AUBURN, ALABAMA (EETV) Following its victory over visiting UCF inside Auburn Arena on Wednesday night, Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl urged Tiger fans to show up early and bring their energy when the program played host to Yale on Saturday afternoon. The orange and blue faithful responded, showing up in numbers and posting the best crowd the arena has seen to this point in the young season and willing their team to an impressive 86-64 victory over the Bulldogs.
Auburn did not waste any time jumping out in front of its opponent, winning the opening tip-off and proceeding to open the contest on an 11-0 run, forcing Yale to burn an early timeout in effort to kill the Tigers’ momentum. Sophomore guard K.D. Johnson says that fast starts have been a point of emphasis is practice.
"We just been focused on bringing the energy and not waiting," Johnson said. "We don't want to get hit in the mouth first. We want to do the hitting."
Pearl’s squad was not just taking care of business on the offensive end of the floor. The Tigers quickly became the hosts of their own version of a block party, posting nine blocks in the first 20 minutes of play.
"We pressed up on them, forced them to go to the rim and that was a positive," Pearl said.
Between its early capture of momentum in the contest and the Walker Kessler-lead charge on the defensive end of the floor, the Tigers were able to post 47 points in the first half and headed to the locker room with a commanding 17-point lead over the reigning Ivy League champions.
When time came to return to the floor for the final 20 minutes of play, the group picked up right where it left off. Auburn stepped back into form on the defensive end of the floor, forcing the Bulldogs into contested looks, posting an additional five blocks and dominating the rebound category.
"We try to stay on shooters," Pearl said. "We try not to leave. We try to make them get there and that wasn't what they came here to do."
The final period of play revealed the orange and blue’s offensive production as elevated from that of the opening half thanks — in large — to standout freshman forward Jabari Smith Jr. Smith complimented his 11-point first half effort with an additional 6 points, highlighted by a posterizing dunk from deep in the painted area.
Smith’s efforts on the offensive end of the floor helped the Tigers run away with the contest, outscoring Yale 39-35 in the second half and effectively ending the Bulldog’s dreams of storming back or even making the game reasonably close, a feat Pearl accredits to the depth of his squad.
"Good game," Pearl said. "We played hard, defense was good, the depth continues to be a positive for us."
With the emphatic victory now behind them, Pearl and company improve to 7-1 and will have a full week away from game action before taking on Nebraska in the 2021 edition of Holiday Hoopsgiving at State Farm Arena. Tip-off between the Tigers and the Huskers is set for 10:30 a.m. CST on ESPN 2.
