Auburn Newcomer Emerges in Tigers' Blowout Win Over Merrimack

The Auburn Tigers knocked off the Merrimack Warriors 95-57 at Neville Arena on Thursday night, bouncing back from a lackluster performance in their season opener against Bethune-Cookman earlier this week.

Another home dub💯#WarEagle | @carrier pic.twitter.com/aPdLaQC0XZ
— Auburn Basketball (@AuburnMBB) November 7, 2025

Auburn played much better in all aspects of the game, shooting 50.0% from the field and holding Merrimack to a 28.6 FG% on the defensive end. Merrimack had a plethora of open looks in the first half, but failed to knock them down, starting the game 2-for-22 (9%) from the field.

However, Auburn fans saw one impressive outing in particular from JUCO transfer Emeka Opurum, who provided solid minutes for the Tigers on both ends of the floor.

Mek got it done‼️😎 pic.twitter.com/7vOa2ndPhL
— Auburn Basketball (@AuburnMBB) November 7, 2025

With starting center KeShawn Murphy out with an injury, both Opurum and Filip Jovic were tasked to step up in his absence. After not seeing any action in Auburn’s 95-90 win over Bethune-Cookman, Opurum played 19 minutes against the Warriors and totaled 11 points on 4-for-4 from the field. He was also able to draw fouls, but finished 3-for-6 from the free throw line after making three of his first four.

“It was great to see him have some success, and it was great to watch his teammates be excited for his success,” head coach Steven Pearl said after the game. “That, as a coach, you get excited about because you know I think our guys are pretty hard on him because they expect a lot out of him, and in practice, they kind of jump him a little too much. I think they do that from a good place because they want him to be successful, and they know what he is capable of bringing to the table. It was great to see them get excited for him.”

Opurum marked the fifth Tiger to reach double-figures, with Keyshawn Hall (25), Sebastian Williams-Adams (14), Tahaad Pettiford (13), and Abdul Bashir (10) all notching 10 points or more. Auburn’s offense was slightly stagnant in the first half, but became more efficient and balanced once Pearl and company figured out how to attack Merrimack’s zone defense.

Pearl also believes the Merrimack’s lack of size benefited Opurum, who stands four inches taller than the Warriors’ tallest player.

"Offensively, that zone, you know, was obviously really good for him because he's so big, so tall, they didn't have any size to be able to do anything when the ball got into the high post,” Pearl said. “I thought our guys made a couple of nice passes to him to be able to finish. Did a pretty good job keeping the ball high. When he did catch it, he was three for four until his last two free throws. Didn't turn the ball over, which I think is a positive, blocked a couple shots, so you know, made an impact on that back line.”

“That team's tallest player was 6-8, and they really didn't play him that much. They played all guards the entire game,” Pearl added.

Opurum led a dominant effort on the inside, as Auburn posted 42 points in the paint and outrebounded Merrimack 55-24. The Lagos, Nigeria, native recorded four boards, two blocks, and one steal, illustrating his ability to contest shots and disrupt opposing offenses.

According to Justin Ferguson, Basketball Reference reports that Thursday night was the first time Auburn has ever outrebounded an opponent by 30+ in a single game.

according to Basketball Reference, this was the first time *ever* that Auburn has out-rebounded an opponent by 30+ in a single game
— Justin Ferguson (@JFergusonAU) November 7, 2025

If Opurum can be a reliable backup at center for the Tigers behind Murphy, their frontcourt could turn out to be better than expected. Although he likely needs to gain weight at 7-feet tall and 205 pounds, his length and size could give other big men problems down low. Murphy may be someone who faces lingering injuries all season long, so a quality bench option in Opurum could be crucial when Auburn looks to its next rotation.

“He got a couple of dunks there in the second half, so hopefully for him, it is all about his confidence,” Pearl said. “If he has confidence, he's going to have a chance to be effective, and hopefully, this is something he can use to propel him in the right direction and for him to step up in a game when you know Murph would have been a real asset against that zone. Obviously, it was great for him, so I'm happy for him."

Mek 🪣 pic.twitter.com/cklqL9V0S1
— Auburn Basketball (@AuburnMBB) November 7, 2025

The Tigers will return to Neville Arena next week for a matchup with Wofford on Nov. 11 before taking on Houston the following Sunday in Birmingham.