ATHENS, Ga. – Sharife Cooper posted a double-double. Six players scored in double figures. Auburn blocked 14 shots. It was a complete performance from the Tigers on Wednesday as they cruised to a 95-77 victory at Georgia, notching their first win in SEC play.
"It was an exciting game, very up-tempo, two teams that like to run," Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl said. "I think the biggest thing for us was Georgia really attacks the rim – we blocked 14 shots, and they shot 41 percent. I thought our defense was really good.
"Offensively, we had six guys in double figures because (Cooper) just shares it. He's hard to guard and makes what we do harder to guard."
After putting up 26 points and nine assists in his Auburn debut on Saturday, what would Cooper do for an encore in his second game? How about 28 points, 12 assists, five rebounds and two steals from the freshman point guard? More importantly, though, the Tigers won.
"It's more about the win," Cooper said. "Just getting on the right track. We're trying to get this thing rolling."
The Tigers led 45-34 at the break, but Georgia scored the first seven points in the second half to cut the lead to four. However, Auburn responded with a 22-3 run over the next eight minutes to put the game out of reach. The run began with a lay-up from Cooper, included back-to-back-to-back 3s from Jamal Johnson, Cooper and JT Thor, and was capped by an easy deuce inside from Jaylin Williams.
"A big factor in winning is containing team's runs," Cooper said. "It's a game full of ups and downs, runs, and the best teams can contain a run and make a run of their own. I felt like we did good with that today."
Cooper scored 20 of his 28 points in the second half, and over the game's final nine minutes, he scored or assisted on 20 of Auburn's last 24 points.
Cambridge was second on the team with 14 points and showed his defensive prowess with five blocks and three steals. His five blocks were a career high and matched Williams who also blocked five shots. As a team, the Tigers' 14 blocks were the most by a Division 1 team this season and set an Auburn record for an SEC game.
"We knew we've been on a dry spell, and it starts with defense," Cambridge said. "BP was talking about how we need to come out and play defense this game, so we locked in on that today and it showed. We played a lot better on the defensive end."
"I thought Devan Cambridge was incredible protecting the rim," Pearl said. "And so was Jaylin Williams and Stretch (Babatunde Akingbola). It was about retreating. It was about trying to meet them at the rim. I thought we used our length and did a good job of helping each other. That was huge."
Williams, Thor and Allen Flanigan all finished with 11 points apiece. Thor scored five quick points early to put the Tigers ahead 8-3. He also pulled down a team-high eight rebounds.
Johnson made it six in double figures with 10 points. The junior guard put Auburn on the board first with a 3 on the team's opening possession. He's now scored in double figures in six straight games, including all five games in league play where he's averaging 14.4 points per contest.
As a team, Auburn scored 95 points on 56.5 percent (35-62) shooting from the field. It's the most points the Tigers have scored in regulation in an SEC game since beating LSU, 95-70, on Jan. 27, 2018, and it's the third time under Pearl they have scored 90 points in consecutive SEC games.
Auburn (7-6, 1-4) will look to make it two wins in a row Saturday at home against Kentucky.
"We're trying to extend the culture that was built here, and that's winning," Cooper said. "We're trying to carry on that legacy and be a winning team."
