We know that Bruce Pearl loves beating some teams more than others, but the dominance he has going on Tennessee is starting to get a little silly.
Without star point guard Sharife Cooper, missing Justin Powell for the 14th straight game and riding a three-game losing streak, Auburn took it to No. 25 Tennessee in a 77-72 victory over the Volunteers, the sixth-straight victory for the Tigers against Rick Barnes’ side.
It wasn’t just one player that made the difference either as all five starters reached double digits in points led by Allen Flanigan with 23. Flanigan played one of the best games of his young career, producing seven rebounds and three assists to just two turnovers even though the ball was in his hand quite a lot.
Quiet for most of the game, Jamal Johnson turned in big plays during crunch time, especially when it came to free throw shooting. The junior from Birmingham finished 6-of-8 from the line and put up 14 points and just one turnover while handling point guard duty. Devan Cambridge, cold as could be at the beginning, made some big buckets in the second. Jaylin Williams was clutch from the line, making 8-of-10 free throws while J.T. Thor used his length to frustrate the Vols on offense.
It was just another example of a Pearl-coached team taking it to the Volunteers. While Tennessee has been hot and cold this season, it still came into the game 16-6 and as one of the top five teams in the conference. Yet the Tigers — these young Tigers — enforced their will on the Vols, coming down with 16 offensive rebounds and forcing 13 turnovers from a veteran squad.
The defense, which Pearl said on Friday had no choice but to play better, smothered the Tennessee shooters and wide-open looks were few and far between. Santiago Vescovi, who made two quick threes in the first half, never saw another shot go in the basket. Out of their 72 points, 43 came from true freshmen Keon Johnson and Jaden Springer.
A microcosm of the game came with a little more than two minutes left and the Tigers up by 10. Tennessee could not find an open shot and, after an inbounds pass by the Vols, the players had no idea the shot clock was running down and Auburn forced a shot clock penalty.
The credit goes to each player for how they responded to Pearl’s challenge after a rough outing against Florida on Tuesday night. With no tournament or post-season play coming and only three games left on the schedule, one wondered how the Tigers would fight at the end of the season.
That answer was clear from the very first 20 minutes of the game. Auburn scraped and fought and, even when early turnovers reared their ugly head, they still defended.
It all led to a five-point victory that this young group of guys can take as momentum into the last two matchups and into the offseason. Auburn teams of the past may have given up or downright quit, but with Pearl in charge, you know that isn’t an option, especially when the opponent is wearing that bright orange.
Dylan Cardwell celebrated by doing the worm on the floor postgame and I’m sure Pearl will cherish another victory over his former team. He should be used to it by now, though. The Volunteers have no answer for Auburn right now.
