Coming off a historic win against now-No. 10 LSU, the program’s fourth win over an AP Top 25 opponent with Johnnie Harris as head coach, Auburn will travel up to Nashville, Tennessee, to take on Vanderbilt on Thursday, Jan. 18 before hosting arch-rival Alabama at home on Sunday, Jan. 21.
“You know, other than the third quarter at Texas A&M, I feel like we've been right there. They prepared well, they played hard. The thing that we told them was you got to come out and you gotta be tough. You gotta fight,” Harris said following the upset win this past Sunday. “And I think we came out and did that. So I'm just really, really proud of our team.”
It will take another tough effort for the Tigers to claim their first road win of conference play against Vanderbilt on Thursday – a team Auburn has beaten in 10 of the last 12 meetings.
The Commodores dropped out of the national polls following their first loss of SEC play against Missouri this past Sunday 65-63. Despite coming up short, the 16-2 overall record is tied for the second-best start to a campaign in school history, matching Vanderbilt’s start in the 2006-07 season.
Freshman Khamil Pierre shined against Missouri, recording her first double-double of her collegiate career with a 16-point, 12-rebound performance against the Tigers. The performance came with awarding Pierre the SEC Freshman of the Week for the second time this season.
Alongside Pierre, junior Iyana Moore is leading the Commodores, and ranks second in the league, with 22.8 points per game in SEC play. Moore has two of the top three scoring performances in an SEC game this season.
Scoring a career-high 37 points at Kentucky on Jan. 11, the most points scored in an SEC game this season and 29 points at Mississippi State, the third-most points scored in league play this season, Moore will look to bounce back from a 1-of-8 from the field, five-point performance in the loss against Missouri.
The ability to dish the ball out to Vanderbilt’s leading scorers has propelled the Commodores forward – most notably against Kentucky with a season-best 29 assists in the win on Jan. 11. Graduate student Jordyn Cambridge handed out a career-best 12 assists enroute to a double-double performance at Rupp Arena.
Cambridge’s 4.7 assists per game ranks fourth-best in the league – with Vanderbilt’s overall 16.6 assists per game also ranking fourth-best in the SEC.
The key of Thursday afternoon’s matchup might just be the clash of Vanderbilt’s assists and the Tigers’ success stealing the ball and turning into points on the other end.
Auburn has forced 20 or more turnovers in 10 games this year – with the Tigers recording a 7-3 record in those games.
Harris’ trademark defense is averaging 10.6 steals per game, which ranks third in the league this season and shined bright in the biggest moment in the upset win over No. 10 LSU.
With Auburn leading 64-62 in the final seconds, JaMya Mingo-Young was able to steal the ball from All-American Angel Reese to put the Tigers up by multiple possessions and secure the victory.
“JaMya is tough. You know that kid is tough. She came here because she is a defensive minded player. So there was no denying her there. She timed it just right, you know, it's really close because it could have been a reach in foul but it wasn't. She grabbed the ball so you know that just goes back to her toughness,” Harris said of Mingo-Young’s game sealing play against LSU.
Mingo-Young, a transfer from Alabama, will look to lead the Tigers to a second straight conference win before the Tigers head home to take on her old school and arch-rival.
The Crimson Tide will get their shot at No. 10 LSU at home this Thursday prior to their trip across the state to take on the Tigers. Road environments haven't bothered Alabama this season, winning both road league games in an early 2024 conference campaign.
The Tide lean on their shots from deep, ranking third in three-point field goal percentage, .354, in the conference. Most notably, Sarah Ashlee Barker leads Alabama with 16.4 points per game, ranking seventh in the league, and has led her teammates in scoring in 12 games this season.
In Alabama’s most recent contest, a 77-59 loss against Arkansas, Barker led the team with 18 points and the Crimson Tide shot 40% from deep, but the Razorbacks turned the Tide over 15 times – resulting in 22 points for Arkansas. The Tigers could look to follow a similar formula in their attempt to beat Alabama for the first time since March 7, 2019 in the SEC Tournament.
Auburn will also retire DeWanna Bonner’s No. 24 prior to the matchup with Alabama this Sunday. Bonner is Auburn’s all-time leading scorer with 2,162 points and third in career rebounds with 1,047. She was the 2009 SEC Player of the Year and a two-time All-American.
The Tigers will start the week at Memorial Gymnasium against Vanderbilt on Thursday with an adjusted tipoff time of 2 p.m. CST due to inclement weather in Nashville. Auburn will then return home for the big rivalry matchup with Alabama on Sunday, Jan. 21 inside the friendly confines of Neville Arena with tipoff scheduled for 2 p.m. CST. Both games will be available to watch on the SECN+.
“It was amazing,” Harris said about the crowd following the win this past Sunday. “A crowd like this helps you put all of that together, and we feed off their energy. So come out and support this team because they deserve it. They work really really hard.”
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Patrick is a sophomore from Auburn, Alabama, double majoring in journalism and marketing. He started with The Plainsman in fall 2022.
