AUBURN, Ala. - Auburn women’s basketball took to the court against the Alabama A&M Bulldogs. After taking a commanding lead early in the first quarter, the Tigers did not look back in route to a 68-45 win.
“I thought we came out, played hard, set the tone defensively in that first quarter, and that’s what we wanted to do,” Auburn coach Johnnie Harris. “We wanted to get back to pressing. We wanted to ignite the offense.”
Right from the start Taylen Collins was off to the races, scoring five points while securing five rebounds in the first quarter alone. The senior transfer continued to shine, finishing with her first double-double in an Auburn jersey.
“Rebounding pushes my momentum a lot,” Collins said. “I tried to focus on being active on the boards and let those points come to me.”
With Honesty Scott-Grayson out due to injury, sophomore guard Sydney Shaw stepped into the leading role, scoring a team high 15 points.
“She played tough, she stepped up,” Harris said of Shaw. “She works hard in practice every day. It’s good to see her being rewarded for that.”
Shaw’s success heavily relied on the outside shot, going 3-for-6 from beyond the arc against the Bulldogs.
“She played tough, she stepped up,” Harris said of Shaw. “She works hard in practice every day. It’s good to see her being rewarded for that.”
Auburn was able to shoot 45% from behind the arc, much improved from recent games. The team was focused on taking the first quality shot in the victory.
By taking quality shots on the perimeter Auburn was able to open the floor to quality looks in the paint. The team finished with 32 points there. Savannah Scott, once again, led the way in that area of the floor, collected eight points.
Turnovers were a constant issue that often dampened the run of play for the Tigers. After committing 10 first half turnovers, Harris expected to see improvement in the second half, however the Tigers once again turned the ball over 10 times.
Auburn will be back in action against Clemson this Thursday at Neville Arena. The matchup is scheduled for an 8:00 p.m. tip with coverage on the SEC Network and Auburn Sports Network.
“It’s a matchup we’ve been looking forward to,” Harris said on the upcoming game. “We’ll have a good game plan together. We’ll be ready.”
