AUBURN, Ala. – Three straight home games. Three straight convincing victories. Auburn capped a three-game homestand Tuesday night with a 76-62 win over Florida. It's the program's first win over the Gators since 2009 and the first-regular season win in the series since 1999.
"I hope our fans got their fill of some great college basketball this week," Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl said. "We sure needed their help. Coming off the road 2-4 (in the SEC), we needed to win these games. And we did. We just beat a good basketball team.
"It's been since 1999 since Auburn has beaten Florida at home, so it's a great win and a great program win."
Senior guard Bryce Brown led the way for Auburn with a game-high 14 points, but it was a team effort from the Tigers as 10 different players finished with a made basket.
That balance was needed early on as Auburn starters Jared Harper and Chuma Okeke both left the game due to injury before the first media timeout. The Tigers didn't miss a beat, though, as the rest of the team picked up the slack. Samir Doughty, in particular, scored 10 points in the first half and finished with 12 in the game.
"I was just playing," Doughty said. "Whatever I had to do, I just did it. I was just playing my game, honestly. I knew they were going to be all right. They told me they were coming back, so that wasn't really a big focus of mine. I was just taking what the defense gave me."
"I thought Samir was terrific," added Pearl. "He played confident offensively, played with some of that Philly swag, but he took on some defensive identity in taking on KeVaughn Allen and doing a great job using his length and being physical. He used his smarts to be able to get where he needed to be on the floor in order to make plays defensively and offensively."
Okeke (hip) and Harper (ankle) both returned later in the first half and played 27 minutes apiece. Okeke had 11 points, a team-high eight rebounds and three steals, and Harper added eight points and three assists.
Auburn also saw the return of Austin Wiley, who played for the first time since Jan. 16. The junior big man only played five minutes but added two points and two rebounds.
Though it was another solid offensive game for Auburn, the difference came on the defensive end where the Tigers have elevated their play during this current homestand. They forced 17 turnovers Tuesday night, which is the most turnovers Florida has had all season, and they also held Florida to just four makes from beyond the arc. The Gators were averaging 10 3-pointers per game coming in.
Over the past three games, Auburn has now forced a total of 59 turnovers and held its opponents (Missouri, Alabama, Florida) to 61 points per game.
"That's been our main focus in practice – playing defense and just trying to grow in that area," senior Horace Spencer said. "The offense takes care of itself. We can put 100 points on the board no problem. It's just time to stop other teams from doing what they do."
Auburn won't have its home-court advantage in the next game as the Tigers are slated to play on the road at No. 21 LSU on Saturday. Tip off is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT, and the game will be televised on ESPN2.
Greg Ostendorf is a Senior Writer for AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @greg_ostendorf