No. 8 Auburn has taken down Xavier in the Maui Jim Maui Tournament with a score of 88-79. Auburn moves to 4-0 on the season and is looking to take control of the SEC. Xavier drops down to 2-2 on the year and needs to change their playing habits to make the tournament.
Recap
Most of the game seemed to be in Auburn control, only moments in the beginning and end saw Xavier come within reaching distance. However, this wasn’t the best of game I have seen out of the two. It seemed as if we were waiting for one of the teams to miss each time. However, that isn’t to take away from the exciting parts we had, especially in the closing minutes. There were large strides of momentum for both sides in the final minutes that pushed them to tie and go to overtime. In overtime is where this Auburn team seemed to thrive. There was no scoring for a good minute and a half into OT, but Auburn then forced some great stops and got to the hoop. This forced Xavier to try to overcompensate, which proved to not be enough to overcome the SEC front runner.
Player of the Game:
Bryce Brown for the Auburn Tigers takes the cake in this one. Brown had a well-rounded stat line with: 26 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals. This performance by Brown provided a base for this Auburn team to be in position to close out the game late. Look for Brown to continue to give it his all in his senior year at Auburn.
Up Next:
Auburn: vs. Duke (Semifinal Maui Jim Maui Tournament) – 11/20 at 8:00 PM ET
Xavier: vs. San Diego State (Compensation Bracket Semifinal) – 11/20 at 2:30 PM ET
Photo Credits: https://www.al.com/auburnbasketball/2018/11/live-updates-no-8-auburn-takes-on-xavier-in-maui-invitational.html
