AUBURN, Ala. — The Auburn Tigers (12-17, 3-13) lost their fifth game in a row today against the Mississippi State Bulldogs (20-10, 7-9) with a final score of 73-66 to mark the end of SEC conference basketball.
The Tigers started the game strong, holding the Bulldogs to nine points in the first quarter. Auburn’s DeYona Gaston was especially impressive to start the game, scoring ten of Auburn’s 17 points scored in the first quarter.
Auburn maintained a solid lead for the rest of the first half, with their largest lead coming at the start of the second quarter at ten points. Mississippi State, though, was able to slowly and steadily cut the lead down, eventually cutting the score down to a single possession. However, Auburn ended the half with a solid seven-point lead.
The Bulldogs came out of halftime strong, opening the third quarter on an 11-0 run, before DeYona Gaston made Auburn’s first basket of the quarter nearly halfway through the quarter. Mississippi State’s run to open up the quarter set the tone for the rest of the game, and once the Bulldogs were ahead, they were never down for the rest of the game.
Auburn did cut Mississippi State’s lead down to a single possession early in the fourth quarter after DeYona Gaston scored four points in a row, but the Bulldogs were able to get the lead back up to two possessions rapidly, and that was the closest the Tigers got for the rest of the game.
While Auburn did not win the game, DeYona Gaston continues to be an efficient and effective player for the Tigers, regardless of whether they are winning or losing. Gaston finished the game with 33 points, which is half of Auburn’s points against Mississippi State.
Gaston’s ability to score points whenever she is needed helps the Tigers when they are down; however, it is also a disadvantage, especially when the rest of the team is not hitting shots, which makes it easier for opposing teams to shut the Tigers down.
Compared to Auburn’s single star of the game in DeYona Gaston, Mississippi State had a much more balanced offense with four players scoring double-digit points in Jordan Jerkaila, Chandler Prater, Debreasha Powe, and Eniya Russell.
Overall, the Bulldogs' balanced offense was effective, and the Tigers were unable to slow their offense down in the second half to win the game.
With the SEC regular season now over, Auburn’s next game will be in the SEC tournament, in which they will enter as the 14-seed, and if they want a chance to play in the NCAA tournament, they’ll need to go on a run in the SEC tournament.
