AUBURN, Ala. – The Auburn University students who camped outside Auburn Arena on a frigid Friday night chanted "No. 1" Saturday as the second-ranked Tigers defeated No. 12 Kentucky 80-71, Auburn's 15th straight win.
"That game and that environment lived up to anybody's expectations," Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. "It's the sum of our parts. We got really great contributions from everybody."
Walker Kessler scored 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting and grabbed seven rebounds. K.D. Johnson scored 17 points and had four rebounds. Jabari Smith added 14 points and tied Kessler with a team-high seven boards. Wendell Green Jr. added 11 points, all in the second half, and led the Tigers with five assists.
"They show up every game," Kessler said of The Jungle. "We wouldn't be in the position we're in now if it weren't for the fans. Big gratitude for them. You feel a lot of pride playing for a program like this and competing for a school like this."
Auburn outscored Kentucky 16-7 in the first six minutes of the second half, turning a four-point halftime deficit into a 45-40 lead. The Tigers scored 51 second-half points after compiling only 29 in the first half.
"We stopped turning the ball over and did a better job of executing," Pearl said of the second half improvement.
Johnson hit a 3-pointer and scored through contact on a drive to tie it at 38-38. After a Wildcats basket, Auburn scored seven unanswered points in 53 seconds, punctuated by Devan Cambridge's dunk in transition.
"When one man is clicking, we feed off that energy," Johnson said.
Kentucky tied the score at 45-45, but Wendell Green Jr. hit a pair of 3-pointers in 25 seconds to give the Tigers a lead they would not relinquish.
Johnson answered a UK run with a 3-pointer, then hit a trio of free throws to extend Auburn's lead to 64-52 with 6:07 to play, the Tigers' largest lead. Auburn hit its first 16 free throw attempts of the second half before a pair of late misses.
Kentucky pulled within four, but Smith continued his season-long pattern of taking and making clutch shots, putting Auburn up 70-64 with 2:25 to play.
"It was time for No. 10 to step up and make plays," Pearl said of Smith. "He's not afraid of the moment."
Smith fed Kessler for a dunk that gave the Tigers a 74-66 lead with 1:28 remaining. Auburn closed out the game with six free throws, finishing the second half 21-for-23 from the line.
Auburn made five of its last six shots in the first half to cut into Kentucky's double-digit lead. The Wildcats took advantage of early Tiger turnovers in a 13-0 run.
"We stuck with the game plan," Johnson said. "We stay together and don't get rattled."
Kessler, Smith and Jaylin Williams combined to score Auburn's final 22 points of the half, with Kessler's three dunks in the last two minutes pulling the Tigers within four at 33-29 at the half.
"Props to our guards," said Kessler, who led the Tigers in the half with 11 points, four rebounds and two assists. "They're such good facilitators."
Auburn (18-1, 7-0) could be ranked No. 1 for the first time in program history when the Tigers travel to Columbia, Missouri, to play Mizzou Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. CT on SECN.
"We held serve. This was an incredible opportunity," Pearl said. "We did what we were supposed to do. We were good enough today to beat a really good team that could get to the Final Four. We've got work to do. There's a big prize on our head. We've got to keep getting better, keep staying humble and hungry."
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer
