Scott-Grayson records 1000th career point in Tigers' dramatic win over Ole Miss
In the world of women's college basketball, there is no conference more difficult to succeed in than the SEC; between her extensive background in the league and her current position as head coach of the Auburn program, no-one knows this painful truth better than Johnnie Harris. Through the first six conference games of her second season at the helm, the Tigers found themselves on the losing end of each and every SEC contest.
For Harris and company, Sunday's clash with the 16-3 Ole Miss Rebels provided an opportunity to overcome the hurdle which has provided them such trouble for the past month and a half: the group walked away with a 77-76 overtime victory.
In early going, there was a metaphorical lid on the basket for the Tigers. The group opened up the contest shooting a forgettable 21.4 percent from the field and posting just 12 points in the opening quarter.
Despite entering the second period of play down by just six, Auburn allowed its opponent to jump ahead by as many as 15 before deciding to turn up the defensive intensity and get to work on the boards; behind the efforts of Honesty Scott-Grayson, Romi Levy and Aicha Coulibaly, the Tigers found themselves within as few as four points as the half drew to its conclusion.
Equally as impressive for redshirt senior Scott-Grayson, the guard recorded her 1000th career point on a smooth stroke from the charity stripe.
"Honesty was huge in the game," Harris said. "Not just scoring, but in everything."
The late second quarter momentum did not cease in the second half for Auburn as the group stormed back from what was an eight-point deficit to regain the lead for the first time since the opening minutes; the group shot north of 50 percent from the field in the third period, limited turnovers and got the ball in the hands of a red-hot Coulibaly en route to outscoring the Rebs 24-12 in the third period alone.
As the fourth quarter began, there was an energy within Neville Arena unseen to this point in the 2022-23 campaign. The Tigers kept their faithful engaged until the very end, playing a back-and-forth contest, shooting north of 45 percent from the field and forcing the contest into more dramatics: an overtime period.
To depict the overtime period as a thriller might be the understatement of the season thus far; Auburn and Ole Miss took turns trading baskets with the Tigers ultimately outscoring their foes by just one basket.
The ultimate difference? A made three-pointer by Coulibaly who ended her night with an eye-popping 31 points.
"I was tired of losing," Coulibaly said. "We were desperate for a win."
Harris and company will look to build upon Sunday's clash with Ole Miss when the group heads to Lexington, Ky. to take on the ever-threatening Wildcats on the road. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT on SEC Network plus and the Auburn Sports Network.
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