AUBURN, Ala.— It’s an SEC-Big Ten showdown Thursday night inside Neville Arena when Auburn women’s basketball plays host to Rutgers at 6 p.m. CT.
Thursday is the final day of the Beat Bama Food Drive, helping fight food insecurity in our community. The first 200 fans who bring canned goods or non-perishable food items can exchange those for a free Chick-fil-A sandwich while supplies last. Donations can be dropped off in the bins located by entry doors as well as the Fan Experience table in the Scholarship lobby.
It’s the last of five straight home games for the unbeaten Tigers, who seek their first 6-0 start since the 2008-09 season. Rutgers is 4-1 on the year and playing their first road game of the season.
Arena doors open at 5 p.m. CT. Tickets are available in advance by visiting AUBTix.com or at the arena ticket office on gameday.
PARKING INFO
›› The Neville Arena parking lot is a reserved permit-only lot for premium reserved season-ticket holders. This lot will only be accessible with a parking pass or an ADA hang tag. Parking for all other fans is available in the Campus Safety Lot, Coliseum Lot and Stadium Deck.
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 JJ Jackson and former Tiger Carsen McFadden calling the action. SECN+ is available via the ESPN app or WatchESPN.com.
LAST TIME OUT
›› Off to its first 5-0 start in nearly a decade, Auburn beat Georgia State 69-65 Monday at Neville Arena, thanks to a fast freshman from France.
›› Harissoum Coulibaly matched her career high with 19 points, making 8 of 11 shots and delivering for her team time and again.
›› Kaitlyn Duhon secured Auburn’s victory with a pair of free throws with nine seconds remaining to finish with 13 points and eight rebounds to help the Tigers claim the rebounding battle 41-30.
AN AUBURN WIN WOULD...
›› Give Auburn a 6-0 start for the first time since the 2008-09 season.
›› Improve Auburn to 3-1 all-time against Rutgers.
›› Improve Auburn to 2-1 against Big Ten opponents at Neville Arena.
›› Be Auburn’s 26th win in its last 28 non-conference home games.
AUBURN-RUTGERS SERIES
›› Auburn and Rutgers have met three times previously with two of those in Piscataway. This will be the first visit by Rutgers to the Plains.
›› Auburn leads the series 2-1, winning on the road in 2023 and at a neutral site in 1985. Rutgers ended Auburn’s historic 2008-09 season at the RAC with an 80-52 win in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
LAST MEETING: Nov. 12, 2023 at Piscataway
Auburn 76, Rutgers 56
›› A massive scoring run in the second quarter helped Auburn overcome a double-digit early deficit and earn a 76-56 win over Rutgers Sunday afternoon on the road.
›› The Tigers trailed by as many as 13 late in the first quarter, but they would outscore Rutgers by a 34-5 margin over the next 12-plus minutes to open up an insurmountable lead.
›› Honesty Scott-Grayson, playing in front of nearly 50 friends and family in the return to her home state of New Jersey, scored 18 points along with three rebounds, a team-leading four assists and a steal.
›› Freshman Savannah Scott continued a blistering start to her Auburn career with her first collegiate double-double, scoring 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting along with 11 rebounds.
SCOUTING THE SCARLET KNIGHTS
›› Rutgers is 4-1 on the season. This is the first road game for the Scarlet Knights and the only time they will leave the state of New Jersey until late December. Their only other non-conference road game is just down the road at Princeton.
›› Last season, Rutgers went 13-20 overall, 3-15 in Big Ten play, and played in the WNIT.
›› The Scarlet Knights average 64.8 points per game and are holding opponents to 57.6. They shoot 39% from the field and 34% from 3-point range.
›› Nene Ndiaye leads four players in double-figures with 16.6 points per game.
SCOUTING AUBURN
›› Auburn is 5-0 for the first time since 2016-17 after wins over Charlotte, Alabama State, UNC Greensboro, Mississippi Valley State and Georgia State to open the season.
›› Mya Petticord, a senior transfer from Rutgers, had her best game in two years with 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting (3-4 3FG) in the win over Alabama State. She followed that up with a team-leading 18 points (4-7 3FG) in the win over UNCG. She averages 11.6 points and is shooting 47.6% from 3-point range.
›› Redshirt junior Kaitlyn Duhon, one of two returners on the team, leads the Tigers with 12.8 points and 3.0 steals per game. She scored a season-high 16 points vs. Mississippi Valley State, one shy of a career-high. She scored 14 points in the opener at Charlotte and matched a career-high with four assists. She then matched her scoring output with 14 against Alabama State, along with a career-high 5 steals. Against Georgia State, she matched a career-high with 8 rebounds.
›› Ja’Mia Harris scored in double figures in three of the first four games. She shared the team lead with 19 points and led the Tigers with 8 rebounds in the win at Charlotte Nov. 3, then scored 16 with four 3-pointers in the win over Alabama State. She followed that up with a pair of 3-pointers on an 11-point night - along with 7 rebounds - vs. UNCG.
›› Sophomore Khady Leye scored a career-high 20 points in the win over MVSU, then she recorded her first Auburn double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds vs. Georgia State. Just prior to that, she had her best game so far with 11 points and 5 rebounds vs. UNCG on Monday. She had three blocks and three steals in each of the first two games.
›› True freshman Harissoum Coulibaly led Auburn with 19 points, matching a season-best, in the win over Georgia State Nov. 17. She is averaging 12.6 points per game and shooting a team-best 63.9% from the field. She made a splash in her college debut Nov. 3 at Charlotte, scoring a team-leading 19 points with nine of those coming in the pivotal overtime period. She added 12 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists vs. MVSU. She came to the U.S. from Paris, France, and she played high school basketball at S3 Academy in Virginia.
›› 6-9 redshirt freshmen Arek Angui notched her first career double-double with career-highs 11 points and 11 rebounds vs. Mississippi Valley State. She came from Central Florida, where she appeared in two games as a true freshman last year. She made her first appearance for Auburn against Alabama State Nov. 8 and pulled down a team-leading 8 rebounds along with 3 points. Originally from South Sudan, she played one season of high school basketball at Greenforest Academy in Georgia.
›› Sophomore Syriah Daniels, the Tigers’ second returning player, scored 10 points with four rebounds and two steals vs. MVSU. She played in 28 games last year, starting six, and averaged 3.6 points and 1.5 rebounds.
›› Senior guard A’riel Jackson knocked down three first-half treys, scoring 9 points with a team-best 4 assists vs. UNCG. She made her first Auburn start at Charlotte, scoring five points with three rebounds and two steals. She then had 8 points, 6 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 assists against Alabama State.
›› Senior guard Angena Belloso transferred from FIU where she played in 57 games the last 2 years. She averaged 7.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists as a junior. She scored her first Auburn bucket against Alabama State Nov. 8 and scored a season-best 5 points vs. MVSU.
›› Junior Clara Koulibaly came from the junior college ranks, where she started all 28 games last season at Gulf Coast State CC and averaged 12.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. She has played in all three games so far, averaging 2.3 rebounds.
›› Junior forward Quanirah Montague appeared in all 34 games last year for Mississippi State, averaging 4.6 points and 3.7 rebounds in 11.7 minutes per game.
UP NEXT
›› Auburn heads to Frisco, Texas, for the Hoopfest Challenge where they will face UTSA (Monday, Nov. 24) and California (Wednesday, Nov. 26).