AUBURN, Ala. – Tahaad Pettiford flashed with floaters, 3-pointers and acrobatic and-ones on his way to 26 points, leading Auburn to a 75-53 victory over Appalachian State Monday at Neville Arena, the Tigers’ 69th consecutive non-conference home win.
“Great crowd for a Monday night at 8 o’clock in the nonconference. The energy was there and our students did a great job of getting our guys going early,” Pearl said of the 87th consecutive Neville Arena sellout. “That’s a good Appalachian State team. They knocked us off four years ago at their place and we wanted to return the favor tonight.”
Leading by two at the half, Auburn steadily pulled away while holding Appalachian State to just 17 points over the final 20 minutes.
The only Tiger in double figures, Pettiford made 8 of 16 shots, including 3 of 5 3-point attempts while going 7-for-7 from the free-throw line, adding three assists and no turnovers.
“Knowing the shots we were going to get through the flow of our offense. We’ve been working on those shots, they started to fall early and we continued off that,” said Pettiford, who leads the SEC in scoring averaging 22 points per game and who has seven assists with zero turnovers in 46 minutes over two games. “Making the simple read, easy pass, not trying to hold the ball too much or over dribble it. Finding the open guys and getting it to them.”
Narcisse Ngoy and Thomas Dowd shared the team lead with 11 rebounds apiece. Auburn committed only six turnovers while all 10 players played at least 13 minutes, with no one playing more than Bukky Oboye’s 26 minutes.
“It’s crucial for us to buy into the depth we have,” Pearl said. “Guys coming in having had a four-minute break, it makes a huge difference. Our depth’s got to be our calling card. I’m confident in all 10 of our guys, and then I’ve got Blake (Muschalek) and Simon (Walker) on the bench, who I’m just as confident in as well. Our best teams have always had that. That’s something we’ve got to continue to do.”
Pettiford played a key role in a 9-0 run that helped Auburn take a double-digit lead midway through the second half, making a 3-point play and a 3-point shot.
“He did a good job of attacking the paint and playing off two feet,” Pearl said. “I loved how aggressive he was being. He had a really good night.”
Adam Olsen then hit a pair of 3s in a 40-second span during another 8-0 run that pushed Auburn’s advantage to 15 points.
“It felt good for those to fall,” Olsen said. “I always have the confidence, doesn’t matter if I’m 0-for-10 or 10-for-10. I’ve got to shoot the next one, that’s my role here, just keep letting them fly.”
Pettiford hit his third 3-pointer of the game, then drew a foul while making a right-handed floater, adding the free throw for a 20-point Tigers lead.
Pettiford’s third assist led to Kevin Overton’s 100th 3-pointer at Auburn, accounting for the Tigers’ final points.
After the Mountaineers made six 3-pointers in the first half, Auburn held Appalachian State to 1-for-11 from distance in the second half.
“Defensively, we were really good in the second half,” Pearl said. “To hold them to 20 percent from the field, 1-for-11 from 3, our guys stepped up and did a better job of executing the scouting report in the second half. Our defense was pretty solid and that’s something we can build on.”
Pettiford scored Auburn’s first eight points on a jumper, a 3-pointer and a 3-point play during a 10-0 run that Ngoy punctuated with a follow-up slam.
The Tigers held a double-digit lead for six and half minutes, leading 31-18 after Pettiford’s steal and slam.
The visitors scored eight straight before Olsen ended the run with a corner 3-pointer.
The Mountaineers (2-1) made four 3-pointers while ending the half on an 18-7 run to trim the Tigers’ halftime lead to 38-36.
Winners of a nation’s-best seven straight games dating to last season, Auburn (2-0) hosts No. 12 Arizona Friday at 8 p.m. CT on ESPN2 and the Auburn Sports Network, with free Fear the Jungle t-shirts for Auburn University students.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer