In the first round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament, Bruce Pearl led his No. 2 seeded Auburn Tigers to Greenville, SC to take on the No. 15 seeded Jacksonville State Gamecocks at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. The starting five for Auburn were K.D. Johnson, Jabari Smith, Zep Jasper, Allen Flanigan, and Walker Kessler. The starting five for Jacksonville State were Jalen Finch, Kayne Henry, Jalen Gibbs, Darian Adams, and Brandon Huffman.
K.D. Johnson got the scoring started with a lay-up on Auburn’s first possession. When asked about how it helped get him going, he said “It was very big, I struggled the last game and I was focused on the win”. Jabari Smith followed that up with a three-pointer on the next one.
Things did stall out after that however, as Auburn did not score again until Jabari Smith hit a mid-range jumper at the 16:07 mark. A dunk from Dylan Cardwell got the Auburn fans going again. A Devin Cambridge block helped too. A dunk from Walker Kessler gave Auburn an 11-8 lead with 13:17 left to play in the first half, but a Jacksonville State three-pointer would tie the game up. Another one on the next possession put the Gamecocks up 14-11.
Wendell Green hit a three-pointer to make the score 17-14 with 10:57 left in the first half. With 6:02 left, Auburn had taken a 22-21 lead. K.D. Johnson provided a spark for Auburn, hitting a big three-pointer to put Auburn up by four. Auburn found a rhythm towards the end of the first half, as they held a 36-27 lead with 1:15 left. Walker Kessler was asked about how Auburn got rolling towards the end of the first half. He said, “I think we just understood we need to play together.” When the first half ended, Auburn was on top 39-27.
Auburn’s leading scorer in the first half was Walker Kessler with nine points. K.D. Johnson and Zep Jasper led Auburn in assists with four each. Walker Kessler also led Auburn in rebounds with six. Jacksonville State’s leading scorer was Jalen Gibbs with 15 points. Darian Adams led the Gamecocks in assists with three. Brandon Huffman led them in rebounds with three.
It only took Auburn about 20 seconds to score in the second half. Bruce Pearl was asked about this and he answered, “When they were fresh, they were able to make shots.” On the next possession K.D. Johnson was fouled and hit both free-throws. Jabari Smith followed that up with a three-pointer.
With 18:05 left in the game, Auburn was up 46-27. Allen Flanigan hit a lay-up to extend Auburn’s lead to 19. Jabari Smith would hit another three-pointer on the next possession. Jabari Smith hit another three-pointer at the 12:30 mark to give Auburn a 58-40 lead. Auburn continued to control things as they held a 66-50 lead with 8:00 left in the game. When it was all said and done, Auburn had picked up the 81-60 win.
Auburn’s leading scorer was Jabari Smith with 20 points. K.D. Johnson led the Tigers in assists with seven. Jabari Smith also led Auburn in rebounds with 14. The leading scorer for Jacksonville State was Jalen Gibbs with 20 points. Demaree King led the Gamecocks in assists with five. Brandon Huffman led them in rebounds with seven.
Bruce Pearl said, “Auburn’s defense was outstanding. That’s been what has carried us all season long and that gives us our best chance in the tournament.” He was asked about the team’s efficiency on offense. He answered, “We’ve not played that well in a while. So we talked about obviously sharing the ball.”
Auburn will be back in action on Sunday against the winner of the Miami/USC game.
