Auburn, Alabama – Auburn Arena screams “Number One” in seconds.

The tiger will probably be there in a day or two.

No. 2 Auburn snapped a double-digit deficit and worst foul of the first half, 80-71 on Saturday afternoon. 12 brought down Kentucky.

Bruce Perla This week, Auburn called the game “the biggest home game I’ve ever coached in my life” and the Tigers win had many implications. They have a 7-0 SEC advantage in league play, and they don’t need to play Kentucky again during the regular season.

“For us, I think this is the sum of our territory,” Pearl said. “If we usually play with nine men or sometimes with 10 you have to take everything into account. And I think we got a big contribution from everyone.”

These were takeaways straight from Auburn Undercover on Saturday, as the Tigers advanced into the second half and the crowd grew at home to a big convention win.

Turnover hurts the Tigers from the start

Auburn didn’t do anything easy during the first half, but their early turnover problems allowed Kentucky to build on a double-digit lead in the opening minutes of the game.

Three substitutions in the first three minutes earned Kentucky 7 points, and ‘Gates ended up making it 13-0. It’s hard to defend in Auburn’s backcourt against Kentucky Point Card Zahveer Wheeler, the Auburn hub while allowing for an easy England great reversal opportunity Walker Kessler you dylan cardwell He left his position.

Half or more of Wildgates’ points, for the most part, came from Auburn’s turnover. The Tigers joined in the previous two games and won eight first-half honors just after 14. Kentucky shot 45.5% in the first 20 minutes.

Kentucky leads 10, 19-9 in about 7 minutes.

The Tigers were calm, despite only giving Kentucky 14 points in the next 13 minutes. Kessler, like many other players this season, has not been intimidated by the England big man. Sailing Oscar, and highlight the team that scored with 11 points during the break. As the perimeter continued to battle aggressively, Kessler was a reliable goalscorer, scoring 11 points on a 4-for-5 shot at halftime.

Benefits for Auburn Backcourt

Kentucky freshman custodian order washington, Second leading rookie in the game, behind SEC (14.2 points) Jabri Smith, suffered an ankle injury in the first half and went straight to the locker room.

The former five-star signing and Kentucky’s second-highest scorer, Washington only played 9 minutes ago. Points on 1 of 7 shots in the first half).

After Washington left, Auburn entered the Plus-18 game.

However, Wheeler was a tough guy. He passes the Auburn keeper regularly with 15 points and three assists on 6-for-10 shots.

But he was also injured, this time in the second half. He sprinted across Kessler’s screen and lay on the ground for a few minutes. Him and Washington out, Kentucky wing davian mind Race point.

“The Kentucky team was short when TyTy crashed,” Pearl said. “So Wheeler hurt his ankle a little bit or something. Those guys paraded us like they did in the first half and told you they are a winning team with a champion coach.”

Wheeler returned at 7:30 and was as slick as before his injury.

Tigers blow up the roof of Auburn Arena

Auburn struck very comfortably early in the second half, with a concerted effort to hit the edge and continue to attract fouls from Kentucky.

Katie Johnson’s quick five points (17 points) were tied for the first time 2 minutes into the game.

Auburn then went on to score 12-2, catching a pair of goals. god of cambridge Break dunk – The first team changes points in the afternoon. With 14 minutes remaining, the Tigers lead 45-40. Juan Calibari It was called Deadline after the Cambridge attack, and the noise within the Auburn Arena was deafening.

However, a quick five points from Kentucky, including a 3-pointer from Wheeler, missed the rebound for the Tigers to level again with 12:30 remaining.

Wendell Green Jr. (He contributed 11 points and an assist) Then he entered the scoring column under pressure, doubled in 25 seconds. Wheeler Kessler was injured on screen during his second three-pointer.

Remember Auburn’s rotation problem in the first half? With 7:38 left in the game, the lack of substitutions in the second half also helped boost their attacking confidence. It was a shot and watch offense; The first half missed Auburn in the second half not until 5:38.

Overall, Auburn were a different attacking team after the break. The Tigers’ ball movement was smooth and they turned the display into a very revealing one, resulting in 56.8% shooting clip for the game – their best this season at Auburn.

“We stopped turning the ball,” Pearl said. “We did a good job, we did well at the break. We weren’t very organized to stretch, and we arrived with a lot of empty stuff. That plan certainly pissed us off.”

“We made some changes. We expected some of that, and then we did a good job in the second half attacking my bench.”

With 10 minutes remaining, Auburn had the biggest lead of the game at 58-48, shooting almost 65% from the floor in the second half.

Three times apart in the second half, after being fouled from outside the arc, an Auburn player was sent on to the line. All three Tigers (Smith, Johnson and Jailin Williams) made all nine of their free throws.

Kentucky had three straight shots and made several useful trips to the free-throw line, with 3 minutes remaining 68-64 in some possession.

But Auburn continued to extend their second half, including a foul line that made their first 16 attempts. The Tigers went 21-for-23 from the free throw line in the second half.

“We got the right people (free throws) on the line, not turning them over, keeping the ball,” Pearl said. “Different people pressed the ball. We only turned it against pressure once too late. It was very solid.”

Kessler wins the battle inside

If Wheeler’s drive is hard to maintain, it’s nearly impossible to stop Green Jr.’s lobes. on the way to Kessler.

Kessler was the most impressive player in the gym on Saturday, scoring 19 points with six rebounds and a pair of blocks.

Green Jr. helped half of Kessler’s eight basketball sets because Shift Point cards could go in and out of Kessler on the other side of the line.

Smith (14 points) found Kessler in the bottom of the basket in less than 2 minutes; His seventh game led 74-68 for Auburn.

“They only count as 2 points, but to do those things obviously you have to implement certain things,” Perl said of Kessler’s attacking win. “You have to have the best projection, the best skills and the best man in the country. Not many men can do what he can, it’s not just because he’s 7 feet tall. He is good in the air, attack and defense. He has good hands and is not afraid. He must have had some chances. It requires rest and will require players like Ventel. Sep (Jasper) Those guys can get the ball and Walker has to finish it.

“Once you put Jafari in court, they don’t let him. You can paste it in several places. Well, you don’t want to leave it alone because you don’t want to have it. Numbers, okay. We will take advantage of that gap.”

Kessler and Smith each collected 7 percent ahead of Auburn as the Tigers were able to win the battle on the board (27-26) and enter the game, rebounding team No. 1 in the country.

“Jafri is seven, Walker is five, and Allen is four,” Pearl said. “All three guide us: his health. Jabari got some big rebounds. Walker is really competing. Apparently, Shipway is a great guy; got their number. The others aren’t for Kentucky.”

Tiger number one. one?

Auburn dropped four points to No. 1 in the AP poll last week, ahead of Gonzalez. Since then, he’s started amassing a pair of SEC wins at home, including Saturday’s win against Kentucky, which ranks 12th in the AP Poll and 10th in the NET NCAA Rankings. Gonzalo played one game this week and beat San Francisco at home.

So have the Tigers done enough to earn the No. Their first 1 in the history of the show? While not a groundbreaking contribution to the genre, College Basketball impresses with its laid-back, hard-core style.

The AP Top 25 CST will be released Monday at 11 a.m.

“We’re not worried about the rankings now,” Johnson said after the game. “We are only focused on April.”

In addition, the victory over Kentucky put Auburn in first place with the SEC with a score of 7-0. Wildgates 5-2 and Texas A&M 4-1.

Auburn faces Missouri on the road next Tuesday.