Auburn 74, Georgia 67: Chris Denson and KT Harrell combined for 34 points as five players scored in double figures for the host Tigers, who won their second consecutive SEC contest after starting conference play with six straight losses.
Denson, second in the conference in scoring, finished with 18 points and Harrell, third in the league in scoring, added 16 points for Auburn (10-9, 2-6). Tahj Shamsid-Deen added 12 points while Allen Payne and Asauhn Dixon-Tatum each scored 10 points for the Tigers, who went 7-of-16 beyond the arc.
Georgia (10-10, 4-4) lost its third in a row, getting 18 points from Charles Mann and 11 from Nemanja Djurisic. The Bulldogs committed 10 first-half turnovers, but rallied within two points with less than six minutes left.
The Bulldogs trailed by 13 points with 10:38 to play but used a 15-4 run – with eight points coming from Djurisic – to get within 59-57 on J.J. Frazier’s 3-pointer from the right corner with 5:43 to go. Payne scored five of the next seven points for Auburn to push the lead to eight and, after another Frazier 3-pointer brought the Bulldogs within 67-63 with 2:38 left, the Tigers went 7-of-8 from the free-throw line down the stretch.
Harrell scored 13 points in the first half, with his third 3-pointer of the period with 49 seconds left capping a 16-8 surge to give the Tigers a 33-22 advantage. Denson, who tallied a career-high 32 points in Thursday’s victory over Alabama, overcame a four-point first half with nine in the opening 10:16 of the second half, including his 3-pointer with 10:44 left to make it a 53-42 lead for the Tigers.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The two teams combined for 62 free throws with Georgia 19-of-28 at the line and Auburn 27-of-34 from the stripe. … Georgia G Kenny Gaines played after missing the past two contests with a bruised thigh, scoring nine points on 2-of-10 shooting. … Dixon-Tatum finished with eight rebounds and four blocks.
Georgia | Auburn | |
Charles Mann 18 | Scoring | Chris Denson 18 |
Charles Mann 4 | Assists | Tahj Shamsid-Deen 4 |
Nemanja Djurisic 6 | Rebounds | Asauhn Dixon-Tatum 8 |
Charles Mann 7 | Free Throws Made | Chris Denson 7 |
Marcus Thornton 3 | Steals | Tahj Shamsid-Deen 2 |
Juwan Parker 1 | Blocks | Asauhn Dixon-Tatum 4 |