AUBURN, Ala. – Sophomore Sydney Shaw scored a career-high 17 points, but Auburn was unable to finish off a comeback bid as they fell 60-53 at UCF Monday night.
Auburn fell behind early, went back-and-forth with the Knights in the second quarter and briefly took the lead just after halftime. But an 13-4 run by UCF midway to start the third, which included three 3-pointers, gave the Knights a lead they would never relinquish.
"They came out in the second half against our 3-2 zone and knocked down some 3s," Auburn head coach Johnnie Harris said. "That was the difference in the ballgame. We had to get out of our zone. We missed shots, then tried to play half-court with them. We executed, but we didn't hit shots. And then when we got fouled, we missed our free throws.
"The effort was there tonight. We just missed shots and missed free throws."
Shaw, playing in front of several friends and family in her home state, hit a pair of 3-pointers among her seven field goals on the night to finish with a career-best 17, surpassing three different efforts of 15 points as a freshman. She also had three rebounds on the night.
Taylen Collins was Auburn's other player in double-figures with 11 points; she narrowly missed a double-double with eight rebounds, which led the Tigers.
JaMya Mingo-Young scored seven points in her first extended action as a Tiger and led Auburn with four assists. Celia Sumbane and Kaitlyn Duhon each had a pair of steals; Sumbane also contributed six points.
Auburn forced UCF into 21 turnovers but committed 18 of its own; both teams scored 24 points off turnovers. UCF out-shot the Tigers 47 to 37 percent, and the Knights hit 7-of-15 3-point attempts while the Tigers made just two.
The Tigers out-rebounded UCF 34-27, and five different Tigers had at least one blocked shot. But Auburn struggled at the free-throw line,
Auburn got off to a slow start for the fourth straight game, falling behind 11-2 halfway through the first. A pair of buckets in the closing minutes cut the deficit to 14-7 after one period.
But the Tigers would open the second period on an 11-2 run, taking the lead at the 5:34 mark when a Shaw jumper made it 18-17. The teams would trade buckets down the stretch, but a UCF 3-pointer in the final 10 seconds would give them a 27-26 lead at the break.
Collins hit the first shot of the second half to put Auburn back in front, 28-27. UCF answered with a 3-pointer to move back ahead, and an Honesty Scott-Grayson jumper tied the game at 30-all. But from there, UCF would go on a 10-0 run to take a 40-30 lead, and the Knights would never trail again.
Five times in the fourth quarter, Auburn would pull within two points. With less than two minutes to play, the Tigers had the ball, down 55-53, with a chance to tie or take the lead. But Auburn would come up empty, UCF would convert a three-point play, and Auburn would not score again.
Auburn will be back inside Neville Arena on the Sunday after the Iron Bowl when they take on Alabama A&M. Game time is 2 p.m. CT on Nov. 26.
