
Looking to improve its seeding for the SEC Tournament, a loss would drop Auburn to a tie with Vanderbilt in the SEC standings. If Auburn plays to its strengths and stops the guard play of Vanderbilt, it can notch a big win and end Johnnie Harris' second year in charge of the program with a victory.
Auburn and Vanderbilt are set to face off this Sunday at 3 p.m. CST on the SEC Network at Neville Arena.
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
Jac Myrick is a journalism major from Talladega, Alabama. This is his second year at the Plainsman after joining in the fall of 2022.
