Auburn women's basketball opens 2017-18 season at Virginia Tech

Nov. 12, 2017

AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" The 47th season of Auburn women's basketball begins Monday night when the Tigers take on Virginia Tech on the road in Blacksburg, Va.

Auburn returns three starters and nine letter-winners from the 2016-17 team that finished 17-15 overall, 7-9 in SEC play, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season. Head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy begins her sixth season at the helm of the Tigers' program with an 88-76 record on the Plains.

The Tigers' projected starting lineup includes seniors Jazmine Jones, Jessica Jones and Tiffany Lewis, junior Janiah McKay and freshman Unique Thompson. The Jones twins and McKay are all returning starters from a year ago - McKay is the Tigers' returning leader in scoring (12.9 ppg), Jessica Jones leads returners in rebounds (5.4), and Jazmine Jones is among the team's leaders in both rebounding and steals.

Lewis played in all 32 games last season, earning one start, and is an outside shooting threat. Thompson, the lone player from Alabama on the Tigers' roster, averaged 18 points and 13 rebounds as a high school senior last year, and she would be the first true freshman to start in her Auburn debut since Katie Frerking in 2013.

Virginia Tech (1-0) began its season Friday afternoon with a 99-32 home victory over Wagner. The Hokies and Tigers met last season in Auburn with Virginia Tech claiming a 92-87 overtime win at Auburn Arena.

Andy Burcham begins his 30th season on the mic for the Auburn Sports Network, and the radio broadcast will begin at 5:45 p.m. CT on WTGZ 93.9 FM in Auburn. Fans can also listen online via TuneIn Radio, at AuburnTigers.com, or via the official Auburn Tigers app.

Auburn Quick Hitters

- Auburn is 38-8 all-time in season-openers and 13-5 when opening the season away from home
- This is Auburn's first opener in a true road game since 2011 (at Mercer) and the first opener away from Auburn Arena since 2012 (vs. Maine in Raleigh, N.C.)
- Auburn is in its 47th season of women's basketball and has 899 program wins
- This is the eighth meeting between Auburn and Virginia Tech; the Tigers hold a 5-2 series lead
- Auburn is 3-1 all-time against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg; this will be just the second regular-season meeting between the teams at Virginia Tech
- Then-No. 24 Virginia Tech won the last meeting, a 92-87 overtime thriller on Dec. 18 of last season in Auburn
- Auburn is 43-23 against current members of the ACC
- Auburn's last win on the road against an ACC opponent was Dec. 30, 2008, at Miami
- Auburn returns three starters and nine letterwinners from the 2016-17 team
- The Tigers were selected to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season in 2016-17 and finished 17-15 overall
- This is the fourth meeting between Terri Williams-Flournoy and Kenny Brooks (Brooks leads 2-1)
- The Tigers are 3-0 all-time on Nov. 13, but this is the first road game Auburn has played on this date
- Auburn is 131-36 all-time in the month of November; Coach Flo is 23-9 in November at Auburn
- The Tigers face five non-conference opponents in 2017-18 that advanced to postseason play last year
- Auburn is 58-26 in non-conference games under Terri Williams-Flournoy
- Junior guard Janiah McKay is Auburn's leading returning scorer; she averaged 12.9 point/game last season
- McKay also led the Tigers in assists (3.4/game) and is the leading returner in minutes played (28.3/game)
- Seniors Jazmine Jones and Jessica Jones are the Tigers' other two returning starters
- Jazmine Jones averaged 4.5 points and 4.3 rebounds last season and is a key component of Auburn's press
- Jessica Jones is the Tigers' leading returner in rebounding (5.2/game) and steals (1.4/game)
- Coach Terri Williams-Flournoy begins her sixth season at Auburn, her 14th as a head coach, and her 26th overall in college coaching
- Auburn forced a school-record 709 turnovers (22.2/game) last season; that ranked second in the nation
- Auburn also ranked second nationally in turnover margin (+8.56) in 2016-17
- For the sixth straight year, Auburn's roster features a set of sisters in junior twins Jazmine and Jessica Jones
- 24 of Auburn's 28 games will be televised in some manner; 23 of them will appear on the ESPN family of networks
- In SEC preseason polls, Auburn was picked to finish 10th by the media and 11th by the league's coaches
- The Tigers have advanced to the postseason 25 times in program history and in eight of the last 11 seasons

Last Time Out

ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn saw its 2016-17 season come to a close on St. Patrick's Day as the 11th-seeded Tigers fell to sixth-seeded North Carolina State 62-48 in the first round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament in Austin, Texas.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn found itself in a big early hole, trailing by 17 at halftime and as many as 27 late in the game, but fought back to cut the final margin to 14 points with a 25-point outburst in the fourth quarter. However, a combined 12 points in the second and third quarters were too much for the Tigers to overcome.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º It was Auburn's 20th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and the second straight for coach Terri Williams-Flournoy. Coach Flo has taken her teams to the postseason in eight of her last nine seasons of coaching.

Noteworthy

AUBURN-VIRGINIA TECH SERIES
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º This is the eighth meeting between Auburn and Virginia Tech Auburn is 5-2 against the Hokies and owns a 3-1 advantage in games played in Blacksburg.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º This is the first meeting in Blacksburg since the 2007 WNIT when the Tigers defeated the Hokies 81-73.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Three of the last four meetings between the teams have come in the postseason. Last season was the first regular-season meeting between the teams since 1987.

SCOUTING VIRGINIA TECH
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Virginia Tech finished the 2016-17 season 20-14 overall and 4-12 in ACC play. After a 15-0 start, the Hokies found rough going in the conference season before rebounding to win four of their final six games and advance to the WNIT quarterfinals.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Last season, the Hokies averaged 70.7 points per game while allowing 70.1 per contest. The Hokies were picked to finish 11th in the ACC in 2017-18.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Tech returns two starters in junior point guard Chanette Hicks and redshirt junior forward Regan Magarity. Hicks led the Hokies in scoring (16.1 ppg), steals (3.6) and assists (5.2) in 2016-17 and was named to the preseason All-ACC team.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Kenny Brooks is in his second season as Tech's head coach. He was 20-14 in his first season and owns a career mark of 357-136 in 16 years as a head coach.

LAST MEETING (Dec. 18, 2016):
#24 VIRGINIA TECH 92, AUBURN 87 (OT)
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 at Auburn Arena.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Tigers 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 made 12 3-pointers throughout the game and won it at the free-throw line in the extra period.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Janiah McKay scored a career-high 28 points -- including seven points in the final 1:08 of regulation -- 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.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn led 81-79 with just over three minutes to play in OT and held a one-point lead at the 1:56 mark, but the Hokies made nine free throws in the extra period to pull away for the win. Brandy Montgomery scored 20 points, and Katie Frerking added 15. Jessica Jones had a season-high eight points and led Auburn with six rebounds, and Jazmine Jones added a season-high nine.

SCOUTING AUBURN
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn returns three starters and eight letterwinners from its 2016-17 team that finished 17-15 overall and advanced to the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn averaged 62.4 points per game last season but lost almost half of that in three graduating seniors: Katie Frerking (15.7 ppg), Brandy Montgomery (13.3 ppg) and Khady Dieng (1.1 ppg).
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Junior point guard Janiah McKay is the Tigers' leading returning scorer after averaging 12.9 ppg last season. She also is the leading returner in assists (3.4/game) and minutes played (28.3/game). She led the Tigers in scoring eight times last season and had her first career double-double with 13 points and 13 assists vs. Ole Miss.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Senior forwards Jazmine and Jessica Jones are the TIgers' other two returning starters. Jessica Jones is the team's leading returner in rebounds (5.2/game) and steals (1.4/game) and averaged 3.8 points last season. Jazmine Jones averaged 4.5 points and 4.3 rebounds last season and was a key component of Auburn's trademark pressure defense.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Senior Tiffany Lewis looks to enter the starting lineup this season. She is Auburn's leading returner in made 3-point field goals with 23 last season. Freshman Unique Thompson is the Tigers' fifth projected starter; she averaged 18 points and 13 rebounds as a high school senior last season.

AUBURN IN SEASON OPENERS
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º In 46 previous seasons, Auburn has put together a 38-8 record in season openers (home or away) and sports a 24-3 record when opening the season at home.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn is 14-5 when opening the season away from home. This is Auburn's first true road season opener since 2011 (at Mercer).
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Tigers are winners of their last 25 home season openers with the last time Auburn lost being a 71-56 loss to Talladega in the 1977-78 opener.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy is 5-0 in season-openers at Auburn. She holds a 10-3 record in season-openers as a head coach, winning her last eight.

Looking Ahead

ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn plays its home opener on Thursday, Nov. 16, as the Tigers host North Carolina A&T at Auburn Arena. Tip is set for 6 p.m. with the broadcast on SEC Network +.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Thursday's game is Military Appreciation Night at Auburn Arena as active and retired military and their families will receive free admission.