STARKVILLE, Miss. – Bryce Brown scored 18 points to lead four Tigers in double figures but No. 22 Mississippi State defeated No. 16 Auburn 92-84 Saturday at Humphrey Coliseum.
"Our offense was good," Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. "To score 84 points you should have a chance to win that basketball game, but they really dominated us on their offensive side."
Auburn (13-6, 2-4) began the second half on a 10-1 run to take a 55-48 lead but Mississippi State (15-4, 3-3) answered with a 10-0 run to reclaim momentum.
Anfernee McLemore's bucket tied it at 70-70 before Mississippi State made eight consecutive field goals on a 20-5 run to build a 15-point lead, taking advantage of 19 Auburn turnovers.
"We really struggled to guard Mississippi State. They just had their way with us," Pearl said. "They've got a really good offensive team. Coach [Ben Howland] runs good stuff. It was a clinic offensively. We couldn't stop them. We couldn't get any stops. That was the key."
Chuma Okeke scored 16 points while Jared Harper scored 15. McLemore added 10.
The Tigers have lost three straight games, all without injured center Austin Wiley, who is recovering from a lower leg injury.
"No excuses," Pearl said. "We've got good players at those positions."
Auburn trailed 47-45 at halftime after making all 14 free-throw attempts in the first half. The Tigers outrebounded the Bulldogs 16-11 in the half.
Auburn trailed by 11 before rallying. Malik Dunbar's steal and slam capped a 6-0 run that pulled the Tigers within three at 38-35.
Harper scored Auburn's last seven points of the half, including a jumper with 5 seconds left to send the Tigers to the locker room trailing by two.
MSU's Quinndary Weatherspoon scored a game-high 27 points. Reggie Perry added a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
After back-to-back road games, the Tigers return to Auburn Arena Wednesday, hosting Missouri at 7:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network.
"Look at the league and look at the grind and just get ready for the next one," Pearl said. "We've got six out of our next eight games at home. Just get the next one. I'm more concerned with process. I'm more concerned about our defense than how many games we've lost. The locker room is fine."
