AUBURN, Ala. – The Auburn women's basketball team begins a week where they will face two straight ranked opponents when No. 24 Texas A&M visits Auburn Arena at 7:30 p.m. Thursday.
Thursday's game is the annual "We Back Pat" Game, part of a week-long initiative in the SEC to promote awareness for the Pat Summitt Foundation and its fight against Alzheimer's disease. In addition, the first 500 fans will receive an Auburn women's basketball tumbler.
The Tigers (15-3, 3-2 SEC) are coming off an open date over the weekend that followed a dramatic comeback victory at Vanderbilt last Thursday when Auburn overcame a 20-point deficit to earn a 72-70 win. In that game, senior Janiah McKay scored a team-leading 19 points, and freshman Robyn Benton hit the game-winning shot and free throw with 8.6 seconds to play to give the Tigers the win.
Senior Erica Sanders will make her first start of the season and second of her career Thursday. The senior from San Antonio, Texas, missed the first nine games of the season with a knee injury suffered in a preseason scrimmage, but has played a vital role off the bench so far in conference play. She had five points in last Thursday's win at Vanderbilt, including the first 3-pointer of her college career to beat the third-quarter buzzer.
Texas A&M (14-4, 3-2) has won three straight games in league play after dropping its first two. The Aggies are led by sophomore guard Chennedy Carter, who is the SEC's leading scorer with 21.2 points per game.
Pregame coverage begins on WTGZ 93.9 FM and AuburnTigers.com with Andy Burcham, Larry DiChiara and Brit Bowen. SEC Network will have the telecast with Paul Sunderland and Debbie Antonelli calling the action.
QUICK HITS
• This is the 12th meeting between Auburn and Texas A&M in women's basketball
• Texas A&M has won each of the prevous 11 meetings
• The teams played twice last season; A&M won 83-72 in Auburn and 78-59 in College Station
• This is Auburn's third straight home game against a top-25 opponent
• Auburn seeks its first win against a ranked opponent since defeating No. 16 Florida 80-58 on Feb. 14, 2016
• Auburn leads the SEC and ranks 6th in the NCAA in steals per game (12.7)
• Auburn has forced 20 or more turnovers in 15 of 18 games this season, including the last 10 in a row
• The Tigers are averaging 25.8 points per game off opponent turnovers
• Auburn rallied from a 20-point, third-quarter deficit at Vanderbilt on Jan. 17 to win 72-70; it's the largest comeback in an SEC game since 2003 and believed to be the biggest in Auburn history
• Freshman Robyn Benton hit the game-winning shot + free throw at Vanderbilt and was named SEC Freshman of the Week
• Sophomore Unique Thompson has recorded eight double-doubles in 18 games, including three straight against New Mexico, Iowa State and UL-Lafayette; she now has 15 in her career, tied for 8th in Auburn history
• Junior Crystal Primm had a career-high 7 steals vs. Mississippi State, tied for the most by an SEC player this season and the most in a conference game so far in 2019
• Senior Janiah McKay passed Lori Monroe for 13th all-time in scoring at Auburn with 16 points at Florida; she now has 1,452 points
LAST TIME OUT
›› Auburn completed one of the biggest comebacks in school history Thursday night, rallying from a 20-point third-quarter deficit to earn a 72-70 win over Vanderbilt at Memorial Gym.
›› Freshman Robyn Benton hit a jumper in the paint and drew a foul with 8.6 seconds to play to give Auburn the lead for just the second time in the game at 71-70. She sank the free throw to push the lead to two points, and Vandy's baseline jumper at the buzzer fell short.
›› Auburn (15-3, 3-2 SEC) fought back from a huge deficit for the second straight trip to Memorial Gym. In 2017, the Tigers trailed by 17 midway through the third quarter before rallying for a 64-59 win.
›› Janiah McKay led the Tigers with 19 points and six assists. Unique Thompson picked up her eighth double-double of the season with 16 points and 13 rebounds, and Daisa Alexander overcame a slow start to post a 14-point night; 12 of those came in the second half.
AN AUBURN WIN WOULD...
›› Be Auburn's first-ever victory over Texas A&M.
›› Give Auburn a third RPI top-50 win this season.
›› Improve Auburn to 4-2 in SEC play.
›› Snap an 18-game skid against ranked opponents that dates back to the 2015-16 season.
AUBURN VS. TEXAS A&M
›› Texas A&M is 11-0 all-time against Auburn in a series that dates back to 2007. The Aggies are 9-0 against Auburn since joining the SEC in 2012-13 and 3-0 at Auburn Arena.
UP NEXT
›› The Tigers face a second straight top-25 opponent Sunday when Auburn travels to Columbia, Mo., to face the Missouri Tigers. Game time is 2 p.m. CT at Mizzou Arena.
Tigers host No. 24 Texas A&M for 'We Back Pat' Game
