The No. 2 Auburn Tigers claimed their 12th win of the season on Monday by taking down Monmouth, 87-58.
However, the biggest storyline of the night was the play of freshman [autotag]Jahki Howard[/autotag]. Howard scored six points in 17 minutes off the bench, four of which came with fireworks. In the second half of Auburn’s win, Howard was on the receiving end of two ally-oop dunks. One was of the “windmill” variety, and the final was delivered behind his back.
The dunks were enough to excite Auburn fans and players alike. Senior center [autotag]Dylan Cardwell[/autotag] said after the game that he was left speechless by Howard’s dunks.
“When I first saw it, I couldn’t breathe. I literally was breath taken,” Cardwell said. “Growing up, you always see that Gerald Green dunk, but to see it in person and someone jumping higher than him looking in the rim, I literally couldn’t believe it. So, my breath was taken out of me, and it was just the best I’ve ever seen in person. I think it’ll go down as the best dunk in Neville Arena.”
Senior forward [autotag]Chad Baker-Mazara[/autotag] was also filled with exuberance after seeing Howard’s flushes. However, he said that Howard is creative in that regard, and has plenty more ways to earn style points.
“To be honest, I’m about to go home and rewatch that. I still can’t believe what I saw with my own eyes, but that kid is a freak of nature,” Baker-Mazara said. “Y’all probably haven’t seen anything close to what he does in practice. It’s crazy to see but at the same time, he has way more stuff back there.”
Howard’s dunks put the icing on Auburn’s non-conference schedule. The Tigers will now move on to SEC play, which begins Saturday at Neville Arena against Missouri.
Here is a look back at Howard’s incredible slam dunks from Auburn’s win over Monmouth.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DEOkEiOxnMn/
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