AUBURN, Ala. – The Auburn women’s basketball team is back inside Neville Arena Thursday night for its annual Play4Kay Pink Game when the Tigers host Arkansas. Game time is set for 6 p.m. CT.
The Tigers (9-6, 0-2 SEC) are looking for their first SEC win after two early contests against top-25 opponents in Ole Miss and LSU. Arkansas (7-10, 0-2) is also seeking their first league victory.
Tickets are available in advance by visiting AUBTix.com and on gameday at the arena ticket office.
PLAY4KAY
›› Thursday is the annual Play4Kay Pink Game at Neville Arena, and fans are encouraged to wear pink in support of breast cancer awareness and research.
›› Fans can pick up a pair of Auburn-branded pink fuzzy socks at the scholarship entrance while supplies last.
›› Also at the scholarship entrance, there will be a silent auction where fans can bid on numerous Auburn basketball items, including a team-signed basketball and a chance to travel with the Tigers for an upcoming road game. All proceeds benefit the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.
›› Coach Johnnie Harris’ first Division I coaching job came at NC State as an assistant under Kay Yow during the 2003-04 season.
PARKING INFO (NEW FOR 2024-25)
›› The Neville Arena parking lot is now a reserved permit-only lot for premium reserved season-ticket holders. This lot will only be accessible with a parking pass. Parking for all other fans is available in the Campus Safety Lot, Coliseum Lot and Stadium Deck.
›› Accessible parking is available in the Neville Arena parking lot with a valid state-issued ADA hang tag or license plate. This will be strictly enforced. These areas will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Additional accessible parking is available in the lots at the corner of Wire Road and Extension Loop, Campus Safety and Coliseum lot.
ON THE AIR
›› Brit Bowen and Larry DiChiara will have the radio call on ESPN 106.7 FM beginning at 5:45 p.m. CT. The broadcast can also be heard on AuburnTigers.com and the Auburn Athletics app.
›› The game can be seen on SEC Network + with Brad Law and the hall-of-famer Joe Ciampi calling the action.
LAST TIME OUT
›› Audia Young scored a career-high 19 points, but Auburn battled foul trouble and a streaky LSU team as the home Tigers earned a 73-63 win Sunday afternoon at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
›› Leading scorer DeYona Gaston played just 16 minutes while dealing with foul trouble throughout, and LSU took advantage of a smaller, more inexperienced lineup to turn a first-quarter deficit into a double-digit lead they would never relinquish.
›› Young hit a career-best four 3-pointers and scored her final basket at the buzzer off a no-look pass from Gaston to notch her 19th point and secure the career-high. Gaston, even in limited minutes, finished with 16 points, 10 of those coming in the fourth quarter.
›› Taylen Collins added 12 points, and Celia Sumbane – also saddled with early fouls – led the Tigers with six rebounds.
AN AUBURN WIN WOULD...
›› Snap a three-game losing streak.
›› Be Auburn’s second straight win over Arkansas.
›› Be the Tigers’ first home win over Arkansas since 2016.
SERIES HISTORY VS. ARKANSAS
›› Auburn is 24-22 all-time against Arkansas with an 11-9 advantage at home.
›› The teams met twice last season with Arkansas eking out a 74-72 win in Fayetteville before Auburn sprinted past the Razorbacks 67-48 in the SEC Tournament.
›› The last four regular-season meetings between the teams have been decided by five points or less, with the last three meetings - two in Fayetteville, one in Auburn - being decided on the final possession.
LAST MEETING: March 7, 2024, at Greenville
Auburn 67, Arkansas 48
›› JaMya Mingo-Young flirted with a triple-double as Auburn pulled away in the second half for a 67-48 win over Arkansas in the second round of the SEC Tournament.
›› Auburn shook off a slow start and went on a 12-0 run late in the second quarter to take a lead they would never surrender, and the Tigers’ defense stood tall in the final 20 minutes, holding the Razorbacks to just 21 points in the second half.
›› Three players were in double figures for the Tigers, all with 11 points. Mingo-Young led the way with 11 points, eight rebounds and a season-high eight assists. Sydney Shaw knocked down three 3-pointers to finish with 11 points, and Mar’Shaun Bostic had her second straight game in double figures with 11 points along with three assists and three steals.
SCOUTING THE RAZORBACKS
›› Arkansas is 7-10 overall and 0-2 in SEC play. The Razorbacks have faced two top-10 opponents so far in league play, falling to No. 6 LSU and No. 5 Texas to open the conference slate.
›› The Razorbacks average 71.6 points per game while giving up 74.6 per contest.
›› Izzy Higginbottom is the SEC’s leading scorer (4th NCAA) with 23.8 points per game, and she leads the nation in total points scored this year (404). She is also second nationally in free throws made (121) and fifth in made field goals (133).
SCOUTING AUBURN
›› Auburn is 9-6 overall, 0-2 in SEC play, and looking to bounce back from a pair of top-25 losses to Ole Miss and LSU to open league play.
›› The Tigers have the nation’s No. 48 scoring defense at 56.9 points per game allowed. Auburn is holding opponents an average of 9.7 points below their season scoring average.
›› Graduate student DeYona Gaston is the nation’s eighth-leading scorer and third in the SEC. She leads the Tigers with 22.7 points and 8.5 rebounds per game, ranking in the SEC’s top 10 in both categories. She set a Neville Arena record for an Auburn player with 36 points in the win over VUL, then nearly matched that with 35 points vs. Alabama State. She has five double-doubles so far this season, including a 29-point, 12-rebound performance vs. Norfolk State on Dec. 29. For her efforts against ULL (29 points)and Alabama State, she was named SEC Player of the Week. Gaston also hit a corner 3-pointer with 1.6 seconds left to beat Northern Iowa on Nov. 28; it was just the second 3-pointer of her five-year collegiate career. She added 30 points in last Thursday’s game vs. Ole Miss, going 14-for-17 at the free throw line. Her 14 made free throws and 17 attempts both tied Auburn program records.
›› Sophomore Taliah Scott, a transfer from Arkansas, made a splash in her Auburn debut, tying the program record for single-game 3-pointers with eight in the Tigers’ win over Little Rock Nov. 14. She scored 26 points in the game along with a career-high 9 rebounds. She followed that up with a 28-point night at Oregon where she knocked down seven 3-pointers. She has missed the last 11 games with injury.
›› Graduate student Taylen Collins averages 9.5 points and 6.0 rebounds so far this season. She recorded her first double-double of the season with 15 points and 10 rebounds in the win over UAB Dec. 8. Collins hit double-digit scoring twice at the Paradise Jam and had 10 rebounds in the win over Pitt, then scored a then-season high 14 in the win at Virginia. She missed two recent games (Alabama State-illness, Norfolk State-injury) but returned to the lineup vs. Ole Miss.
›› Senior Mar’Shaun Bostic has been the Tigers’ starting point guard most of the season, currently ranking fifth in the SEC with 4.9 assists per game. She’s had five or more assists in nine of 16 games so far. One of the fastest players and top defenders in the SEC, she led the Tigers with 1.6 steals per game in 2023-24 and currently leads the team with 1.7 steals per game this year.
›› Senior Celia Sumbane scored a career-high 19 points with 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals vs. VUL. She was then named to the Paradise Jam all-tournament team after averaging 10.2 points in the tournament, including 16 in the final game vs. Kansas. She has started all 16 games so far.
›› Sophomore Audia Young opened the season with a bang, scoring a career-high 11 points on 3-4 3FG along with four steals vs. SIU. She then set another career high vs. VUL with 18 points, 4 assists and 5 steals. She hit double-digits a third time with 11 points in the win over Pitt, which included three 3-pointers. Young set a new career high in Sunday’s game at LSU with 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range.
›› True freshmen Jordan Hunter and Syriah Daniels - two of the top high school players in Alabama a year ago - saw their first collegiate action vs. SIU. Hunter had 6 assists and 4 rebounds off the bench in the opener, then went 7-for-7 from the field for 15 points along with 6 assists vs. VUL. Daniels had 12 points and 4 steals in the VUL win, then scored a career-high 14 points in her first career start to help the Tigers come from behind to beat UAB Dec. 8.
›› Junior Oyindamola Akinbolawa has made five starts in the post. She played her best career game vs. Northern Iowa at the Paradise Jam, finishing with 7 points and 10 rebounds, including her first career 3-pointer. She then scored a career-high 10 points at UL-Lafayette Dec. 18 and just missed her first career double-double with nine rebounds.
›› Sophomore Yakiya Milton returned from injury Dec. 21 vs. Alabama State with six points and six rebounds in the Tigers’ win. She then moved into the starting lineup vs. Norfolk State.
UP NEXT
›› Auburn hits the road again for its third game against a ranked SEC foe when the Tigers take on No. 15 Kentucky. Game time is 2 p.m. CT Sunday at Memorial Coliseum in Lexington with the broadcast on SEC Network and the Auburn Sports Network.