AUBURN, Ala. – It was a cold night outside Auburn Arena on Friday but not inside where the 22nd-ranked Tigers scorched the nets on their way to a 116-70 win over CSUN.
Auburn missed its first shot of the night, but Samir Doughty grabbed his own miss and put it back in to take a quick 2-0 lead. Then the next shot fell and the shot after that, and before long, it was 32-9 in favor of the Tigers before the second media timeout.
When it was over, Auburn finished with the eighth-most points in program history.
"We took our opponent seriously," Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl said. "The last time you saw us at home, against Georgia Southern and Eckerd, I think we've played better (since then). We've talked about how we have a long way to go. We still have a long way to go. Clearly (tonight), we shot it and shared it. We overwhelmed our opponent, which we haven't been able to do yet."
After his initial miss, Doughty caught fire as he made his next seven shots, including four from beyond the arc. The senior scored 22 points in the first half alone, setting a new career high, and finished the game with 33 points – the most scored by an Auburn player since Bryce Brown's 34 against Dayton on Dec. 8, 2018. He also added eight rebounds.
"I just wanted to be aggressive," Doughty said. "I told J'Von (McCormick) that I was going to be aggressive tonight. I wasn't as aggressive as I could be our last game. I just tried to be more aggressive and be in attack mode, whether that's shooting the ball or finding my teammates. I just wanted to be in attack mode the whole night."
Led by Doughty's 22, Auburn scored 66 points in the first half – the most points scored in a half since the Tigers put up 72 in the second half against Northwestern State in 2015.
It was a historic night for J'Von McCormick, too, as the senior point guard broke the Auburn single-game record with 16 assists while only committing one turnover. The previous record holder was Eddie Johnson, who dished out 15 assists in 1976.
"I just got downhill, found the open man, and my teammates were able to make shots," McCormick said. "It's a big accomplishment knowing that good guards like Jared Harper were here."
"We knew that there's not really anybody in the country that can guard him," added Doughty. "When he finds his teammates, that's when he's at his best. When's he's aggressive, that's when he's at his best. We always want him to play like that each and every night."
Doughty was one of six players to score in double figures for the Tigers on Friday. Freshman Isaac Okoro, the hero from Tuesday's win at South Alabama, set a new career high with 17 points and has now scored 10 or more points in all four games he's played at Auburn.
Next was Danjel Purifoy, who finished with 16 points on 6 of 10 shooting. The senior was 4 of 7 from beyond the arc. Lastly, the trio of Austin Wiley, Anfernee McLemore and Devan Cambridge all chipped in 10 points. Wiley just missed a double-double with nine rebounds, and McLemore led the team with four blocks.
As a team, the Tigers shot 57 percent from the field (42-74), 49 percent from 3-point range (17-35) and made 15 of the 16 free throws they attempted. They finished with 27 assists on 42 made baskets and also dominated on the glass with a 52-33 advantage in rebounds.
The freshmen continued to make an impact with Okoro and Cambridge both in double figures, and Allen Flanigan adding a career-high seven points off the bench.
Next up for Auburn is another home game against Colgate on Monday. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT inside Auburn Arena, and it will be televised on SEC Network.