aubiefifty

Updated: Feb. 18, 2023, 10:34 p.m.|Published: Feb. 18, 2023, 10:18 p.m. 3–4 minutes Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl shouts to players during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against South Carolina Saturday, Jan. 21, 2023, in Columbia, S.C. Auburn won 81-66. (AP Photo/Sean Rayford)AP By Nubyjas Wilborn | nwilborn@al.com Auburn’s hopes of escaping Nashville with a victory got dashed with Ezra Manjon sprinting 94 feet to the basket with a running layup as the clock expired at Memorial Gym. Vanderbilt won its fifth-game consecutive game in Southeastern Conference play with a 67-65 triumph on Saturday against the Tigers. “Once again, really disappointed. I thought we played well defensively,” Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl told reporters after the game via Zoom. “Held Vanderbilt six below their number at home. Held them to 20 field goals. I’m not sure Vanderbilt has won a game when they only had 20 field goals.” Auburn trailed 31-27 after a buzzer-beating three by Allen Flanigan, who finished the contest with five points on 2-6 shooting. The Tigers shot 11-30 at the half and were 2-10 from three. Vandy went 9-30 from the field but was 5-10 on threes. Johni Broome scored eight of Auburn’s first 10 points in the second half while Auburn took the lead. Broome connected on a dunk with 6:03 left to give the Tigers a 57-54 lead. Broome led the Tigers with 17 points on 8-15 shooting, 1-3 from three, and was 3-4 from the free throw line. Broome got outscored by Vandy’s big man Liam Robbins. Broome mostly guarded Robbins, who shot 3-10 from the field. Broome made Robbins uncomfortable all game, however, Robbins shot 20 free throws and hit 17 of them. Speaking of free throws, the Tigers shot 5-10 from the charity stripe compared to 20-27 for Vandy. The free throw disparity is intriguing, considering that Auburn outscored Vandy 40-22 in the paint. “No explanation,” Pearl told reporters when asked about the free throw disparity. “There really isn’t much of an explanation for it.” Perhaps the biggest miss from the free-throw line was by Wendell Green with 1:53 left. Auburn could’ve gone ahead by two points if Green made both free throws. Green finished with five points on 2-14 shooting and was 0-3 from three and 1-2 from the line. Auburn led 62-61 after Green’s free throw miss. Vandy scored the next four points with free throws by Robbins and Manjon to give the Commodores a three-point lead. K.D. Johnson scored his biggest three points with less than 10 seconds left. Johnson tied the game at 65. Unfortunately, for Auburn, the layup by Manjon sent the Tigers back to the Plains with a loss. Auburn is 18-9 after the loss and 8-6 in conference action. Auburn will host Ole Miss Wednesday at Neville Arena. “You win at the end by getting stops and getting to the free-throw line,” Pearl told reporters. “We didn’t even get in the bonus in the second half.” Nubyjas Wilborn covers Auburn for Alabama Media Group

247sports.com Last-second basket gives Vandy a victory over Auburn Mark Murphy 6–7 minutes NASHVILLE, Tennessee–Vanderbilt guard Ezra Manjon’s layup with three-tenths of a second left pushed the Commodores past Auburn 67-65 on Saturday night at Memorial Gymnasium. Vandy improved to 8-6 in SEC basketball play to tie Auburn for fifth place in the league standings as the Tigers dropped to 3-4 in SEC road games. Auburn lost despite making seven more field goals and out-shooting the Commodores 43.5 percent to 35.7 percent from the field. Vandy overcame that by making 20-26 free throws while Auburn made just 5-10. The Tigers dropped to 18-9 overall after losing a game that included 15 lead changes. Vanderbilt improved to 15-12 with and won a fifth straight game. Auburn got 20 points and six rebounds from Johni Broome plus 17 points and five rebounds from Jaylin Williams, who hit 8-12 field goals. After the game Coach Bruce Pearl said that Broome came through with a strong performance despite dealing with an illness that limited him in practice this week. K.D. Johnson tied the game with a three-point shot with 10.9 seconds left after Manjon hit two free throws with 23.9 seconds remaining to put the home team up 65-62. Manjon, a transfer point guard, drove the length of the court for the winning basket. "We talked about switching everything," Pearl said of Auburn's failed defensive strategy at the end of the game. "The kid came downhill with quite a head of steam. Jaylin Williams' man set a screen on him. Jaylin was at a little bit of a bad angle and was just kind of late switching on him and taking him to the rim. "I probably could have done a better job during the timeout to get my fours and fives to just sort of loosen up and the take the ball away from the rim," Pearl added. "I put Dylan Cardwell in for shot-blocking and thinking that maybe he would get switched off and protect them at the rim, but they went at Jaylin instead and he (Manjon) had a pretty good head of steam against Zep (Jasper). Vanderbilt got 24 points from seven-foooter Liam Robbins, who made just 3-10 field goals, but killed the Tigers at the free throw line. He added 12 rebounds for the Commodores with eight coming on the offensive boards. "Liam Robbins was 17-20 at the foul line," Pearl said. "I don't know how you overcome that. I just don't." Vanderbilt led for 16 minutes in the first half, building the lead to as many as nine points at the 11:42 mark thanks to three consecutive made treys to make the score 15-6. Auburn couldn’t cut the gap to less than four points the rest of the period, which was what Vandy’s lead was at intermission with the score 31-27. Williams was the main man for the visitors on offense in the first period. He hit 6-8 field goals while scoring 12 points. He only took four shots the rest of the night and made two of them. Pearl said that Williams "did a great" job on Saturday night. "We would have liked to gotten it in there to him more," AU's coach said. Asked about the difference in field goal attempts for Williams from the first to second half, Pearl said, "They probably went a little stickier to him." Auburn made 11-30 field goals for 36.7 percent, was 2-10 on threes and 3-6 at the free throw line in the opening half. Vanderbilt made 9-30 field goals in the first half for 30 percent, was 5-11 on threes and 8-12 at the free throw line. Seven-foot center Roberts scored 13 first half points for Vandy. Turnovers weren’t an issue for either team in the first half with Auburn having three and Vandy four. The Commodores out-rebounded the Tigers 24-18 by intermission. Broome scored four baskets in the first four minutes of the second half to help the Tigers take a 37-36 lead. The Tigers led 55-49 with 7:58 left on a three-pointer by Lior Berman, who came off the bench to score eight points. That matched his collegiate high scoring game. Vandy tied the contest at 57-57 with 4:35 to play. Auburn’s last lead was 62-61 as Wendell Green made 1-2 free throws with 1:53 to play. Auburn didn't score again until Johnson hit a three-pointer with just under 11 seconds remaining. Vandy the called timeout to set up the game-winning play. K.D. Johnson hits a three-pointer with 10.9 seconds left to tie Vanderbilt. (Photo: George Walker, IV, USA TODAY Sports) Auburn finished with 41 rebounds, seven less than Vandy. Auburn turned the ball over nine times, one less than Vandy. Auburn outscored the home team 18-13 in bench points and 8-4 in fastbreak points. The three-point shooting was close with Auburn making 6-19 and Vandy hitting 7-18. Stat of the Game: Vandy shot 26 free throws, 16 more than Auburn. Worth Noting, Part 1: Auburn outscored Vandy 40-22 for points in the paint. Worth Noting, Part 2: After dishing out nine assists with no turnovers on Tuesday night vs. Missouri when he focused on play-making, Green shot the ball 14 times vs. the Commodores and made two field goals. He was 0-3 on treys and 1-2 at the foul line and finished with five points, one assist and two turnovers. On the plus side the junior point guard led the Tigers in rebounds with eight and had three of Auburn's six steals. Broome Ball: Third-year sophomore Broome, a transfer from Morehead State, also scored 20 points on Tuesday vs. Missouri. He has four games of at least 20 points this season and 22nd as a collegian.

5 takeaways from Auburn's last-second loss at Vanderbilt Nathan King 7–9 minutes Another game, another tough finish for Auburn. The Tigers led with 1:14 remaining but yet again were bested down the stretch of a tight game, losing 67-65 at Vanderbilt on Ezra Manjon’s layup with 0.8 seconds left. Here are Auburn Undercover’s five takeaways, as the Tigers are back in the loss column for the sixth time in their last eight games. Auburn can’t close out — again A feed from Manjon to Liam Robbins for a dunk made for an 8-2 lead by Vanderbilt — after Auburn took its biggest lead of the game with eight minutes remaining — and the Commodores tied the game 57-57 with 4:30 remaining. So Auburn was, yet again, going to be in another tight game in the final minutes, as it had been in most losses this season. And Bruce Pearl has been preaching that his team needed to close out and reverse its late-game woes if it was going to steal any of its final three road games of the season. Robbins drew a foul on Johni Broome with 2:49 left, giving him his 17th and 18th free throw attempts of the game — his most this season. Both were good to give Vanderbilt a 61-59 lead, but Allen Flanigan immediately responded with a jumper on the other end. Wendell Green Jr., Auburn’s best free-throw shooter this season, split a pair of freebies, giving the Tigers only a 1-point lead at 62-61. Auburn looked to get a stop, but Robbins tracked down an offensive rebound, and Jerry Stackhouse called timeout. Trey Thomas missed a layup, but Robbins again got an offensive board, and he was fouled by Green Jr. attempting a put-back. However, Thomas’ shot didn’t hit rim, so the buzzer for a shot-clock violation rang almost simultaneously with the foul call. The officials had a lengthy review to see if the shot clock expired before the foul was called, and the verdict was that the fall occurred before the buzzer. Robbins made both free throws, and Vanderbilt clung to a 63-62 lead with 63 seconds left. Robbins blocked Broome’s shot on the other end, but the ball went out of bounds and stayed with Auburn, keeping possession with the Tigers. Jaylin Williams missed a 3-pointer, and Auburn just had to foul Manjon, who made both free throws. But miraculously, K.D. Johnson, who had made just one shot all night, picked up a tipped ball, pump faked and stepped back for a triple to tie the game at 65-65 with 10 seconds left. After Auburn’s timeout, though, Manjon went right at the basket and scored off a high layup over Dylan Cardwell and Auburn’s interior defense with only 0.8 remaining to seal yet another frustrating late-game defeat for the Tigers. "Put Zep (Jasper) in to pressure the ball, put Dylan in maybe as a rim protector," Pearl said of the final possession. "And we're switching everything. The idea was that (Manjon) would go downhill, so put some size at the rim. And unfortunately, he came with a head of steam. Zep didn't do much to slow him down." Another narrow loss stings Auburn has now lost five road games by single digits, as the Tigers continue to come up short in the final minutes of tight matchups. Auburn had a 6-point lead with eight minutes left but went scoreless for three minutes, allowing Vanderbilt to tie things up. The Commodores did a big portion of their damage at the foul line, where they shot 27 free throws. Of Vanderbilt's 8 points in the final two minutes, six came from the foul line. "To win at the end, you have to get stops, and you have to get the foul line," Pearl said. "We never even got into the bonus in the second half. You win by getting stops and getting to the free-throw line." Auburn leans on its bigs It was clear early on that the Tigers’ shooting touch wasn’t clicking like it was last game, when they had their best 3-point performance of the season against Missouri (9-of-18). So they looked to the inside for their scoring production most of the night. Williams led the way with 12 points in the first half, all in the paint. Auburn had 18 points in the paint in the first half and 40 for the game. Vanderbilt had an opposite offensive emphasis. The Commodores opened the game 5-of-11 from beyond the arc, breaking a slow start for both teams by making three straight 3-pointers. A perfect encapsulation of the teams’ differing offensive strengths came when Broome had three straight baskets out of the break to give Auburn its first lead, 33-31, since less than five minutes into the game. Vanderbilt immediately grabbed the lead right back, though, with a 3-pointer from Thomas. Everything was working for Williams, who finished with 17 points on 8-of-12 shooting, plus six rebounds, two assists and a block. "Jaylin's 8-for-12 and doesn't go to the foul line," Pearl said. "Did a great job. Would have liked to have got it in there to him more." Broome also had a big night, with 20 points, 8 of which came in the first three minutes of the second half. Pearl commended him for his performance after he missed two days of practice this week. "He was not feeling well after the game (against Missouri) and was out Wednesday and Thursday," Pearl said. "Came back to practice Friday, so very impressed with the fact that he was able to get it turned around. He's a great competitor." Both he and Williams hit a 3-pointer in the second half, too — Williams’ off the backboard in transition, and Broome’s in the corner when the defense sagged off of him. Despite so much success in the paint for Auburn — and 43 2-point attempts — the Tigers were only afforded 10 foul shots for the game. "There really isn't much of an explanation for it," Pearl said. Robbins’ gravity key for Vanderbilt By the end of the night, simply dumping the ball inside to Robbins was usually a recipe for success for the Commodores. Robbins shot just 3-for-10 from the field but posted a game-high 24 points and 12 rebounds, buoyed by a whopping 17-for-20 clip at the foul line. "He made three two-point baskets and was 17 for 20 from the foul line," Pearl said. "Hard to beat." Though Williams and Broome were successful offensively, Robbins was a big reason why Vanderbilt walked away with the rebounding advantage — 41-35 overall and 13-10 on the offensive glass. And as Cardwell said this week, "the only teams that can beat us are the teams that can beat us on the boards." Off night for Auburn backcourt While Auburn’s bigs were cooking, its backcourt — save for walk-on Lior Berman — had a mostly forgettable night. Green Jr. shot just 2-of-14 from the floor and finished with 5 points — though he corralled a season-high eight rebounds. Johnson hit the tying 3-pointer late and shot 2-of-5 with 6 points. Jasper didn’t score. Flanigan went 2-for-6 from his wing position. "I thought Ezra did a great job on (Green Jr.)," Pearl said. "Did great, got up underneath him, just did a great job defensively on him. Made it really difficult." Green Jr. now has 10 points on 2-of-18 shooting over his past two games. It was Berman who provided the most scoring punch from the backcourt, with 8 points for the second straight game. 4COMMENTS

flywareagle.com B/R shockingly projects Auburn football rival’s quarterback to transfer to the Plains Andrew Hughes 2–3 minutes Bleacher Report's Brad Shepard shockingly projected a Georgia Bulldogs quarterback to join Auburn football via the transfer portal Mandatory Credit: Online Athens Bleacher Report’s Brad Shepard is projecting a shocking wild card to enter the Auburn football quarterback room: Georgia signal-caller Brock Vandagriff, who Shepard projects to lose out in the Bulldogs QB battle to Carson Beck. AU did not add any of their transfer portal targets (Grayson McCall, Devin Leary, Brennan Armstrong) for one reason or another during this past recruiting cycle and Hugh Freeze has not been overly complimentary of the room since taking over. Perhaps poaching a passer in the spring is on the table if Robby Ashford and Holden Geriner — and possibly T.J. Finley, though analysts believe it may be time to give up on giving him snaps — don’t show a firm grasp of the offense. Shepard believes Vandagriff’s time being coached by former UGA offensive coordinator and current Baltimore Ravens OC Todd Monken could help the QB overcome facing low-level high school competition to be an impact addition to the Tigers: “Vandagriff is a 6’3″, 205-pound former 5-star from Bogart, Georgia, who didn’t play strong competition in high school and hasn’t broken through with UGA. But two years under offensive coordinator Todd Monken had to help. He may upgrade Auburn’s situation.” B/R links Auburn football to Gunner Stockton as well Shepard really likes the idea of a Georgia quarterback making his way to the Plains, projecting both Vandagriff and redshirt freshman Gunner Stockton to draw Auburn football transfer interest in the coming months. AU pursued Stockton but ultimately lost out to UGA in January 2021. It doesn’t appear as though there’s an open path to snaps for both Beck and Vandagriff. While Vandagriff has at least seen the field, it’s likely that one of them will be squeezed out. Perhaps the one that does will give a long hard look at Auburn. The Tigers could use competition in a room Freeze is begging to see more from.

AUBURN, Alabama — As much as Dylan Cardwell wanted to celebrate, he had to go wrangle up his teammates. Allen Flanigan's poster dunk early against Missouri served as the highlight moment from Auburn's 89-56 obliteration of the visiting Tigers on Tuesday night. It made the rounds on social media, and most everyone inside Neville Arena — from players to fans — lost their mind at the senior's hammer in transition. But Cardwell was worried about the momentum being broken by a technical foul on Auburn's bench. "Yohan (Traore) and K.D. (Johnson) ran on the court, and I was trying to avoid getting a tech," Cardwell said Thursday. "So I just shoved Yohan on the baseline toward the photographers. K.D. was out at the 3-point line and I was like dog, we're gonna get a tech. I had to hold K.D. up the whole time. It was worth it. "That was one of the best dunks I've seen in The Jungle in my time here." Cardwell's recollection confirmed what Johnson said after the win. "I almost got a tech for running on the court," Johnson said. "I’m glad Dylan grabbed me and he held me for about 10 seconds. That was crazy. ... You know he had a little anger built up." Center Johni Broome had a simpler response when asked for his reaction: "Oh, sh--." To give Auburn a 30-6 lead over Mizzou out of the gates, Flanigan was the beneficiary of a steal by Jaylin Williams, who poked the ball away at Missouri's free-throw line. It ended up right in Flanigan's hands, and he immediately took off in transition. Kaleb Brown was the only defender ahead of him, and Noah Carter, who had the turnover, tried to sprint back and help protect the rim. But Flanigan had his mind set on a dunk from the moment he got the ball and saw he could beat Brown to the rack. Brown ran with him until Flanigan used his right arm to create space for the dunk. Cardwell said he thought Flanigan was going to get called for an offensive foul. "I was going, and he just kept coming with me," Flanigan said. "I tried to get an angle to get outside. He just kept running so I just gave him a nudge and a little gap opened up. So I jumped. ... I was just trying to get around him so I could get a clear (dunk), but he kept coming." Brown had faded back under the basket, but Carter attempted to reach a hand in and defend the dunk. Flanigan punched it home as Carter backed away at the last second. Auburn posted a video of former Jabari Smith, the Tigers' All-American freshman and No. 3 overall draft pick, reacting to Flanigan's dunk on his Instagram story. Smith and Flanigan roomed together during the 2021-22 season, and Flanigan said Smith often helped him rehab from his Achilles injury last preseason. "We were laughing on the phone," Flanigan said. "He said, 'You're finally dunking now. You want to jump.'" Having taken over as Auburn's starting small forward early in SEC play following Chris Moore's injury, Flanigan has been one of Auburn's most effective two-way players this season, shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 36.9 percent from beyond the arc against conference opponents, while often drawing the opponents' best players defensively, too, because of his size and position on the wing. "I think the thing is the efficiency," Bruce Pearl said Thursday of Flanigan. "He's shooting a good percentage. Not trying to do too much, but still playing with confidence and being aggressive. Not turning the ball over. Winning his matchup defensively. Rebounding. Just doing all the little things, that's the biggest thing we've been focusing on with Al. It is fun to watch him have a little bit of joy out there." 10COMMENTS *** Subscribe to Auburn Undercover for the latest news and intel, podcasts, recruiting coverage and more ***

247sports.com Play Ball: Auburn baseball opens season on Friday vs. Indiana Jason Caldwell 3–4 minutes AUBURN, Alabama—For Coach Butch Thompson and the Auburn baseball Tigers the work for the 2023 season will continue even after the first pitch is thrown against the Indiana Hoosiers on Friday, but it’s opening weekend at Plainsman Park and that means the first measuring stick for a program that is hoping to get back to the College World Series for the third time in the last four full seasons. Having to replace key pieces on the mound and at the plate, Auburn has a strong mixture of veterans and new faces who will take the field for the 4 p.m. CST first pitch on Friday. While the team has been together since September, Thompson said you never really know what’s going to happen until you step out there and face another team. “We talk about how you want the practice to be for the coaches and the game to be for the players,” Thompson said. “I think we’re to that point. I have seen us ranked anywhere from 17th to 300 in preseason polls and I think that’s fair. You lose five pitchers in the first 12 rounds (MLB Draft), even if you bring in a Top 10 class, even if you have five freshmen in the Top 100. That’s all guesswork. I’m excited about the season and our players to play somebody else. We’ll know more next Monday than we’ve known for months on who we are.” While Auburn features some proven players in the lineup such as catcher Nate LaRue, shortstop Cole Foster, center fielder Kason Howell and left fielder Bobby Peirce, the Tigers also have several new faces led by Kent State transfer Justin Kirby, Kansas transfer Cooper McMurray, junior college transfer Caden Green and true freshman Ike Irish. A player who is expected to be a fixture in the Auburn lineup for the foreseeable future, Irish is someone that has already impressed his coaches and teammates as he prepares for his first season with the Tigers. “First and foremost, he’s got great physical tools,” Auburn assistant coach Gabe Gross said of Irish. “He’s a big body, strong kid. I think something not talked about enough in the world of analytics and all this stuff is, his competitive gene is through the roof. That joker competes for every pitch, every second. “In the recruiting process you get to know these kids when they’re pretty young. I asked him what he was looking for in a college and he said ‘coach, I just want to win. I hate to lose.’ I thought that was one of the best answers I had ever gotten. He brings that to the ballpark every single day.” Projected opening day lineup: 1.LF Bobby Peirce 2. CF Kason Howell 3. DH Ike Irish 4. RF Justin Kirby 5. SS Cole Foster 6. C Nate LaRue 7. 1b Cooper McMurray 8. 3b Bryson Ware 9. 2b Caden Green Weekend pitching rotations: Friday – So. RHP Chase Allsup (0-0, 0.00) vs. Sr LHP Ben Seiler (0-0, 0.00) Saturday – Jr. RHP Joseph Gonzalez (0-0, 0.00) vs. R-Sr. LHP Ty Bothwell (0-0, 0.00) Sunday – Fr. LHP Drew Nelson (0-0, 0.00) vs. TBA Game times: Friday, 4 p.m., SEC Network+ Saturday, 2 p.m., SEC Network+ 2COMMENTS Sunday, 1 p.m., SEC Network+

Strong bullpen effort, big debut from Irish lead Auburn over Indiana in opener AUBURN, Alabama—With Auburn starting pitcher Chase Allsup going just two innings in the season opener against the Indiana Hoosiers on a cold day at Plainsman Park, it was the bullpen trio of Tanner Bauman, John Armstrong and Will Cannon that did the trick for Butch Thompson’s Tigers in an 8-4 win at Plainsman Park. Pitching the final seven innings and allowing just one earned run on two hits with eight strikeouts, the pitching combination was a huge key to getting the 2023 season off on a good note. “Passing the baton, that's what we've been preaching,” Armstrong said of his three and one/thirds innings of scoreless baseball. “Passing the baton. We're just going to have to hand it off to the bullpen, and seeing that unfold tonight is really important for the guys.” They were able to hold a lead built on the shoulders of some strong offense from a pair of newcomers for the Tigers. In his first career game, true freshman DH Ike Irish had three hits and scored a pair of runs while Kent State transfer Justin Kirby had a two-run home run and also walked three times. Seniors Kason Howell and Bryson Ware both added two hits on the day, but the offensive star was the freshman. “I think it was just like another, you know, another day in paradise,” the Michigan native said of playing in the cold weather. “We were well-prepared. Our coaches prepared as well for this. We don't let the moment get too big, and I thought we proved that out on the field. We got punched in the mouth early and then it took a team effort. Everybody passed it down great, and we came back and responded. I thought it, for us, it just felt like we were going out there and we were doing everything that we practiced.” John Armstrong is greeted by his teammates following his outing. (Photo: Jason Caldwell/Auburnundercover, 247Sports) Allsup got the start for the Tigers and pitched a scoreless first before running into trouble in the second against a powerful Indiana lineup. Staked to a 1-0 lead after Irish scored on a Nate LaRue fielder’s choice in the first inning, Allsup allowed a leadoff single to Brock Tibbits before big Matthew Ellis stepped to the plate. Homering 18 times a season ago, Ellis went the other way for a two-run bomb to put the Hoosiers in front early. In the third inning the Tigers took the lead back after loading the bases with one out. Getting the start at third base, Ware battled before rifling a pitch through the left side to drive in Kirby and tie the game at two. Following a fielder’s choice from newcomer Caden Green to score Cooper McMurray and put Auburn in front, a wild pitch scored Howell to make it 4-2 Auburn after just three innings. The Tigers would extend the lead one inning later following the second scoreless frame from Bauman. Following a leadoff single from Irish, Kirby got a 2-1 pitch to handle and mashed it 423 feet over the green monster in left field for the first home run of the season. That gave Auburn an 8-2 lead, but Indiana wouldn’t go quietly. Following two strong innings, Bauman allowed a leadoff bloop single on a 3-2 pitch before hitting the second batter to put runners on first and second with no outs for the Hoosiers. A ground ball to Ware at third moved both runners up before Bauman got a second ground ball, this one to Green at second, for the second out. That allowed a run to score to make it 6-3 Tigers. A Ware error then allowed a second run to score in the inning before Bauman got a fly ball to left to end the frame and keep Auburn in front by two. The Tigers would get those runs back in the bottom of the fifth however. Following a leadoff single by Green, Bobby Peirce hit a ground ball to third that was thrown away at second. The error moved the runners to second and third with nobody out. After a Cole Foster strikeout, Irish delivered again with a double down the left field line to score Green and move Peirce to third. Kirby’s third walk of the game loaded the bases for Nate LaRue and the Auburn catcher did his job with a fly ball to center to give Auburn a four-run lead once again. That’s when Armstrong and Cannon would slam the door shut. Throwing just 48 pitches and allowing just one runner in his three and one/third innings, Armstrong gave the ball to Cannon in the ninth. After allowing a pair of two-out runners, Cannon got a strikeout to end the game and secure the win for the Tigers. “We used some pieces tonight and we’ll get a little bit deeper in our staff, and that’s good,” Thompson said. “We’ll keep learning how deep we go and who can throw the ball well, but I thought both guys stepped up. That one extra inning by John Armstrong we were like ‘are we going to throw him back out there?’ Because he’s probably going to be out for the weekend at a pitch count he’s never been before, but I don’t want to play with the game and I don’t want to force the game. We’re trying to win. We’re an SEC baseball team and everytime we take the field we’re trying to win, understanding where guys are in pitch counts and things of that nature. “Bauman and Armstrong created some momentum tonight for us on the mound. We have to be selfless. Chase Allsup has to be selfless. There’s going to be nights where he absolutely runs through a lineup three times and gets it going and lays those tracks, but it’s nice to know somebody has your back and we can make a move and somebody can get you when it may not be your night. We’re just going to have to keep learning what we’re trying to do and sell out to it. I thought they did a nice job tonight.” 10COMMENTS BOX SCORE Game two of the series is scheduled for Saturday with the first pitch at 2 p.m. Joseph Gonzalez will get the start for the Tigers. The game can be streamed at SEC Network+. Comments (10)

i disagree but you are more than welcome to your opinion. we will find out soon enough. i refuse to throw him under the bus until he deserves it so i will be pulling hard for him. i personally think we will be well rewarded for taking a chance on him. and this man loves auburn and has said so over the years. i say lets give him a fair shot.

i have only seen the opposite of this carnell. cohen raving about the process and raving about what he has done so far. all i have read is rave reviews on what he has done so far. and i search articles every day for the board so i see quite a few and i have not seen it. anyway i think we will be fine. he knows this is his chance for redemption and if he does something stupid he is toast probably for the rest of his career other than small schools. i feel good about him. i think we have a cat that actually likes the team instead of working on his tan. and make no mistake freeze dug us a long way out of a deep hole. he has a lot to do and i think he gets it done. i will support him like all past coaches until i cannot for some reason. i say lets sit back and enjoy the ride because it is going to be fun again. i understand you want what is best for auburn. right now it seems all the different factions are pulling together as one which has not happened in a long time. here is something i love. our oc guy we have on staff is a stud and many folks wanted him. that is why we got the qb from arkie. and if freeze does screw up it is on him. and i believe in second chances. shrugs

New Auburn athletic director John Cohen ponders renovation plans for school facilities River Wells ~2 minutes There could be some changes coming to the Plains in the near future. Tigers athletic director John Cohen could be planning some new renovations to multiple facets of the school’s athletic stadiums and buildings, according to the Montgomery Advertiser’s Richard Silva. Cohen became the school’s new athletic director on Halloween last year. Buy Tigers Tickets Here is a little of what Cohen had to say about the school’s Jordan-Hare Stadium: “I think even the most casual fan looks into our north end zone and sees that we have room for improvement there, and I think we’re gonna get there… It’s going to take a little time, but I think we can create some improvement in the north end zone.” That wasn’t the only thing Cohen mentioned, however. He also turned to sports that play indoors like basketball and gymnastics, and mentioned that such sports have what he called “practice space challenges”. He also told the advertiser that sports like baseball and softball will be looked at as well. Jordan-Hare Stadium was first opened in 1939 and has been renovated twice in 2004 and 2017. The school has had plans to renovate the north endzone of the stadium for some time now, but those plans were delayed in 2015 and then subsequently put on hold indefinitely.

Dylan Cardwell says Tigers in 'must win' part of schedule Mark Murphy 4–5 minutes 'I almost got a tech:' Tigers recount reactions to Allen Flanigan's dunk against Missouri AUBURN, Alabama — As much as Dylan Cardwell wanted to celebrate, he had to go wrangle up his teammates. Allen Flanigan's poster dunk early against Missouri served as the highlight moment from Auburn's 89-56 obliteration of the visiting Tigers on Tuesday night. It made the rounds on social media, and most everyone inside Neville Arena — from players to fans — lost their mind at the senior's hammer in transition. But Cardwell was worried about the momentum being broken by a technical foul on Auburn's bench. "Yohan (Traore) and K.D. (Johnson) ran on the court, and I was trying to avoid getting a tech," Cardwell said Thursday. "So I just shoved Yohan on the baseline toward the photographers. K.D. was out at the 3-point line and I was like dog, we're gonna get a tech. I had to hold K.D. up the whole time. It was worth it. "That was one of the best dunks I've seen in The Jungle in my time here." Cardwell's recollection confirmed what Johnson said after the win. "I almost got a tech for running on the court," Johnson said. "I’m glad Dylan grabbed me and he held me for about 10 seconds. That was crazy. ... You know he had a little anger built up." Center Johni Broome had a simpler response when asked for his reaction: "Oh, sh--." To give Auburn a 30-6 lead over Mizzou out of the gates, Flanigan was the beneficiary of a steal by Jaylin Williams, who poked the ball away at Missouri's free-throw line. It ended up right in Flanigan's hands, and he immediately took off in transition. Kaleb Brown was the only defender ahead of him, and Noah Carter, who had the turnover, tried to sprint back and help protect the rim. But Flanigan had his mind set on a dunk from the moment he got the ball and saw he could beat Brown to the rack. Brown ran with him until Flanigan used his right arm to create space for the dunk. Cardwell said he thought Flanigan was going to get called for an offensive foul. "I was going, and he just kept coming with me," Flanigan said. "I tried to get an angle to get outside. He just kept running so I just gave him a nudge and a little gap opened up. So I jumped. ... I was just trying to get around him so I could get a clear (dunk), but he kept coming." Brown had faded back under the basket, but Carter attempted to reach a hand in and defend the dunk. Flanigan punched it home as Carter backed away at the last second. Auburn posted a video of former Jabari Smith, the Tigers' All-American freshman and No. 3 overall draft pick, reacting to Flanigan's dunk on his Instagram story. Smith and Flanigan roomed together during the 2021-22 season, and Flanigan said Smith often helped him rehab from his Achilles injury last preseason. "We were laughing on the phone," Flanigan said. "He said, 'You're finally dunking now. You want to jump.'" Having taken over as Auburn's starting small forward early in SEC play following Chris Moore's injury, Flanigan has been one of Auburn's most effective two-way players this season, shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 36.9 percent from beyond the arc against conference opponents, while often drawing the opponents' best players defensively, too, because of his size and position on the wing. "I think the thing is the efficiency," Bruce Pearl said Thursday of Flanigan. "He's shooting a good percentage. Not trying to do too much, but still playing with confidence and being aggressive. Not turning the ball over. Winning his matchup defensively. Rebounding. Just doing all the little things, that's the biggest thing we've been focusing on with Al. It is fun to watch him have a little bit of joy out there."

Auburn big men preparing for big test from Vandy's Robbins Mark Murphy 4–5 minutes AUBURN, Alabama–Following a strong performance by starting center Johni Broome and backup center Dylan Cardwell vs. Missouri on Tuesday night, that pair will be tested by Liam Robbins, a 7-0, 250-pound fifth year senior for the Vanderbilt Commodores. The Tigers will face Robbins and his teammates at 7:30 p.m. CST at Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville. “He is a big, strong, physical player that can score one-on-one down there by himself,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “He is a man hard to keep off the boards. Three blocks a game. They will guard ball screens (and) he will be down there in drop coverage so he's not going to leave the paint very much. “Fans will say, 'Gosh, that offense against Missouri was really good.' Well, Missouri didn't have a (seven) footer sitting there in the middle of the lane patrolling everything, right? It's all about matchups." Cardwell agrees with his head coach that Robbins can impact a game. “He is a great player,” Cardwell said. “I was just watching them (Vanderbilt) play the last game and I was talking to Johni and saying, ‘This game is on us.’ We can’t let the guy get off.” Cardwell remembered, “He gave us troubles last year in his first game back (from an injury). I remember he came in the lane in the first half and dunked it on somebody, he shot a three and had something like seven points in the first three minutes of being in the game. Auburn opened the week with an 89-46 home victory over Missouri. Broome produced a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Cardwell came close to his first collegiate double-double, finishing with eight points and 10 rebounds. Vanderbilt missed Robbins while he was out with an injury. Since he has returned the Commodores have put together a four-game winning streak to improve to 14-12 overall and 7-6 in the SEC. He leads Vandy in scoring at 14.7 points and rebounds at 6.6 per game. Auburn is 18-8 overall and 8-5 in the SEC going into its only scheduled game vs. the Commodores this season. The contest will be televised on the SEC Network. Robbins scored 24 points while pulling in eight rebounds on Tuesday in a 75-64 road victory vs. South Carolina. Robbins, who was named the SEC Player of the Week, has back-to-back 20-plus point scoring games for the first time as a collegian. Pearl said he really liked the contributions he got from Cardwell and other reserves in the win vs. Missouri. He noted it will be important for the Auburn bench to perform well again on Saturday night. “They play really deep, they really do,” he said of the Commodores. “Part of what we talked about was that the bench really needed to step up some.” Johni Broome is averaging 13.7 points and 9.0 rebounds in his first season at Auburn. (Photo: Jeff Gray, USA TODAY Sports) Auburn continues to get good support from fans in road games and that is expected to continue on Saturday night at Memorial Gym. The Nashville Auburn Club will be there with faux Pearl strings that hold a photo of Auburn’s head coach. “We do have a great following up there,” Pearl said. “There are a lot of Auburn grads. One of the things we should be extremely proud of, and it doesn’t get talked about very much, is the governor of Tennessee. The governor of the great state of Tennessee, Bill Lee is an Auburn graduate and a proud Auburn graduate. He is such an Auburn man. He has done a great job for the state. “He wears his orange, and his orange and blue, on his sleeves,” Pearl added. “I hope I get a chance to see Governor Lee when I am there for just a short period of time.”