AUBURN, Ala. – Honesty Scott-Grayson matched a season-high with 23 points, and Auburn's defense came up huge in the fourth quarter as the Tigers fought back for a 65-60 win over No. 21 Georgia Sunday afternoon at Auburn Arena.
The Tigers picked up their third win over a top-25 opponent this season, rallying from an eight-point deficit in the fourth quarter as they held Georgia scoreless for the final 7:16 of the game.
"I've been waiting on that," Auburn head coach Johnnie Harris said of the Tigers' fourth-quarter defense. "We wanted to put more pressure on the ball earlier. We were letting them get straight-line passes. I challenged them to pressure the ball and get over those screens. We just had to be tougher, and I felt like we were tougher in the fourth quarter."
"Our kids just played their guts out today. Coach Starkey put a heart on the board as one of his keys to the game. We needed them to play with heart, and we needed them to play together. And I thought we did that. I thought everybody was on the same page."
Scott-Grayson's 23 points led all scorers; she also had four rebounds, five steals and three assists. Aicha Coulibaly added 19 points with a game-high eight rebounds. Sania Wells had eight points, a team-leading four assists and three steals, and Jala Jordan added eight points and seven rebounds off the bench.
With the win today, Auburn has three victories over top-25 opponents this season – No. 4 Tennessee, No. 18 Georgia Tech and No. 21 Georgia. That's the most ranked wins in a single season since 2009-10 when the Tigers also won three top-25 games.
Auburn shot 40.7 percent from the floor (22-54) but knocked down 6-of-15 3-pointers (40%). Georgia took advantage of its size for 36 paint points to Auburn's 26, and the Bulldogs were 15-of-18 at the free-throw line. The Tigers also forced Georgia into 21 turnovers, converting those into 17 points.
The teams traded buckets early, but Auburn ended the first quarter on a 9-2 run to take a 20-14 lead after 10 minutes. Georgia took advantage of multiple free-throw opportunities in the second quarter – UGA was 11-of-11 at the line in the first half – to take a 33-30 lead at the break.
Auburn would get within two at 47-45 late in the third, but Georgia kept pounding the paint to take a 54-48 lead to the final period. That lead would increase to 56-48, and a Jenna Staiti bucket with 7:16 to play made it 60-54 Bulldogs.
But Georgia would never score again. Three straight buckets off UGA turnovers tied the game, and a Jordan free throw after two more defensive stops put Auburn in the lead at 61-60 with 2:14 to play. Neither team could get a shot to fall for the next minute-plus, but Auburn kept getting defensive stops, then took advantage at the line. Coulibaly made it a 3-point game with 27 seconds left, and Wells – the SEC's best free-throw shooter – iced the game with two more in the final 20 seconds.
Staiti led four Bulldogs in double figures with 18 points. Que Morrison added 14, and Javyn Nicholson had 11.
Auburn closes out the home schedule Thursday night as Ole Miss visits Auburn Arena for a 7 p.m. CT tip. It's Senior Night – Kiyae' White, Xaria Wiggins and Annie Hughes will be honored in a pregame ceremony set to begin at approximately 6:40 p.m.
Auburn defense stands tall in 65-60 win over No. 21 Georgia
