AUBURN, Ala. – From ice cold to red hot, Kevin Overton made 7 of Auburn’s 11 second-half 3-pointers to lead the Tigers to a 78-67 victory over South Alabama Tuesday in the opening round of the NIT.
“We did a better job in the second half of knocking down shots,” Auburn coach Steven Pearl said. “The last 25 minutes, our guys did a good job of locking in and found a way to win the game.”
After going 0-for-5 in the first half from 3-point range, Overton couldn’t miss in the second, making 7-of-8 to share team scoring honors with Keyshawn Hall with 21 points.
“The shots were falling in the second half,” said Overton, who added seven rebounds and four assists. “In the first half I was trying to find that rhythm. When you make those simple ones, the other ones become easier.”
Kaden Magwood made 3-of-5 3-point attempts in the second half while scoring a career-high 14 points to help Auburn outscore the Jaguars 48-31 after intermission.
“Kaden played great off the bench in the second half, had a lot of step-up,” Pearl said. “Against that zone, you need guys who can knock down shots. Kaden’s been really good in practice, he’s stayed right and stayed ready. He’s been the best player on our scout team. I wanted to give him an opportunity, and he did a great job of taking advantage of it.”
Tahaad Pettiford added 11 points and Elyjah Freeman grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds to help the Tigers outrebound the Jaguars 42-31.
“They did a nice job of hurting us on the glass, their size and athleticism,” South Alabama coach Richie Riley said. “Overton stepped up in the second half and made some tough ones, some deep ones. He made some really big ones.”
Trailing 36-30 at the half, Auburn opened the second half on a 13-2 run that featured a game-tying 3-pointer from Pettiford and a go-ahead 3 from Magwood.
Magwood buried another 3-pointer while scoring 11 consecutive Auburn points. Overton made his first 3-pointer to give the Tigers a 52-44 lead with 11:19 remaining.
After missing 21 3-pointers in the first half, Auburn went 11-for-18 in the second half, including three straight long-range makes with Overton hitting two more before Magwood’s third 3-pointer for a 9-0 run that gave the Tigers a 61-48 lead with 7:28 to go.
After South Alabama scored five straight to pull within eight, Overton swished his fourth 3-pointer of the half for a 64-53 Auburn lead.
Overton wasn’t done. He buried three more 3s in the final five minutes to keep the visitors at bay after South Alabama pulled within six with 3:40 to play.
Native Clevelanders Hall and Chaze Harris each scored at least half of their team’s first-half points, with Harris pouring in 18 and Hall netting 16, including all of Auburn’s points during a span of 10 minutes and 43 seconds. The Sun Belt player of the year, Harris finished with 29 to lead South Alabama (21-12).
Hall made 3-of-9 3-point attempts in the first half while his Tiger teammates combined to go 2-for-17 against South Alabama’s zone defense.
Hall gave Auburn a one-point lead during his own 8-0 run but the visiting Jaguars led for the last 11 minutes of the half, making 10 consecutive shots to build an 11-point lead before the Tigers scored the final five points of the half to trail 36-30 at intermission.
Auburn (18-16) advances to the second round and will host Seattle this weekend as a date and time to be determined on Wednesday night.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer