Takeaways: No. 25 Auburn basketball demolishes Arkansas 83-51
The Tigers just handed the Hogs their worst loss ever in Bud Walton Arena.
No. 25 Auburn's (12-2, 1-0 SEC) 32-point victory over Arkansas (9-5, 0-1 SEC) is the largest margin of defeat for the Razorbacks at home in Bud Walton... ever.
It was a total smackdown in the second half from Bruce Pearl's squad.
Here are takeaways from the win.
Complete domination at the rim
The Tigers finished with 48 points inside the paint, the most they've scored all season. Auburn's entire roster feasted at the rim, but none more than the Tigers' two centers Johni Broome and Dylan Cardwell. They finished the game a combined 10-of-14 from the floor and produced 20 of those 48 paint points.
It's interesting to see how Pearl's offense has evolved over the years at Auburn. The addition of better talent has improved the Tigers' play inside the paint despite most casual fans believing Auburn elects to run and gun with a focus on outside shots.
They've maintained their pacing this season but have turned their aggression towards the rim.
A tale of two halves
Neither team were shooting particularly well at the end of the first period. Both the Hogs and Tigers were sub-41% from the floor. Auburn lead 37-30 at the break with the outcome trending in a lower-scoring direction.
Things began to trend differently for Auburn in the second half. They did not for Arkansas.
The Tigers shot 57.6% in the second half, including a blistering 5-of-8 from downtown. The Hogs, however, continued their offensive spiral, shooting 22.2% from the floor in the final 20 minutes of play.
The majority of Auburn's hot shooting was spurned by center Johni Broome, who collected all 14 of his points in the second half.
In a hostile SEC road environment, the Tigers shut things down after halftime. It was an impressive showing.
One of these teams has depth
10 Tigers finished with at least 14 minutes of action. The Hogs had seven players finish with at least 10 minutes.
The production between Auburn's five and Arkansas' two off of the bench was shocking. The platoon of Tre Donaldson, Chad Baker-Mazara, KD Johnson, Dylan Cardwell and Chaney Johnson helped the Tigers' bench outscore the Razorbacks' 46-9.
One of these teams seems to have legitimate depth. The other is filled with transfer portal pieces who haven't seemed to have panned out.
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