AUBURN, AL (EETV)- The 11th-ranked Auburn basketball team began their Neville Arena campaign this year with a fundraiser for the Melton Scholars Program; despite the visiting FAU Owls being just two years removed from a Final Four appearance, the Tigers ran away with this game and never looked back.
Despite a close start to the first half, the lead never changed hands. Complete and total Tiger dominance on both sides of the ball was the story of the first period, punctuated by an Auburn eight-minute 21-1 run towards the middle of the first half. At half, the score stood FAU 28, Auburn 49.
Though FAU appeared better offensively in the second half, Auburn put up a staggering 53 second-half points on scores from nine different Tigers, a feat that proved insurmountable to the stunned Owls. A final dagger three from JP Pegues crossed 100 points for the Tigers with just under a minute left, and as the final buzzer sounded, the final score stood Auburn 102, FAU 70.
Guard Tahaad Pettiford, a high school All-American just a year ago, quickly began to heat up towards the middle of the first half. Following his first two threes, the true freshman out of New Jersey kept up the intensity with a mind-bending steal that appeared to invoke some kind of Spidey Sense, immediately followed by an incredibly tough layup.
Despite this being his first game played in Neville Arena, Pettiford led the Tigers at the half with ten points in ten minutes; he was followed by new transfer Miles Kelly and Auburn veteran Johni Broome, both with eight. Pettiford’s star-studded debut was cut short in the middle of the second half when he exited the game with what appeared to be an injury to his right leg.
Perhaps the biggest factor on display in this matchup is the sheer level of chemistry this Auburn team radiates- both on and off the court. Despite so many new faces, the team plays as if they’ve been playing together since birth, resulting in a stunning 22 assists- and those don’t fully account for the many perfectly executed multi-pass plays that set up many other shots. Needless to say, credit is due to head coach Bruce Pearl for putting this team together and making them a family.
Auburn has recently been described as a team with a significant amount of depth at every position; Coach Pearl wasted no time letting the fans know that wasn’t going anywhere. In fact, 53 of the Tigers’ points came off of the bench, leading many to wonder: is this the deepest Auburn team to date? Only time will tell.
Though Auburn’s offense obviously drew most of the attention throughout this matchup, the Tigers’ defense still managed to shine through. FAU was clearly not prepared for such mastery, as the Owls were held to just 40% (21-53) on FGs and 19% (3-16) on three-pointers. Johni Broome accounted for half of the team’s blocks with four, while Jahki Howard pickpocketed the Owls for four of the Tigers’ 12 steals.
The Jungle came out in full force, as did the rest of the Auburn faithful, selling out the stadium despite this game not even being a regular season game. It made such an impact, in fact, that Coach Pearl began his press conference by expressing his gratitude for the fans and family who came out to support the Tigers.
Fouls are an issue the Tigers may need to focus on going forward; they committed a staggering 24 over the course of the game. Though it didn’t seem to impact the final outcome much, it is worth noting that 25 of FAU’s 70 points came on 39 free throws, including those from a technical foul on Coach Bruce Pearl.
This sentiment is clearly echoed by the team and coach, as Johni Broome stated in a press conference that “they shot too many free throws,” while Coach Pearl repeatedly mentioned the need to foul less.
A standout aspect of Auburn’s game against FAU is their sole second-half turnover. The Tigers committed only one turnover during 20 minutes of second-half basketball.
Ten different Tigers scored in this matchup, six of which scored more than ten points. Johni Broome and new acquisition Miles Kelly led the team with 15 each. Conversely, only eight Owls scored, with just two scoring more than ten. Forward Glenn Kelly led FAU with 16.
Though there are some aspects the Tigers will look to improve, Auburn looks to be a juggernaut in the upcoming season. They’ll begin regular season play on Wednesday, November 6 at 6:00 C.T. against Vermont.
