Auburn’s win streak continued into SEC play as the Tigers won their seventh straight game, an 83-51 rout of Arkansas at the Razorbacks’ Bud Walton Arena. It was not only Auburn’s largest win ever at Bud Walton Arena but also Arkansas’s worst loss ever at the arena, which opened in 1993.
“We played really well, obviously,” said head coach Bruce Pearl. “That history does matter.”
The Tigers (12-2, 1-0 SEC) were led by Chad Baker-Mazara in the first half and Johni Broome in the second half as they earned their sixth win ever at Bud Walton Arena. Baker-Mazara finished with 16 points to lead all scorers, equaling a season-high for him. Fourteen of Baker-Mazara’s points came in the first half.
Broome, who was held scoreless in the first half, scored 14 in the second half of the win. He finished with eight rebounds, tied with Dylan Cardwell for the team lead. Broome and Cardwell each blocked two shots as Arkansas finished just 6-of-13 near the rim. Jaylin Williams and Tre Donaldson each scored 11.
The Tigers overcame a slow start from the field, finishing with a 48.6% shooting rate and a 7-of-18 rate from behind the arc. After going 2-of-10 from 3-point range in the first half, the Tigers made five of their eight shots from behind the arc in the second half. Six different players made a 3-pointer for the Tigers, though Baker-Mazara was the only Tiger to make multiple shots behind the arc.
After taking a 37-30 lead into the break, the Tigers asserted control of the game for good in the first part of the second half. In the 10 minutes following the halftime break, the Tigers outscored the Razorbacks 22-12, setting the tone for the dominant half. The Tigers won the second half 46-21, turning a close game into a record-setting blowout.
“I had asked the guys at halftime, it wasn’t just about our effort and energy,” Pearl said. “I said ‘let’s just stay aggressive’ and we did.”
Once again, Auburn successfully took care of the basketball. The Tigers had 16 assists and just seven turnovers in the game. Unusually, Aden Holloway, who led the Tigers in assists in eight games previously, did not record an assist, though Donaldson picked him up with a team-high four.
The Tigers also found success on the glass, outrebounding the Razorbacks 46-32. Auburn had 11 offensive rebounds and scored 13 second-chance points. Arkansas, meanwhile, scored four second-chance points on seven offensive boards.
Arkansas (9-5, 0-1 SEC) shot just 31% for the game, making only 18 of its 58 shots. The Razorbacks turned the ball over 13 times, leading to 10 Auburn points.
It was a chippy game from the start. In the first half, both Baker-Mazara and Donaldson received technical fouls for taunting. In addition, Arkansas was called for two flagrant fouls in the game.
“I don’t know why it was chippy,” Pearl said. “A couple of times we talked and that wasn’t good. We’ll try not to do that again. We just try to play the game the right way.”
The game was the 12th win of the season for Auburn, each of which has come by 15 points or more. It was Auburn’s first true-road win of the season in its second attempt, following a loss at Appalachian State in its first true road game.
“You’ve got to put your team in that situation (on the road),” Pearl said. “I thought that experience definitely helped us this time around. That’s why we did it.”
The Tigers return to Neville Arena on Tuesday, Jan. 9 to host the Texas A&M Aggies in the first of two home games for Auburn next week. Tipoff is at 8 p.m. CST and the game will be televised on ESPN2.
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Matthew is a senior from Huntsville, Alabama, majoring in journalism. He started with The Plainsman in fall 2021.
Twitter: @mattwallaceAU
