BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – J'Von McCormick scored 20 points, grabbed seven rebounds and had six assists to lead No. 12 Auburn to a 67-61 win over Saint Louis Saturday in the Mike Slive Invitational at Legacy Arena, helping the Tigers improve to 9-0.
Winners of 21 of their last 22 games, Auburn made 10 3-pointers while holding the Billikens to 3-for-18 on 3-point attempts.
"We did enough of what we needed to do to win," Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. "Defensively, we were terrific, and J'Von McCormick was the best player on the floor."
McCormick made highlight-reel plays throughout the game, including a pair of 3-pointers to beat the shot clock and a floater in the lane for his final field goal and a double-digit lead with 13:17 remaining.
"We knew coming into the game I would need to be more aggressive, offensively and defensively," said McCormick, who had only one turnover in 31 minutes. "Knowing that Jared [Harper] left, people thought there was going to be a drop-off. I just wanted to show there's not any drop-off when he leaves.
"I feel like my identity would be: control the game, control the speed, score when I need to and play defense."
Devan Cambridge brought the crowd to its feet with a thunderous follow-up dunk after a missed 3-pointer in the second half.
McCormick assisted on back-to-back Anfernee McLemore 3-pointers to help Auburn build a 12-point lead down the stretch.
"He was the difference in the game, plain and simple," Saint Louis coach Travis Ford said of Auburn's senior point guard. "By a wide margin."
Isaac Okoro's layup off another McCormick assist gave Auburn its largest lead, 62-48 at the 4:38 mark, before Saint Louis narrowed the margin.
Okoro scored 12 points and had five rebounds. Playing in his hometown, Austin Wiley grabbed a game-high eight rebounds and scored eight points.
McCormick sparked the Tigers in the first half with a team-high 12 points and six rebounds.
After spotting Saint Louis a 9-0 lead, Danjel Purifoy's defensive rebound and coast-to-coast drive got Auburn on the board after a scoreless first five minutes.
McCormick hit a pair of 3-pointers and a free throw to cap a 9-0 run that evened the score.
Okoro's offensive rebound and putback gave Auburn its first lead at 17-15. Samir Doughty's corner 3 extended the lead to five at 22-17.
With the shot clock expiring, McCormick's 3-pointer put the Tigers up 25-19 at the 1:39 mark. McCormick's jumper with 18 seconds left gave Auburn a 28-21 halftime lead.
The Tigers look to improve to 10-0 when they return to Auburn Arena Thursday at 8 p.m. CT against North Carolina State on ESPN2 and the Auburn Sports Network.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer
Leaving the Magic City 9-0!#WarEagle x #ImWithMike pic.twitter.com/MiSJjWHfS3
— Auburn Basketball (@AuburnMBB) December 14, 2019