Feb. 21, 2007
Auburn, Ala. - "The story of our whole season has been that we can never wrap up the big games," Auburn guard Whitney Boddie Sunday night after the game against 12th-ranked Georgia.
Sunday's heartbreaker against Georgia added on to the Tigers' list of games against ranked teams that they couldn't wrap up, including a 72-62 home loss against third-ranked Tennessee and a 62-51 road loss against No. 20 George Washington. Boddie led the Tigers with 6 assists in 35 minutes.
At the beginning of the game at Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum, it looked as though it would be a high scoring game, with both teams combining for 15 points in the first 2 minutes, but eventually they settled down and went into the half with a 34-28 Georgia lead.
The Tigers defense stepped up and held Georgia forward Tasha Humphrey to only 14 points in 38 minutes, without the help of defensive presence of 6-foot-7 KeKe Carrier, who was limited to only 4 minutes due to injury.
Janese Hardrick stepped up for the Lady Bulldogs in the absence of Humphrey and led the team with 20 points off the bench.
"We were getting good looks at the basket but we just couldn't make the shots," said Auburn guard DeWanna Bonner, who made 50 percent of her shots Sunday afternoon, better than her season long average of 45.3 percent. "We just have to find a way to get out and stay out of these slumps we keep falling into during games and the whole season."
"We're a very young team and we still have a long way to go," said Tigers coach Nell Fortner. The five starters for Auburn in Sunday's game included one junior and freshman with three sophomores. Of all the players on the Tigers roster there are three freshmen, seven sophomores, two juniors and the lone senior, Joanna Clayden, nicknamed the "British Bomber" for her ability to sink threes.
"It's tough not having a group of seniors to lead the team," Bonner said after the game, "But we've all had to step up and become leaders and that has helped us this season."
Team chemistry is not a problem for this team, Sherell Hobbs, Reneisha Hobbs and Alexis Ogubie all attended J.O. Johnson in Huntsville, and Sherell and Reneisha are sisters. "They argue all the time at practice." said Bonner, jokingly of the Hobbs sisters, during the press conference after the game.
Sherell Hobbs led all Tigers with 20 points in 29 minutes, while DeWanna also scored double digits with 11 points in 34 minutes. Trevesha Jackson scored 8 points coming off the bench and made the Tigers' only block during the game. Boddie had the most balanced game with 8 points, 6 assists, and 3 steals in 35 minutes.
As for the Lady Bulldogs, Christy Marshall, Humphrey, and Hardrick all scored in double digits with 12, 14 and 20 points, respectively. Georgia guard Ashley Houts had 7 points, 4 assists, and 2 steals in 40 minutes.
Auburn, 17-11 (4-8 SEC), will host Florida, 6-20 (0-11 SEC), on Thursday for Senior Night. "We will beat Florida, I guarantee it," said Boddie after the game with a smile.