Despite a strong defensive effort, the Auburn Tigers have dropped their second in a row with a 63-55 loss to the UCF Knights in Orlando. The Tigers fall to 1-2 on the season while this was UCF's first game and win of the bizarre 2020 season.
Auburn's excellent defense held the Knights to 36.8% shooting from the floor, including 29.2% from three. UCF also turned the ball over 18 times. The Knights only real positive on offense came with free throw shooting, which they shot 73.7% for the night.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, they experienced even more issues on the offensive side of the ball. The Tigers shot a poor 32.3% from the floor, including only 20.6% from the three point line. They also had issues with ball control, turning the ball over 21 times. The biggest issue for Auburn tonight actually came at the free throw line, where the team shot an abysmal 36.4%.
"Offensively it was a disaster, no other way of putting it," head coach Bruce Pearl said following the loss.
The Tigers had a slow start on offense, scoring only 21 points in the first half and they were down nine heading into halftime. Despite a better performance in the second half, the damage was done and the Tigers could not string some shots together to cut into the deficit.
“We need to play with more confidence we need to play with more physicality," said Pearl when asked about what the offense needs to do to improve.
Coach Pearl will have some time to work with his players, as Auburn is not scheduled to return to action until Friday, Dec. 4th. This will be Auburn's first game in Auburn Arena this season and tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. CST and the game will be live on SEC Network.
