Auburn women's hoops set for Tulane Classic

Dec. 20, 2016

NEW ORLEANS ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" The Auburn women's basketball team makes its final road trip of the non-conference season as they play this week in the Tulane Classic in New Orleans.

Auburn (8-3) will face Drake (6-3) at 3 p.m. Wednesday in the first game of the tournament. The Tigers will then face either Tulane (6-4) or Eastern Washington (5-4) Thursday; Auburn will play at 5 p.m. with a win Wednesday and 3 p.m. with a loss.

The Tigers look to bounce back after a tough, 92-87 overtime loss to No. 24 Virginia Tech on Sunday. Auburn rallied from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter to force overtime but could not hold on in the extra period. Sophomore point guard Janiah McKay put together one of the best games of her career, scoring a career-high 28 points and tallying a steal, a layup and a free throw with 10 seconds left in regulation to tie the game and send it to overtime.

Auburn remains one of the nation's top defensive teams. The Tigers are the national leader in turnovers forced (25.2/game) and forced Virginia Tech into a season-high 22 giveaways Sunday. Nine of 11 Auburn opponents this season have been held below their season scoring average.

The Tigers will face a stiff challenge Wednesday from Drake, one of the nation's top-shooting teams. The Bulldogs average 81.3 points per game, 22nd in the nation, and shoot 47.6 percent from the field, 16th in the NCAA.

Andy Burcham has the radio call for both games on WTGZ 93.9 FM. Fans can listen online via AuburnTigers.com (see link above) or via the TuneIn Radio app. There is no TV for either game; if Auburn faces Tulane in Thursday's game, there will be a live stream via TulaneGreenWave.com.

Auburn Quick Hitters

- As of Dec. 19, Auburn leads the nation in turnovers forced (25.2/game), is ninth in the nation in steals (13.2/game), and fifth in turnover margin (+8.8)
- This is the second all-time meeting between Auburn and Drake; Auburn won the previous meeting in 1980
- Auburn is 5-1 all-time against Tulane and has won the last five meetings
- Auburn and Eastern Washington have met once before; a 69-39 Auburn win in 1995
- Auburn is 2-1 in neutral site games this year and 14-8 in the Coach Flo era
- The Tigers are 6-0 all-time against the Missouri Valley Conference, 18-10 against the American (1-0 this year) and 3-0 against the Big Sky
- Auburn is 6-0 all-time in games played in New Orleans (2-0 at Tulane; 4-0 at UNO)
- Auburn has held six of 11 opponents at least 10 points below their season scoring average
- Six of Auburn's 11 opponents have been held to a season-low scoring total
- Auburn was ranked No. 23 in the Week 4 AP Top 25; it was the first ranking for Auburn since 2009
- The Tigers have received votes in every AP poll this season
- Auburn is 6-0 this season and 34-6 under Coach Flo when forcing 25+ turnovers; Auburn forced 38 vs. Troy, 27 at North Carolina A&T, 30 at East Carolina, 27 vs. Ball State, 30 vs. Marist; 28 vs. Savannah State
- Auburn trailed Indiana by 17 points in the fourth quarter before mounting a comeback for a 71-67 win on Nov. 27
- Auburn's 32 fourth-quarter points vs. Indiana were the most in a single period since women's basketball went to a four-quarter game in 2015-16
- Janiah McKay scored a career-high 28 points and helped force overtime vs. Virginia Tech (12/18)
- Brandy Montgomery leads Auburn with 16.2 points/game; Katie Frerking is second with 15.7 points/game
- Frerking leads Auburn in rebounds (8.1), assists (3.3) and steals (2.9)
- Frerking scored a career-high 30 points and had 11 rebounds at Louisiana Tech (12/14)
- Frerking has double-doubles in four games this year; she had two in her career entering the season
- Frerking is second in the SEC and ranks among the nation's leaders with 2.9 steals per game
- Frerking had a career-high 7 steals in the win at N.C. A&T, then matched that with 7 vs. Indiana
- Montgomery scored 28 points in the comeback win over Indiana, including 16 in the fourth quarter and 10 straight over a 2-minute stretch to tie the game
- Auburn's 32-point win over North Carolina A&T was its largest margin of victory in a road game since Nov. 11, 2011 at Mercer (34 points; 77-43)
- Jessica Jones set career-highs in rebounds (8), steals (5) and blocks (4) in the first two games; she bettered her rebounding high with 9 against Marist and matched her blocks high with 4 vs. West Virginia
- Auburn is 31-3 in home non-conference games under Terri Williams-Flournoy and 40-7 in all non-conference games at Auburn Arena
- Auburn is in its 46th season of women's basketball and has 890 program wins

Last Time Out

ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn made a stunning fourth-quarter comeback to send its game with No. 24 Virginia Tech to overtime, but fell just short in a 92-87 loss Sunday at Auburn Arena.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Tigers (8-3) shot a season-high 50.8 percent from the field, scored a season-high 87 points and overcame a nine-point deficit in the final three minutes to force overtime, but the hot-shooting Hokies (11-0) made 12 3-pointers throughout the game and won it at the free-throw line in the extra period.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Sophomore Janiah McKay scored a career-high 28 points ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" including seven points in the final 1:08 of regulation ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" and got a key steal, a layup and a free throw to tie the game with 10 seconds to play. But she was lost to fouls early in the overtime period, and the Tigers' leading scorer watched the final 4:08 from the bench.

Noteworthy

SCOUTING DRAKE
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Drake is 6-3 this season with key wins over Nebraska and Iowa. The Bulldogs' three losses have come to Creighton, Iowa State and Green Bay.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Bulldogs are among the nation's top-shooting and top-scoring teams. Drake averages 81.3 points per game (22nd in NCAA) and shoots 47.6% from the field, 16th-best in the nation. At the free-throw line, the Bulldogs are sixth-best nationally at 79.9%.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Senior forward Lizzy Wendell is the nation's 11th-leading scorer, averaging 21.2 points per game. Senior guard Caitlin Ingle is among the nation's top point guards, averaging 8.4 assists/game to rank second nationally. And sophomore guard Sammy Bachrodt is a 50-percent 3-point shooter (18-36).
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Drake went 23-10 last season and finished second in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Bulldogs advanced to the second round of the WNIT.

SCOUTING TULANE
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Tulane is 6-4 this season. The Green Wave is 0-3 against SEC foes, dropping contests to Mississippi State, Vanderbilt and LSU.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Tulane averages 66.9 points per game while shooting 44.3% from the field.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Kolby Morgan leads the Green Wave with 18.2 points per game, shooting 45.3% from the field and 85% at the free-throw line (34-40). She is also the team leader in steals (2.2/game). Leslie Vorpahl scores 10.4 points/game and is the team leader in assists with 6.6/game.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Tulane finished 23-12 overall last season and advanced to the third round of the WNIT.

SCOUTING EASTERN WASHINGTON
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Eastern Washington is 5-4 on the year. Two of the Eagles' four losses have come to top-25 opponents in Washington and Gonzaga.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Eagles average 68.8 points per game and shoot 43.2% from the field. EWU relies on 3-point shooting in most games, hitting 15-of-30 in a win over Cal State Fullerton.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Delaney Hodgins leads the Eagles with 19.9 points and 7.2 rebounds/game. She is 21-of-48 from 3-point range. Tisha Phillips scores 13.7 points/game.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º EWU went 20-12 last season and was picked to finish fourth in the Big Sky Conference this year.

SCOUTING AUBURN
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn is 8-3 to open the 2016-17 season. The Tigers' only blemishes on the schedule are a 56-52 loss to then-No. 19 West Virginia in the Savannah Invitational championship game, a 71-66 loss at Kansas State in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge and a 92-87 overtime loss to No. 24 Virginia Tech.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Brandy Montgomery is Auburn's leading scorer with 16.2 points/game. She was named to the preseason All-SEC Second Team by the league's coaches. She scored a season-high 28 points - 16 in the fourth quarter - to lead Auburn's comeback from a 17-point deficit against Indiana on Nov. 27.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Katie Frerking is Auburn's second-leading scorer with 15.7 points/game. She is second in the SEC and ranks 32nd in the nation in steals with 2.9 per game. Frerking has posted four double-doubles this season and leads the team with 8.1 rebounds/game, which ranks 11th in the SEC.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Junior forward Jessica Jones has been a force defensively for the Tigers, posting a career-high four blocks twice already this year and pulling down a career-high 9 rebounds vs. Marist. She leads the Tigers in blocks with 1.4/game. She also had five steals in the opener vs. Troy.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Sophomore point guard Janiah McKay and junior forward Jazmine Jones are the Tigers' other two returning starters. McKay scored a career-high 28 points to lead Auburn's comeback against Virginia Tech. She contributed a career-high eight assists in a Dec. 11 win over Savannah State. Jones started all 33 games as a sophomore and had one of the best shooting percentages on the team, shooting 51.5% from the floor.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Pressure defense remains a staple of Coach Flo's strategy as the Tigers forced an average of 20.0 turnovers per game in her first four seasons. Auburn is averaging 25.1 opponent turnovers through nine games (1st in SEC; 1st in nation) and has forced 27 or more in six of 11 contests.

Looking Ahead

Auburn plays its final non-conference game of the season Wednesday, Dec. 28, as Jacksonville visits Auburn Arena. Game time is set for 6 p.m.