Tag: Auburn Tigers

Auburn guard K.D. Johnson to reportedly enter transfer portal

Auburn guard K.D. Johnson will enter the transfer portal after three seasons on the Plains.

Having spent each of the last three seasons with the Tigers program, Auburn guard K.D. Johnson is reportedly entering his name into the transfer portal according to multiple reports.

Johnson, a senior, appeared in 35 games this past season at Auburn, one of which he started. During the 2023-24 season, Johnson averaged 7.1 PPG, 1.8 RPG, 1.3 APG, and 1.1 SPG for the SEC tournament champions, while also shooting 37.8% from the field, 27.1% from three, and 77.4% from the free throw line.

Across his three seasons at Auburn combined, Johnson started in 32-of-102 games with the Tigers since the 2021-22 campaign, averaging 9.4 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 1.4 APG, and 1.4 SPG. Johnson also shot a combined 38.2% from the field, as well as 29.8% from three and 72.5% from the free throw line.

Prior to Auburn, Johnson originally began his collegiate career at Georgia during the 2020-21 season, where he was a Freshman All-SEC selection with the Bulldogs. Appearing in 16 games off Georgia’s bench, Johnson averaged 13.5 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 1.2 APG, and 1.8 SPG, while also shooting 42.2% from the field and 38.7% from three.

Johnson is now the first Auburn player to enter the transfer portal after the Tigers season ended last week in the round of 64.

Texas A&M Softball completes the sweep of No. 25 Auburn and are off to their best start in SEC play in program history

Texas A&M softball moves to 8-1 in SEC for their best start in league play since 2018

No. 13 Texas A&M (28-4, 8-1 SEC) stormed back from an early 5-1 deficit to run rule 14-6. No. 25 Auburn (15-9, 2-7 SEC) courtesy of a Koko Wooley walk-off home run in the bottom of the fifth inning.

The Aggies faced a new type of adversity early in game three against the Auburn Tigers, falling into the deepest hole they have been in all season long. After taking a 1-0 lead due to Koko Wooley’s elite baserunning, Aggie starter Brooke Vestal ran into some trouble in the second inning, allowing two runs and loading the bases before Coach Trisha Ford brought Emily Leavitt in to relieve her.

It almost seemed like Leavitt would also get pulled after the second hitter she faced hit a grand slam to put the Tigers up 6-1. However, Leavitt got out of the inning without any other runs crossing home plate. Then, after a scoreless second inning from the Aggies, they went gangbusters to the tune of 12 runs over the next two innings.

Some of the highlights were back-to-back two-run home runs by Trinity Cannon and Allie Enright, which tied the game in the bottom of the third inning. Then, in the fourth, they followed up with a pair of two-run hits by Julia Cottrill and Allie Enright to go up 11-6. The fourth inning was then capped off by a solo home run by Rylan Wiggins.

Needed one run to run-rule Auburn on Sunday afternoon, Aggie speedster Wooley hit a walk-off home run on the first pitch see-saw in the bottom over the 5th inning for a 14-6 victory. This win means that the A&M softball team is off to their best start in six years.

Day three:

Texas A&M vs Auburn / Win / 14-6

  • Total offense:  11 hits, 14 runs
  • Pitching: Emily Leavitt W (6-0): 4.0 innings, 5 Ks, 69 pitches.

Texas A&M will bet a few days off, then they will head to Baton Rouge to take on their toughest opponent of the season, the No. 2 LSU Tigers, in a three-game series starting on Thursday, April 2, at 6 p.m. CT.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

Texas A&M softball wins third straight SEC series beating No. 25 Auburn in the first two games

The Aggies are off to their best start since the 2018 season in SEC play

Texas A&M (27-4, 7-1 SEC) defeated No. 25 Auburn (15-8, 2-6 SEC) in the first two games of the series, outscoring the Tigers 8-3.

Head coach Trisha Ford has the Aggies off to the best start in the SEC since the 2018 season. On top of starting 7-1 in league play, all three teams they beat are ranked in the Top 25: No. 22 South Carolina, No. 21 Mississippi State, and No. 25 Auburn.

This squad is also getting the job done differently, with 1-9 of the line all being dangerous from the plate. The Aggies have a great mix of power and speed that allows them to have different offensive strategies that were missing last year.

The defense has also been playing extremely well, with just a few errors on the season, which has been the main reason their four losses have been one-point games. There has yet to be a game this season where a team has blown the Aggies out of the water. They are quick in the infield, and the outfield has shown several times that they all have the capability to throw out runners at home.

Day one:

Texas A&M vs Auburn / Win / 5-1

  • Total offense:  5 hits, 5 runs
  • Pitching: Emiley Kennedy W (14-3): 7.0 innings, 4 Ks, 116 pitches.

Day two:

Texas A&M vs Auburn / Win / 3-2

  • Total offense:  3 hits, 5 runs
  • Pitching: Shaylee Ackerman W (6-1): 7.0 innings, 2 Ks, 96 pitches.

Texas A&M will wrap up the series at Davis Diamond on Sunday, March 24, at 1 p.m. CT.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

Who is John Poulakidas? Get to know the Yale star who dropped 28 in an upset of No. 4 Auburn

Meet your latest March hero

On Thursday night it was Jack Gohlke writing his name into March Madness lore during No. 14 Oakland’s upset of No. 3 Kentucky.

On Friday it was Yale’s John Poulakidas etching his name into history as the Bulldogs junior led the way with 28 points in a stunning 78-76 upset against No. 4 Auburn.

Poulakidas was 10-15 from the field (6-9 from three) with two rebounds and two assists and the game’s leading scorer. If you didn’t know his name before Friday, you certainly do now.

Here’s what else you should know about the guard:

  • He averaged 13.1 points during the regular season while shooting 44.3 percent from the field.
  • From Naperville, Illinois
  • Poulakidas is the Neuqua Valley High School’s all-time leading scorer with more than 1,300 points and once scored 49 in a double-overtime victory.
  • A 3-star recruit, Poulakidas chose Yale over TCU, Wake Forest, Rutgers, Princeton, Minnesota, Butler and Saint Louis.

Now he’s a March legend and certainly won’t be forgotten around Connecticut — or Alabama — anytime soon.

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Auburn’s Chad Baker-Mazara slammed refs in a deleted tweet after ejection 3 minutes into opening round

Chad Baker-Mazara was not pleased with his ejection.

Chad Baker-Mazara was ejected for a flagrant 2-foul three minutes into Auburn’s first-round NCAA tournament game with Yale. Afterward, he tweeted and deleted a post that seemed to slam the officials who ejected him.

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Chad Baker-Mazara is a massive part of Auburn’s success and one of the reasons the team recently snuck out an SEC Tournament win that had Bruce Pearl in tears. But, if Auburn is going to win its first-round matchup with Yale, it’ll have to do it without its third-leading scorer.

Replays during the game showed Baker-Mazara looking over at his opponent and sending an elbow into the chest of a neaby player. After some discussion, he was ejected. Minutes later, Baker-Mazara tweeted and deleted words ripping the officiating crew.

Per Ainslie Lee of Auburn Tigers of AL.com, Head coach Bruce Pearl made a mid-game statement clarifying why Baker-Mazara responded the way he did. Pearl revealed that his player was defending himself.

Here’s what Pearl said:

“Obviously, we just saw the replay and what he did was wrong. I thought it should’ve been a flagrant 1, not a 2, especially in a game after an entire season of work is something that’s obviously going to disrupt us. He is one of our very best players. It was a retaliation. He had just got hit in the throat the play before, and he shouldn’t have retaliated.”

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March Madness: NCAA Tournament East Region odds, picks and predictions

Looking at March Madness futures odds to win the 2024 NCAA Tournament East Region, with expert picks, predictions and best bets.

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March Madness tips off Thursday, and the East Region bracket is absolutely loaded.

Below, we look at FanDuel Sportsbook’s NCAA Tournament East Region futures odds and and make our expert college basketball picks and predictions.

The East includes last year’s champs, the UConn Huskies (31-3); they’re the No. 1 seed. For Connecticut to get through this region, it will have to get past this season’s title teams from the Big 12, Big Ten, and SEC in Iowa State (27-7), Illinois (26-8), and Auburn (27-7), respectively. The Huskies (KenPom No. 1), Tigers (No. 4) and Cyclones (No. 5) represent 3/5ths of the top 5 on KenPom’s rankings.

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East Region futures odds

Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Monday at 1:25 p.m. ET.

1 seed: UConn +110 (bet $100 to win $110)

2 seed: Iowa State +440 (bet $100 to win $440)

3 seed: Illinois +800 (bet $100 to win $800)

4 seed: Auburn +500 (bet $100 to win $500)

5 seed: San Diego State +2100 (bet $100 to win $2,100)

6 seed: BYU +1400 (bet $100 to win $1,400)

7 seed: Washington State +3400 (bet $100 to win $3,400)

8 seed: FAU +2900 (bet $100 to win $2,900)

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9 seed: Northwestern +5500 (bet $100 to win $5,500)

10 seed: Drake +4200 (bet $100 to win $4,200)

11 seed: Duquesne +13000 (bet $100 to win $13,000)

12 seed: UAB +13000 (bet $100 to win $13,000)

13 seed: Yale +11000 (bet $100 to win $11,000)

14 seed: Morehead State +25000 (bet $100 to win $25,000)

15 seed: South Dakota State +25000 (bet $100 to win $25,000)

16 seed: Stetson +25000 (bet $100 to win $25,000)

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East Region expert pick and prediction

Iowa State (+440)

Putting all the key betting factors together and weighing in the prices, the Cyclones come out with a lot of value. The champions of this year’s toughest league are elite at the defensive end and usually maintain key edges in turnovers, rebounding and free-throw frequency.

The analysis of the East includes some slight fading of No. 1 UConn, heavier fading of No. 3 Illinois and a bit of extra potential for an upset in No. 4 Auburn’s path.

Top 25: USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

East Region contenders

AUBURN (+500)

The Tigers rank in KenPom’s top 10 in both offensive (10th) and defensive (4th) efficiency. The defense (including what AU does along the perimeter) and overall court skills should help Auburn avoid a misstep in what could be an interesting 1st-round game against Yale.

If the bracket plays out with AU playing UConn or Iowa State, consider that coach Bruce Pearl owns an 8-4 record against the spread when lined as an underdog.

San Diego State (+2100)

The Aztecs (24-10) are just 6-4 over their last 10 games, but they have the defense (39% field-goal accuracy allowed over those 10 games) and court skills to make for profit leverage at this price point. San Diego State sports a veteran lineup, and it gets its 1st 2 potential games in its own time zone (games in Spokane).

The futures market had shorter overall futures odds on SDSU a couple weeks ago. The Aztecs’ Jaedon LeDee is a power forward with possible late 1st-round NBA talent, and he’s a likely match-up problem for most teams San Diego State would play.

East Region long shots

Drake (+4200)

The Bulldogs (28-6) come out of the Missouri Valley Conference, a league that has often done damage from underdog slots in recent years’ brackets. Drake won the MVC Tournament and is 10-1 in its last 11 games.

DU hits from distance (36.5% from 3-point range) and takes great care of the ball. The Bulldogs are a top-notch defensive rebounding team. They have a 6-1 record in neutral-site games, and that includes a Dec. 9 rout of West No. 10 seed Nevada.

Morehead State (+25000)

Morehead State is a slow-tempo squad trending the right way at the defensive end, and that’s a dangerous combination. The Eagles often win the 3-point shooting battle, and they should be considered a live wire against 1st-round opponent Illinois and either team they might play in the 2nd round (BYU, Duquesne).

Both Drake and Morehead State are in the bottom half of the East Region bracket. Making the plays in tandem has merit.

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Auburn lands four-star 2025 offensive tackle Tavaris Dice

Tigers add four-star offensive tackle to 2025 class

Hugh Freeze and the Auburn Tigers continued the early momentum that is currently surrounding their 2025 recruiting class Thursday, as the program secured what is now their eighth commitment of the cycle in Tavaris Dice.

Dice is now the fourth commitment in Auburn’s 2025 class to come from the state of Georgia, where he attends one of the state’s top programs, Langston Hughes.

The now Auburn commit is also rated as a four-star offensive tackle, as well as the No. 26 overall player at the position for the 2025 cycle according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. Dice is also considered as the No. 34 overall player in the state of Georgia.

As mentioned previously, Dice is now the eighth commitment of the 2025 cycle for Auburn, and joins fellow four-star Devin Williams, as well as three-star’s Ryan Ghea and Hollis Davidson from the state of Georgia.

Also included in Auburn’s 2025 class are in-state products Jakaleb Faulk, Jourdin Crawford, Malik Autry, and Spencer Dowland.

Iowa State, Auburn climb in pre-tournament top 25 coaches poll update

The last coaches poll ahead of the NCAA Tournament sees Iowa State and Auburn climbing.

The Iowa State Cyclones might not have received much love with their No. 2 seed in the East bracket, but they did jump into the top four of the latest coaches poll. Iowa State quickly dispatched the then No. 1-ranked Houston Cougars in the Big 12 championship game, 69-41 to secure the title.

Focus for the Cyclones now will shift to the No. 15 seeded South Dakota State in the first round. Much like Iowa State, the Auburn Tigers saw a rise in the latest polls after winning the SEC Tournament over the Florida Gators on Sunday. The Tigers are currently No. 7 overall and earned the No. 4 seed in the East bracket. The aforementioned Gators jumped six spots into the top 25 to land at No. 23.

No team had a more massive fall than the Nevada Wolfpack going from No. 22 to No. 30 after getting bounced in the first round of the Mountain West Tournament by the Colorado State Rams, 85-78. They will take on Dayton in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday afternoon.

A look at the full Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports:

Rank Team Record Points Change
1 UConn 31-3 800 (32) +1
2 Houston 30-4 752 -1
3 Purdue 29-4 740 –
4 Iowa State 27-7 697 +4
5 North Carolina 27-7 672 -1
6 Tennessee 24-8 595 -1
7 Auburn 27-7 573 +5
8 Marquette 25-9 560 +2
9 Arizona 25-8 544 -2
10 Illinois 26-8 508 +4
11 Creighton 23-9 506 -5
12 Kentucky 23-9 415 -3
13 Baylor 23-10 411 –
14 Duke 24-8 400 -3
15 Saint Mary’s 26-7 297 +5
16 Gonzaga 25-7 220 -1
17 South Carolina 26-7 218 -1
18 Alabama 21-11 197 +1
19 Utah State 27-6 193 -1
20 Kansas 22-10 188 -3
21 BYU 23-10 182 –
22 Texas Tech 23-10 134 +1
23 Florida 24-11 130 +6
24 Wisconsin 22-13 110 –
25 San Diego State 24-10 74 +2

Schools Dropped Out

No. 22 Nevada; No. 24 Dayton; No. 25 Washington State

Others Receiving Votes

New Mexico 68; Washington State 63; James Madison 30; Dayton 30; Nevada 29; Drake 29; Nebraska 12; North Carolina State 11; Colorado 4; Indiana State 2; Boise State 2; Pittsburgh 1; Michigan State 1; McNeese State 1; Grand Canyon 1

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How to buy Auburn Tigers vs Yale Bulldogs NCAA Tournament tickets

Get your hands on Auburn Tigers NCAA Tournament tickets when they take on the Yale Bulldogs.

The best time of the year is finally here. With the release of the 2024 NCAA Tournament bracket, March Madness has officially begun.

The Auburn Tigers earned a No. 4 seed in the East region and with it a first-round date against the No. 13 Yale Bulldogs.

The game will be played in Spokane, Washington on Friday, March 22.

SHOP: Auburn vs Yale NCAA Tournament tickets

Tickets to this Round of 64 contest are still available, but only as part of a weekend pass.

Weekend passes include all Spokane games in the Round of 64 and Round of 32 are still available for as little as $262.

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Auburn Tigers NCAA Tournament tickets” link=”https://stubhub.prf.hn/l/EJzgepL”]

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How to buy Auburn Tigers vs Yale Bulldogs NCAA Tournament tickets

Get your hands on Auburn Tigers NCAA Tournament tickets when they take on the Yale Bulldogs.

The best time of the year is finally here. With the release of the 2024 NCAA Tournament bracket, March Madness has officially begun.

The Auburn Tigers earned a No. 4 seed in the East region and with it a first-round date against the No. 13 Yale Bulldogs.

The game will be played in Spokane, Washington on Friday, March 22.

SHOP: Auburn vs Yale NCAA Tournament tickets

Tickets to this Round of 64 contest are still available, but only as part of a weekend pass.

Weekend passes include all Spokane games in the Round of 64 and Round of 32 are still available for as little as $262.

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Auburn Tigers NCAA Tournament tickets” link=”https://stubhub.prf.hn/l/EJzgepL”]

BRACKET GAME: Join the free USA TODAY survivor pool for your chance at $2,500