Auburn women host Georgia for Pink Game Sunday

Feb. 11, 2017

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AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" The Auburn women's basketball team returns to the friendly confines of Auburn Arena Sunday, hosting the Georgia Lady Bulldogs at 2 p.m.

Sunday's game is the annual "Play4Kay" Pink Game; the Tigers will wear pink uniforms and fans are encouraged to wear pink. Free pink t-shirts and shakers are available while supplies last. Sunday is also Girl Scouts Day and Elementary School Day - students at Auburn and Opelika schools may bring vouchers they received at school for one free general admission ticket.

The Tigers (15-10, 5-6 SEC) seek to get back on the winning track after a tough three-game stretch that included games against two of the nation's top-ranked teams. In their last outing, Auburn held No. 6 South Carolina to a season-low scoring total but fell short in a 60-41 loss Thursday night in Columbia.

Georgia (12-12, 4-7 SEC) got one of its biggest wins of the year last Sunday, defeating Tennessee in double overtime, but fell at home to Kentucky 66-55 Thursday night. The teams have split the last four meetings; Georgia won last season's only meeting in Athens.

Andy Burcham, Taylor Mounts and Brit Bowen will have the radio broadcast on WTGZ 93.9 FM beginning at 1:45 p.m. CT. Fans can also listen live online via TuneIn Radio. Rod Bramblett and Joe Ciampi will call the action on SEC Network +; fans can watch online via WatchESPN.com or the ESPN app on mobile devices.

Promotions

- Play4Kay Pink Game - Fans encouraged to wear pink
- Giveaway - Pink t-shirts and shakers
- Elementary School Day - Students from Auburn & Opelika schools, bring voucher received at school for one free general admission ticket
- Girl Scout Day
- Dean's Challenge - Harbert College of Business, RBD Library
- Halftime - Baby Race, Tiger Paws Youth Clinic

Auburn Quick Hitters

- As of Feb. 10, Auburn ranks fourth in the nation in turnovers forced (22.3/game), is 12th in the nation in steals (11.8/game), and fourth in turnover margin (+8.1)
- This is the 46th meeting between Auburn and Georgia
- Georgia leads the all-time series 27-18, and the series is tied 10-10 in Auburn
- Georgia won last season's meeting 63-30 in Athens; the teams split two meetings in 2014-15
- Auburn's last home win over Georgia came Feb. 23, 2014, a 67-59 Auburn victory
- Senior Katie Frerking scored a career-high 32 points in last Sunday's loss at Texas A&M, her second 30-point game this year
- In SEC play, Frerking ranks fourth in the league with 17.8 points/game
- Frerking was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District Team last week
- Auburn's win over Alabama on Jan. 29 was its fourth straight and seventh in eight meetings with the Tide
- Sophomore Erica Sanders and senior Khady Dieng made their first starts of the season vs. Alabama on Jan. 29 while Jazmine and Jessica Jones came off the bench due to illness; it was Sanders' first career start
- In the Jan. 22 game vs. Kentucky, Brandy Montgomery passed Tyrese Tanner for 10th all-time in scoring at Auburn; she now has 1,563 points
- Auburn has three comeback wins from 17-point deficits this season: vs. Indiana (11/27), at Vanderbilt (1/12) and vs. Tennessee (1/19)
- Auburn's win over Tennessee on Jan. 19 was its first over the Lady Vols since 2009 and the largest margin of victory in a regular-season game for Auburn against UT
- Auburn's 83-60 win over Ole Miss (1/8) was its largest margin of victory and highest scoring total in SEC play under head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy
- Five of Auburn's opponents have been held to a season-low scoring total, including No. 6 South Carolina on Thursday
- Auburn is 7-0 this season and 35-6 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; 26 at Florida
- 17 of 25 Auburn opponents have committed at least 20 turnovers; Auburn is 14-3 in those games
- Auburn averages 24.4 points per game off opponent turnovers; the Tigers are 11-2 when scoring at least 25
- Auburn scored 62 points in the second half vs. Drake; the most in a half since 2008 and two points shy of a school record for points in a half
- Auburn's 32 fourth-quarter points vs. Indiana were the Tigers' most in a single period since women's basketball went to a four-quarter game in 2015-16
- The Tigers scored 31 points in both the third and fourth quarters vs. Drake and 30 points in the 1st quarter vs. Ole Miss
- Janiah McKay scored a career-high 29 points in Auburn's 79-61 win over Tennessee (1/19)
- McKay scored 28 points and helped force overtime vs. Virginia Tech (12/18); she followed that up with 25 points vs. Drake (12/21)
- McKay had her first career double-double with 13 points/13 assists vs. Ole Miss; 13 assists tie for 7th in AU history

Last Time Out

ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn held No. 6 South Carolina to its lowest scoring output of the season, but the Tigers came up short in a 60-41 loss to the Gamecocks Thursday night in SEC women's basketball action at Colonial Life Arena.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Tigers (15-10, 5-6 SEC) could not overcome poor shooting through the first three quarters, and avoided a season-low shooting percentage by posting a 71-percent fourth quarter. Meanwhile, South Carolina (21-2, 11-1 SEC) took advantage of their massive edge in size, scoring 34 of their 60 points in the paint.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Katie Frerking led the Tigers with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting, including 2-of-3 from 3-point range. Freshman Tyra Johnson added a career-high 10 points on a career-most 19 minutes, hitting a pair of 3-pointers as well. Seven of Auburn's 14 made field goals were 3-pointers. The Tigers' bench scored 19 points as Tiffany Lewis added five and Emari Jones had four.


Noteworthy

A WIN OVER GEORGIA WOULD...
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Give Auburn its 16th win of the season, securing a winning record for the second straight year.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Snap a three-game losing streak.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Be Auburn's third win in its last five games with Georgia.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Be Auburn's third-straight win while wearing pink uniforms.

SERIES HISTORY
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Georgia leads the all-time series with Auburn 27-18, and the series is tied 10-10 in Auburn. Georgia leads 2-1 in games at Auburn Arena. The teams have split the last 12 meetings, dating back to 2008.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The teams have traded victories the last five meetings. Georgia won last season's matchup in Athens.

SCOUTING GEORGIA
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Georgia split two home games last week, earning a huge 81-78 win over Tennessee in double overtime Sunday before dropping a 66-55 decision to Kentucky Thursday.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Georgia is the SEC's second-best shot-blocking team, averaging 4.6 blocks/game. The Lady Bulldogs average 63.2 points/game and shoot 41.7% from the field.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Caliya Robinson was this week's SEC and National Player of the Week after averaging 24.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in wins over Arkansas and Tennessee. She averages 14.0 points/game for the season. Pachis Roberts is UGA's leading scorer (14.5 ppg) and rebounder (7.2 rpg).

SCOUTING AUBURN
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn is 15-10 for the season, 5-6 in SEC play. Nine of Auburn's 10 losses have come to teams either ranked or receiving votes in the national polls, and six of those losses have been by five points or less.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Tigers are one of the nation's top teams in forcing turnovers with 22.3 per game (4th in NCAA). Auburn is 12th in the nation in steals per game (11.8) and 7th nationwide in total steals (295). The Tigers are second in the SEC and rank 4th in the nation in turnover margin (+8.1).
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Katie Frerking is Auburn's leading scorer with 16.6 points/game. She also leads the Tigers in rebounds (6.2) and steals (2.7). Her 2.7 steals per game are second in the SEC and rank 39th in the nation. Frerking has posted five double-doubles this season and had a career-high 32 points at Texas A&M on Feb. 5. She scored her 1,000th career point at Florida on Jan. 1 while picking up her fifth double-double of the year.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Brandy Montgomery is Auburn's second-leading scorer with 13.8 points/game. She was named to the preseason All-SEC Second Team by the league's coaches. She has three games with 25+ points this season: a season-high 28 (including 16 in the 4th quarter) to lead a comeback win over Indiana (11/27), 26 in a win at Florida that included a career-high seven 3-pointers (1/1), and 25 in a home victory over Ole Miss where she was 10-of-15 from the floor (1/8).
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 11 rebounds vs. Drake. She leads the Tigers in blocks with 1.0/game. She also had five steals in the opener vs. Troy, and she scored a career-high 15 points on her 21st birthday in Auburn's 53-41 win over Jacksonville on Dec. 28.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Sophomore point guard Janiah McKay and junior forward Jazmine Jones are the Tigers' other two returning starters. McKay leads the Tigers in assists (3.6/game) and scored a career-high 29 points to lead Auburn's comeback victory over Tennessee on Jan. 19. She earned her first career double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds vs. Ole Miss on Jan. 8, and she scored her 500th career point vs. South Carolina on Jan. 5.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Jones started all 33 games as a sophomore and had one of the best shooting percentages on the team, shooting 52.6% from the floor. She scored a season-high 10 points and had a career-high five steals vs. Drake on Dec. 21.

Looking Ahead

ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn hits the road again, traveling to Oxford, Miss., to face Ole Miss at 8 p.m. Thursday. The game is televised by SEC Network.