AUBURN, Ala. – For the first time in two weeks, the Auburn women's basketball team is back inside Neville Arena as the Tigers host Ole Miss Sunday afternoon. Game time is set for 4 p.m. CT.
Sunday's game is the annual We Back Pat Game, benefitting the Pat Summitt Foundation for Alzheimer's research. In addition, the first 500 fans can pick up a limited edition Neville Arena cup, available at all three arena entrances.
Fans can also purchase a Family Four-Pack for Sunday's game: four tickets, four drinks, four hot dogs and two popcorns for $44. Visit AUBTix.com to purchase tickets.
It will be the second meeting of the season between Auburn and Ole Miss; the teams previously met in Oxford on Dec. 29 with the Rebels claiming the win in the SEC opener for both teams.
ON THE AIR
›› Brit Bowen and Larry DiChiara will have the radio call on WQSI 93.9 FM beginning at 3:45 p.m. The broadcast can also be heard on AuburnTigers.com and the Auburn Athletics app.
›› Sunday's game can be seen on SEC Network with Tiffany Greene and Brooke Weisbrod calling the action.
LAST TIME OUT
›› Auburn fought back from a 15-point deficit to take a third-quarter lead, but Mississippi State pulled away in the final 10 minutes for a 72-58 Bulldog win Thursday night at Humphrey Coliseum.
›› The Tigers shot 80 percent in the third quarter to turn an eight-point halftime deficit into a three-point lead, heading to the fourth quarter tied 47-all. State opened the fourth on a 7-0 run, Auburn would fight foul trouble yet still get as close as five with two minutes to play, but the Tigers could not close the gap as MSU made several free throws in the closing seconds.
›› Aicha Coulibaly, who missed the last two games, was huge in her return with a team-best 15 points, eight rebounds, four steals and four assists, leading the Tigers in all categories. Honesty Scott-Grayson added 12 points, and Sydney Shaw had nine. Mar'Shaun Bostic was a spark off the bench, scoring eight points along with three steals, three blocks and three rebounds.
›› The Tigers used strong defense during their third-quarter run and throughout the game, turning 15 MSU turnover into 19 points. Despite the stellar third quarter, Auburn shot 38.7% for the game to State's 46.2%. MSU also made a living at the free-throw line, hitting 21-of-32 attempts while Auburn was 5-for-11. State also won the rebounding battle 44-28.
AN AUBURN WIN WOULD...
›› Surpass the Tigers' win total from the entire 2021-22 season with their 11th of the year.
›› Avenge an earlier loss this season against Ole Miss.
›› Be Auburn's 10th home win of the year.
AUBURN-OLE MISS SERIES
›› Auburn is 37-28 all-time against Ole Miss in a series that dates back to 1978. Ole Miss has won the last three meetings, and Auburn is 3-1 in the last four meetings at home.
LAST MEETING: Dec. 29, 2022, at Auburn
Ole Miss 79, Auburn 47
›› Auburn got off to a slow start and could not recover as the Tigers fell to Ole Miss 79-47 Thursday night in the SEC women's basketball opener for both teams.
›› Auburn (10-3, 0-1 SEC) struggled from the field throughout, and the Rebels (12-2, 1-0) controlled the paint and the boards to pull away for the win.
›› Aicha Coulibaly, returning to the lineup after missing the last three games, led the Tigers with 13 points. Kharyssa Richardson had a team-best eight rebounds along with eight points, and Mar'Shaun Bostic added nine points and led the Tigers with three assists.
›› Auburn shot a then-season-low 25 percent from the field (15-60) and did not hit a 3-pointer for the first time this season. Ole Miss controlled the boards 53-37, and the Tigers were only able to score eight points off 15 Rebel turnovers. Ole Miss shot 45.6 percent (31-68) from the field.
SCOUTING THE REBELS
›› Ole Miss is 16-3 overall, 5-1 in SEC play. The Rebels started 5-0 in the league but fell to Alabama their last time out.
›› The Rebels average 71.1 points/game and hold opponents to 52.4. In SEC play, opponents are scoring just 51.5 points/game.
›› Angel Baker leads Ole Miss with 14.7 points/game. Madison Scott scores 11.8 points/game and leads the Rebels with 9.2 rebounds per contest, which ranks third in the SEC.
SCOUTING AUBURN
›› Auburn is 10-8 overall, 0-6 in SEC play after a hard-fought loss at Mississippi State Thursday night. The Tigers won seven straight to close out non-conference play, the last six coming at home. The Tigers are 9-3 at home this season but still seeking their first road win.
›› The Tigers rank 9th nationally with 5.5 blocks per game. Auburn is also top-50 nationally in turnovers forced per game at 19.6 (44th).
›› Junior Aicha Coulibaly leads Auburn in scoring (16.5 ppg), rebounding (6.1 rpg) and steals (2.1 spg). She has two double-doubles this season, with her last coming against UCF Dec. 3 (17 points, 12 rebounds). She was a preseason All-SEC Second Team selection. Coulibaly missed the Tigers' last three games of non-conference but has been the leading scorer in each of Auburn's first three SEC games. She then missed the last two SEC games vs. Alabama and LSU with an injury, returning to the lineup with 15 points at Mississippi State.
›› Honesty Scott-Grayson averages 14.3 points to rank second on the team and 13th in the SEC. She led Auburn in scoring in seven of the last eight games in non-conference play, topping the 20-point mark four times including a career-high 31 against North Carolina A&T. She is also the Tigers' top 3-point shooter, hitting 45.6% from long range (26-57). She missed the first three games of SEC play with minor injuries but returned to the bench vs. Alabama and to the starting lineup at LSU. Scott-Grayson needs one more point for 1,000 in her career.
›› Redshirt sophomore Romi Levy recorded double-doubles against both Alabama State and Little Rock. Against Little Rock, she had career-highs in points (18) and rebounds (13) for her second career double-double.
›› Freshman point guard Sydney Shaw leads the Tigers with 3.1 assists/game. She scored a career-high 15 points and matched a season-best with 6 assists in the win over Louisiana-Lafayette, and she scored at least 14 points in 3 of the last 4 non-conference games.
›› Auburn's newcomers have all made an immediate impact with three freshmen - Kaitlyn Duhon, Sydney Shaw and Kharyssa Richardson - starting each of the first four games. Duhon scored 17 points in the win over South Alabama. Richardson had a season-high 9 rebounds vs. Colorado State before leaving the game with injury, then had 10 points at LSU. Junior Jakayla Johnson has earned eight starts, scoring 8+ points in three of those.
UP NEXT
›› The Tigers hit the road once again Thursday when they travel to Lexington, Ky., to face the Kentucky Wildcats. Game time is 6 p.m. CT at Memorial Coliseum.
Auburn women back home to face Ole Miss
