The Auburn Tigers will look to keep their momentum going as they take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the semifinal round of the SEC Tournament. The teams have met twice already this season, splitting the series at one game apiece. Both teams are coming off impressive victories in the quarterfinal rounds.
Auburn won convincingly, defeating South Carolina 86-55. The Tigers had no issue getting the ball in the baske,t shooting 50% from the field and 47.4% from three-point land. Johni Broome led all Tigers in scoring with 18 points along with 10 boards.
As usual, Auburn’s depth proved to be too much for the Gamecocks to handle. The Tigers’ bench scored 41 points to South Carolina’s 16. The stout defense of the Tigers also yielded points on the offensive end. Auburn finished the game with 17 points off turnovers. Denver Jones’ three steals highlighted the pressure that this defense has placed on its opposition this season.
Mississippi State will likely enter this game with no shortage of confidence itself. The ninth-seeded Bulldogs' upset victory over the top-seeded Tennessee Volunteers has certainly shaken up the landscape of the SEC Tournament in the early going. The Mississippi State defense played a pivotal role in its quarterfinal win, holding the Vols to its lowest first-half points outage this season.
Entering Saturday’s game, each team will have different goals set in order to achieve victory. Both teams have proven that they can perform on the defensive end, so taking smart shots will be the key to victory in this game.
In the first matchup this year, Mississippi State held the Tigers to a season-low 58 points on 33.9% shooting from the field and 25% from three. The Bulldogs only scored 64 points in this victory, but it was enough to down the Tigers. In this same way, Mississippi State will likely look to force the Tigers to miss shots, while taking high-percentage shots to slow down the pace of this high-speed Auburn offense.
In the second matchup, the Auburn offense looked like its normal self, scoring 78 points and shooting 50% from the field and 47.4% from deep. Within the first 10 minutes of this game, the Tigers had a 20-7 lead and never looked back.
A vital part of the Tigers’ game is getting a hot start on the offensive end, and that game plan will likely remain in place for this semifinal bout. Though Broome and Jaylin Williams have served as the focal points for the Auburn offense, this team features a plethora of capable scorers who are capable of putting up double digits on any given night.
The quarterfinal games of both these teams have showcased what these squads excel at. For the Bulldogs, defense will be the key focal point. The Tigers will be all about getting the hot hand early and not taking their foot off the gas.
Auburn will take on Mississippi State in the SEC Tournament semifinals on Saturday at 12 p.m. CST. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
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