No. 8 Auburn and Mississippi State Set to Shake Off Setbacks and Surge Ahead”
Auburn and Mississippi State were recently reminded of how difficult it is to play on the road in the SEC. On Wednesday night, the No. 8 Tigers lost 79-75 to unranked Alabama. The Bulldogs, who defeated No. 5 Tennessee 77-72 at home on Jan. 10, are winless on the road in SEC play after losing 79-70 at Florida on Wednesday. Auburn (16-3, 5-1) and Mississippi State (13-6, 2-4) will battle on Saturday afternoon in Starkville, Mississippi. The Tigers’ 11-game winning streak, the longest among Power Five teams, came to an end against the Crimson Tide, but coach Bruce Pearl put the performance into perspective.
“We can compete on the road in a tough environment against an excellent team,” Pearl told reporters. “This may not be the outcome we wanted, but this is an outcome that tells me something.” Auburn saw Alabama go up 44-30 at halftime after a 36-14 run. The Tigers rallied back and took a one-point lead midway through the second half. “Really good leadership, great chemistry, great kids,” Pearl described his team’s comeback. “We got some stops and made some shots.”
Auburn, however, fell down at halftime due to missed baskets in the first half. The Tigers were outscored by 21 points on 3-pointers in the first half, going 5 of 25 from beyond the arc. “We missed some shots that you need to make to win against a really good team on the road,” Pearl told reporters. “I am not sure how many clubs will come in here and win our league. We were a team with the skill and the opportunity.” The Bulldogs are pleased to be back at home, where they are 7-2 overall and 2-1 in the SEC.
“It’s a Super Bowl every game,” said guard Josh Hubbard about the SEC schedule. He scored a team-high 26 points against the Gators. It was the freshman’s fifth game with at least 20 points.
“We don’t look at him like a freshman anymore,” coach Chris Jans explained. “We depend on him at this stage. He had 26, but he had to take many shots to get there. We were in a situation where taking a disputed three was perhaps our best option at times.”It’s not his fault that he was put in a situation where we were trying to get him to take shots and give us a chance to get back into the game. But Josh isn’t phased by much, and hopefully he’ll continue to perform well for us.”
MSU had to play from behind against Florida, much as Auburn did against Alabama. The Bulldogs trailed by nine at halftime and 17 in the second half. They came within six, but couldn’t get any closer.
“We know there’s a lot more opportunities down the road,” added Hubbard. “We just need to learn lessons like these. We cannot pass them up. Each individual is important, and we cannot overlook the value of a team.The Southeastern Conference is a tough league. “Anyone can beat anybody.”
