AUBURN, Ala. — No. 2 Auburn (12-1) defeated Monmouth (2-11) 87-58 Monday night inside Neville Arena to close out non-conference play. With the win, Auburn now has the best record in non-conference play of any SEC team over the last nine seasons with a 93-15 record.
The path to making history Monday night started a little rocky, however. The Tigers found themselves in a back-and-forth game early before pulling away for another big victory. With 6:38 to play in the first half, Auburn found itself tied at 28 with Monmouth.
Through the first 13 minutes of the game, Auburn’s defense struggled to contain Monmouth’s offense. From the under-seven mark on, Auburn’s defense adjusted and the Tigers controlled the rest of the game. Auburn went on an 18-0 run to close out the first half — entering the half up 46-28.
“We had a little break so you know coming back in, just a little sluggish,” Auburn guard Chad Baker-Mazara said. “But you know, finally got into that rhythm and you know shots started hitting and we started getting back into our little rhythm.”
Auburn continued its dominance in the second half. The Tigers went on a 26-10 run in the first ten minutes of the second half extending the lead to 30.
The scoring for the Tigers was spread out Monday night. Four Tigers scored double-digits while two others scored nine. The Tigers totaled 22 assists with only seven turnovers — distributing the ball efficiently throughout the game. Center Dylan Cardwell also added to the history of the night recording his first double-double of his long career with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
“A double-double is something I’ve come close to in my recent years,” Cardwell said. “It’s something I prayed for, something I just couldn’t grasp. It really frustrated me. Then in the end of the day, it’s something I did differently, something the Lord allowed.”
Auburn did not play its best game, but still found a way to win the game comfortably. Along with starting the game slowly on the defensive end, Auburn shot well below its season average from the field and three-point line. The Tigers shot 44% and 27% from the two respectively. Despite those percentages, Auburn still scored nearly 90 points in the game.
All in all, the non-conference season for Auburn was a major success. Not only did the Tigers set the record for the best winning percentage by any SEC team in non-conference play over the last nine seasons. The Tigers also finished this season’s non-conference slate with only one loss despite playing seven Quad I opponents. The lone loss came on the road to Duke.
“It was the toughest non-conference schedule in the history of Auburn basketball and we lost one game at Duke in a close game,” Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl said. “So very, very proud of our kids and a lot of the games we played were on neutral sites and away from home.”
Auburn is in an excellent position heading into SEC play, but the schedule will be a grind. However, the Tigers will have a chance to make more history.
“We get ready to start, you know, the toughest conference schedule in the history of college basketball,” Pearl said. “Like there’s maybe never been a league like this. The strong, literally are going to be the only ones that are going to survive.”
SEC play begins at home for Auburn. The Tigers will host Missouri inside Neville Arena on Saturday. The game will tip at 3:00 PM on the Auburn Sports Network and the SEC Network.
