Auburn women host Vanderbilt Monday night

Feb. 11, 2018

AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" The Auburn women's basketball team looks to build on momentum from two straight home victories as the Tigers host Vanderbilt at 6 p.m. Monday night.

The Tigers (12-11, 3-8 SEC) are coming off a 70-62 home victory over LSU on Thursday night that saw junior Janiah McKay and freshman Unique Thompson both score 20-plus points. It was the 100th win at Auburn for head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy.

Vanderbilt (6-19, 2-9 SEC) has a pair of SEC wins, defeating Ole Miss and Kentucky earlier in the season. The Commodores are the SEC's top 3-point shooting team at 39.4 percent.

Auburn has won four straight against the Commodores with three of those in Nashville. The Tigers rallied from a 17-point deficit last season to earn a 64-59 victory at Memorial Gym.

Andy Burcham, Larry DiChiara and Brit Bowen will have the radio call on WTGZ 93.9 FM beginning at 5:45 p.m.; fans can also listen online at AuburnTigers.com or via TuneIn Radio. SEC Network will carry the TV broadcast with Brenda VanLengen and Carol Ross on the call.

Promotions

- Daddy-Daughter Night
- Dean's Challenge

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Auburn Quick Hitters

- This is the 49th meeting between Auburn and Vanderbilt in a series that dates to 1977-78
- Vanderbilt owns a 28-20 advantage in the all-time series, including a 10-9 edge in Auburn (2-1 at Auburn Arena)
- Auburn has won the last four meetings after having lost 21 straight in the series from 2000-2014
- The Tigers earned a come-from-behind 64-59 win in Nashville last year after trailing by 17 mid-3rd quarter
- Auburn earned its highest RPI win of the season Thursday, defeating LSU (25 RPI) 70-62 at Auburn Arena
- Auburn is the only team in the SEC that will have played six of the league's top seven teams on the road
- Auburn ranks in the top 5 nationally in steals per game (3nd - 13.5) and turnovers forced per game (5th - 23.3)
- Auburn leads the SEC in steals (13.5/game) and has three of the top 15 players in the league in steals: Janiah McKay (1st - 2.7), Daisa Alexander (2nd - 2.6); Jazmine Jones (15th - 1.6)
- Coach Terri Williams-Flournoy earned her 100th Auburn victory vs. LSU on Feb. 8
- Coach Flo is 100-87 in six seasons at Auburn and 243-191 in 14 seasons as a head coach
- The Tigers are 6-1 this season and 51-7 under Coach Flo when scoring at least 70 points
- Janiah McKay and Unique Thompson each topped 20 points vs. LSU; second time this season for McKay and Thompson to both have 20 in a game (Texas A&M, 1/8)
- Sophomore Daisa Alexander and freshman Abigayle Jackson made their first career starts at LSU (1/18)
- Alexander's 7 steals at LSU were the most by an Auburn player this season
- Freshman Abigayle Jackson scored a career-high 13 points at Texas A&M (2/4)
- Auburn set a new school record by hitting 16-of-16 free throws in the first meeting with Texas A&M (1/7)
- From the end of the Tennessee game (1/4) into the third quarter of the South Carolina game (1/11), Auburn made 24 consecutive free throws
- Five players scored in double figures for Auburn vs. Alabama, the first time for that since 12/29/14 at FIU
- Alexander is second on the team with 13.6 points/game; she has scored in double-figures in 18 of 22 games
- The Tigers tied a school record for fewest turnovers with 5 vs. Florida on Dec. 31 while forcing the Gators into 28
- Auburn has forced at least 20 turnovers in 19 of 23 games this season and 25+ turnovers in nine games
- Auburn has won 25 of its last 28 games when forcing at least 25 turnovers (7-2 this season)
- Junior point guard Janiah McKay is Auburn's top scorer with 16.6 points/game; she also leads team and ranks fifth in SEC in assists (4.5) and leads SEC in steals (2.7)
- McKay is the SEC's leading free-throw shooter at 85.1% (114-of-134)
- McKay was 11-of-11 on free throws vs. Texas A&M (1/7), tying an Auburn record held by 3 other players; she made 20 in a row over a four-game stretch from Florida (12/31) through South Carolina (1/11)
- McKay scored 25+ points in three straight games (Texas A&M, South Carolina, Arkansas); she is the fourth Auburn player to accomplish that feat in the last 30 years
- Freshman Unique Thompson was named SEC Freshman of the Week after her first career double-double (16 pts, 14 rebs) vs. Louisiana Tech (11/19); she had 10 points and 10 rebounds by halftime
- Thompson has 6 double-doubles this season: LA Tech (16/14), ULL (29/12), Southern (18/10), SE Louisiana (10/11), Arkansas (14/13), Alabama (14/11); only one Auburn player has had more double-doubles as a freshman (Le'Coe Willingham, 7)

Last Time Out

ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Led by 23 points from junior Janiah McKay, the Auburn women's basketball team avenged an earlier loss to LSU with a 70-62 victory at Auburn Arena Thursday night.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º It was the 100th win at Auburn for head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy, now in her sixth season with the Tigers (12-11, 3-8 SEC). Auburn improved to 9-2 at home this season with the victory.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º McKay's 23 led all scorers. She was 6-of-13 from the field but 11-of-12 at the free-throw line, including 8-of-9 in the fourth quarter as she helped Auburn seal the victory. She also had a team-leading five assists. Freshman Unique Thompson added 20 points and a game-high nine rebounds, missing a double-double by just one board. Sophomore Daisa Alexander provided an early offensive spark and finished with 15 points.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn shot 45.3 percent, their best in conference play this year, and was 19-of-23 (82.6%) at the free-throw line. The Tigers also scored 14 second-chance points off 14 offensive rebounds and pulled down 35 total boards to 29 for LSU (15-7, 7-4).

Noteworthy

A WIN OVER VANDERBILT WOULD...
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Be Auburn's fifth straight over the Commodores after having lost 21 in a row from 2001-2014.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Improve Auburn to 10-2 at home this year.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Even the series with Vanderbilt at home to 10-10.

AUBURN vs. VANDERBILT
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Vanderbilt leads the series with Auburn 28-20, including a 10-9 edge in Auburn.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Vanderbilt won 21 straight in the series from 2001-14. The Tigers snapped the streak with a 68-60 win at Vandy in 2014, and the Tigers have won four straight since that night.

LAST MEETING (Jan. 12, 2018, in Nashville):
AUBURN 64, VANDERBILT 59
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn overcame a 17-point third-quarter deficit to pick up its third SEC win of the season, defeating Vanderbilt 64-59 in SEC women's basketball action Thursday night at Memorial Gym.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Three players scored in double-figures for the Tigers led by 18 from senior Katie Frerking and 16 from senior Brandy Montgomery. Of Montgomery's 16 points, 14 came in the fourth quarter.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Commodores led 45-28 with 5:27 to play in the third quarter, shooting 66.7 percent in the period. But aided by three straight Vandy turnovers, Auburn went on a 12-0 run to cut the deficit to as few as five points, ending the third quarter down seven at 49-42. Auburn was ice-cold from 3-point range until the final minutes, missing their first 13 attempts. But Montgomery hit her first with 6:24 to play to cut the deficit to four points at 53-49. Another trey from Montgomery two minutes later made it a one-point game at 55-54, and a 3-point play just 30 seconds later gave Auburn its first lead in 30+ minutes at 56-55.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º After 12 first-half turnovers, Auburn did not turn the ball over once in the second half. The Tigers shot 39.3 percent for the game but finished strong, shooting 50 percent in the fourth quarter.

SCOUTING VANDERBILT
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Vanderbilt enters Monday's game 6-19 overall, 2-9 in SEC play. The Commodores' two wins in SEC play have come against Ole Miss and Kentucky.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Commodores score 69.6 points/game but give up 78.6 per game. Vandy is the league's top 3-point shooting team, averaging 39.4% (170-of-432).
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Chelsie Hall leads Vandy with 13.0 points/game, and Kayla Overbeck is the SEC's fifth-best in field goal percentage at 60.9%. Four Vandy players - Cierra Walker, Christa Reed, Rachel Bell and Erin Whalen - are among the SEC's top 15 in 3-point shooting percentage.

SCOUTING AUBURN
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn is 12-11 on the season, 3-8 SEC, and earned its biggest win of the season Thursday night with a 70-62 victory over LSU.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Tigers are scoring 63.2 points per game while holding opponents to 58.4/game, third-best in the SEC.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Junior point guard Janiah McKay has scored in double-figures in 21 of the Tigers' 23 games, including matching a career-high with 29 vs. Louisiana Tech. She also leads the SEC in steals (2.7/game) and free-throw percentage (85.1%) and is fifth in assists (4.5/game).
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Freshman Unique Thompson has been a breakout star, twice earning SEC Freshman of the Week honors while averaging 11.5 points and 8.9 rebounds. She has six double-doubles on the season, including three straight vs. ULL, Southern and Southeastern La. She had her best SEC game against Texas A&M with 22 points and 9 rebounds, then followed that up with a double-double against Arkansas (14 points/13 rebounds).
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Senior forward Jazmine Jones is averaging 5.5 points/game. She had a season-high 9 rebounds in the first meeting with Texas A&M.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Sophomore Daisa Alexander has been another breakout star, averaging 13.7 points. She came off the bench for Auburn's first 17 games and moved into the starting lineup at LSU on Jan. 18. In just 20 minutes vs. Indiana, she scored a career-high 25 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter to help Auburn pull away. She added 21 points in the win over Florida, 17 vs. Texas A&M and 16 at South Carolina. She made her first career start at LSU on Jan. 18, scoring 20 points and notching a career-high 7 steals, then scored 22 points at Georgia.
ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º Auburn has forced at least 20 turnovers in 19 of 23 games this season and has forced 25 or more nine times (29 vs. LA Tech; 25 vs. Northwestern, 35 vs. ULM; 26 vs. Southern; 31 vs. SE Louisiana; 30 vs. XULA; 28 vs. Florida; 28 at Tennessee; 25 vs. Alabama). The Tigers average 23.0 points per game off opponent turnovers.

Looking Ahead

ÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬ºÃƒÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬º The Tigers wrap up a three-game stretch at home when they host No. 15 Missouri at 6 p.m. Thursday. It will be the annual Play4Kay Pink Game at Auburn Arena.