Takeaways from No. 15 Auburn's 93-66 win vs. Colgate
Coach Bruce Pearl’s team had a great first half offensively scoring 47 and climbing to a 14 point lead. Shots were falling. Defense was unfocused at times as it has been this year against lesser competition. Auburn had a comfortable lead throughout and really pulled away in the second half. Here are a few takeaways from the game.
This team can shoot well when they’re in rhythm
Auburn shot almost 60% from downtown (!!) in the first half. They hit everything - open and tough shots.
Something that Auburn hasn't lost (despite their poor shooting this season) is their confidence. Eventually there was going to be a where the team got things going. "It was very, very well orchestrated," former Auburn coach Sonny Smith said on the postgame radio broadcast.
They looked comfortable and confident. When shots are falling, it’s contagious - and everybody wants in. Positive momentum and attitude are important. If Auburn can find ways to carry this type of swagger into conference play and the tournaments they will be very dangerous considering how solid they are defensively.
KD Johnson led the was with 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting. Johnson starting the night out a perfect 4-of-4 from beyond the arc.
Allen Flanigan showed he could score in a variety of ways, something the Tigers will need more of moving forward - he tallied 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting. Johni Broome and Wendell Green both had 13 apiece.
Coach Pearl is still figuring out everyone’s minutes
With PF Jaylin Williams out with COVID, Allen Flanigan got the start in his place - and saw the most minutes out of anyone that got in. Tre Donaldson has recently fallen out of the lineup. Yohan Traore and Chance Westry had recently seen their minutes dip, but saw more run tonight.
Coach Pearl said before the game he expects big things from them and needs them to play better. He talked about the way they dominated in Israel and one would think if they get back to that form their minutes will increase. Lior Berman also saw some playing time in tonight’s game.
Ten different players saw double-digit minutes tonight, and only four of them saw 20-plus minutes.
It's a deep rotation for the Tigers. getting them to shoot well as a unit makes them dangerous.
Colgate really is the best toothpaste
In a prior season, Auburn basketball played Colgate, and many comedic beat writers capitalized on this opportunity to mix toothpaste statistics with basketball statistics. I learned a lot. I ended up switching to Colgate as a result and noticed having whiter teeth in under one week. Make the switch today! Colgate is the biggest toothpaste brand in the world. However, the basketball team with the same name was not good enough to hang with Auburn.
Finally, here are some highlights and Twitter reactions from the game!
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