Feb. 11, 2008
Fayetteville, Ark. - The Auburn Tigers broke open a tie game with a 14-4 run late in the second half to top the Arkansas Razorbacks 73-68 at Bud Walton Arena Sunday afternoon in women's basketball.
The win moved Auburn to 16-7 overall and 4-4 in the Southeastern Conference, while Arkansas fell to 17-7 and 2-7 in the SEC.
"The key was to come in, on the road, and shoot the ball well, and that is what we did," Auburn head coach Nell Fortner said. "We shot 49 percent from the field. I cannot ask for much more than that."
DeWanna Bonner led the Tigers with 28 points, marking the 11th time she has led the team in scoring this season. The game marked the 63rd time, in her 83 career games, Bonner has scored double figures. Bonner also grabbed nine rebounds and had two blocked shots.
Trevesha Jackson went 5-for-5 from the field and tied her career high with 12 points in the game.
Ayana Brereton led the attack for the Razorbacks with 29 points and 11 rebounds.
For the game, Auburn shot 49 percent (27-of-55) from the floor and hit 78 percent (18-of-23) from the free throw line.
Despite out rebounding Auburn 39-36, the Razorbacks were unable to capitalize as the Tigers' defense held the Hogs to 39 percent (27-of-68) shooting.
The Tigers and Razorbacks matched each other point for point most of the first half, with neither team leading by more than five points.
Arkansas's Brittney Vaughn tied the game at 29-29 with a 1:15 left to play in the first half, but Auburn responded with a quick run to take a 33-29 lead into halftime. A jumper by Sherell Hobbs gave the Tigers a 31-29 lead with just under a minute left and Bonner pushed the lead to four with a jumper that beat the buzzer with one second on the clock.
Auburn capitalized on their momentum coming into the second half. Despite five ties, the Tigers never trailed in the second half.
After Arkansas' Sarah Pfeifer tied the game at 52-52 with 8:48 left, the Tigers began to take control. Cassie Moore hit a pair of free throws and followed that with a layup to give Auburn a four point lead.
Auburn would push the lead to as many as 12 points at 68-56 with 2:02 left after Bonner hit two free throws. The Razorbacks hit a pair of three-point shots with less than a minute left to narrow the gap, but Bonner made all four free throw attempts to seal the victory.
Next up, Auburn returns to Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum to face the Alabama Crimson Tide Thursday, Feb. 14, at 6 p.m. CT.