When a team loses three straight games and four of their last five, it would be safe to assume that said team is frustrated.
On Tuesday, Auburn put those assumptions to bed and proved just how frustrated they had become. Auburn shot 49% from the field and dominated the boards on their way to crushing the visiting Missouri Tigers, 89-56 at Neville Arena.
Auburn was in control for the entire contest and refused to take their foot off the gas. Auburn held a 7-2 advantage through the first four minutes of the game, then would go on to outscore Missouri 17-2 over a four-minute span to take a 20-point lead, 24-4, with 11:34 remaining in the half.
Auburn took a 45-18 lead into the locker room behind 50% shooting and an outstanding half from [autotag]K.D. Johnson[/autotag], who shot 83% from the field on his way to scoring 14 first-half points. [autotag]Johni Broome[/autotag] ended the half with 11 points and eight rebounds after going 5-for-10 from the field.
Auburn’s commanding effort spilled over into the second half, as they outscored Missouri, 44-38 to solidify the win. [autotag]Zep Jasper[/autotag] converted a Missouri turnover into a three-pointer to give Auburn the 57-25 lead with 16:16 remaining in the game, which pushed Auburn over the 30-point-lead mark for the first time in the contest.
[autotag]Lior Berman[/autotag] connected on a three-pointer with 2:10 remaining in the game to put Auburn up 89-50. The 39-point deficit would be Auburn’s largest lead of the game. Berman ended the game with eight points, which ties a career-high. He has scored eight points three times during his four-year career, he last reached the total in Auburn’s 67-49 win over LSU last month.
Broome ended the night as Auburn’s leading scorer and rebounder, recording 20 and 10 respectively. [autotag]Allen Flanigan[/autotag] was next in line with 16 points, and Johnson followed suit with 15 points.
Auburn will look to keep the momentum going on Saturday by visiting Vanderbilt. Tipoff from Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville is set for 7:30 p.m. CT and can be seen live on SEC Network.
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