Auburn basketball bounces back from another slow start, demolishes Alabama State
Auburn basketball started slow for the fourth straight game against Alabama State on Friday.
The Tigers (9-2) also picked up their fourth consecutive win.
Coach Bruce Pearl's team trailed by three points more than seven minutes into its matchup with the Hornets (4-7) in Neville Arena. The Tigers, who were heavy favorites, went nearly five minutes without registering a made field goal early in the game. They also turned the ball over seven times before eight minutes had elapsed.
That didn't matter, as Auburn once again closed the first half on a massive run after starting off slow. The Tigers ultimately boat raced Alabama State 82-62 to pick up their ninth win in their past 10 games.
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Jaylin Williams remains aggressive for Auburn basketball
Senior forward Jaylin Williams started the season averaging 7.7 points through his first seven appearances this season.
He's topped that number in each of his past four games, and he reached double figures for the sixth time in 2023. He finished with a team-high 20 points on 70% shooting, which puts him over 1,000 for his career. KD Johnson reached the 1,000-point milestone, too, as he dropped 13 points on 50% shooting. Johnson connected on three of his five triples.
Johni Broome was the third Tiger with at least 10 points. He finished with 16 on nine shots while also pulling in 13 rebounds, securing his 15th double-double in an Auburn uniform.
Another even performance
As transfer shooting guard Denver Jones' and-one layup went down early in the second half, Auburn earned its third straight game that featured all 11 of its rotation pieces logging a point. Six of those players had at least two made field goals, and the team combined to shoot 46.3% from the field.
Uncharacteristic turnovers
The Tigers finished the opening 20 minutes with 12 turnovers, an uncharacteristic performance for a team that's proven to value the ball. Auburn came in averaging 10.1 giveaways per game, and hadn't turned it over more than 10 times since its 84-54 win over Alabama A&M on Nov. 21.
What's next
Auburn will host Chattanooga in Neville Arena on Dec. 30. The Mocs have won three of their past four games, with the exception being a loss to Milwaukee.
Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on Twitter @rich_silva18.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Auburn basketball runs away from Alabama State for fourth straight win
