AUBURN, Ala. — K.D. Johnson scored 16 points, Jaylin Williams and Chris Moore both had 14, and No. 13 Auburn defeated Texas Southern 72-56 on Friday night.
Texas Southern, which beat power-conference team Arizona State earlier this week, led early in the second half before Auburn answered with a 15-2 run to retake a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.
Auburn (4-0) got off to a slow start offensively, shooting 35.5% from the field and only scoring 29 points in the first half against a tough Texas Southern defense.
Playing its fourth game in six days, Texas Southern (1-5) was unable to keep up with a deeper and fresher Auburn team after halftime. Late in the second half, Auburn went on an 11-0 run in less than two minutes to ultimately put the game away.
The visiting Tigers were led in scoring by Joirdon Karl Nicholas’ 13 points. Davon Barnes added 12 points, while PJ Henry had 11.
BIG PICTURE
Texas Southern: Johnny Jones’ Tigers were fearless in their matchup against another highly ranked team after their 83-48 loss to No. 3 Houston on Wednesday night. The defending SWAC champions look like they will be a physical matchup for anyone they play.
Auburn: The host Tigers missed the presence of starting center Johni Broome, who sat out Friday night with a bone bruise he suffered earlier in the week in a win against Winthrop. Without Broome, Auburn was unable to get a consistent offense going and didn’t enjoy its usual paint advantage from the first three games of the season.
UP NEXT
Texas Southern stays in the state of Alabama and visits Samford on Sunday.
Auburn plays its first game away from home Tuesday, when it faces Bradley in Cancun, Mexico.
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