Samir Doughty led the way with 20 points, and each of his fellow starters also scored in double figures as No. 7 Auburn held off Murray State 93-88 on Saturday at Auburn, Ala.
Austin Wiley and Chuma Okeke added 17 points each, Jared Harper scored 12 and Bryce Brown had 11 as the Tigers (10-2) bounced back from a 78-71 loss at NC State on Wednesday.
Ja Morant scored 25 points, Shaq Buchanan added 21, Tevin Brown had 19 and Darnell Cowart came off the bench to chip in 13 for the Racers (8-2), who were facing a top 10 team for the first time since the 2012 NCAA Tournament.
It was the second consecutive season that Auburn beat Murray State as the Tigers went on the road last season and prevailed, 81-77.
Auburn led by three points at halftime, but Buchanan made two 3-pointers and Morant converted a three-point play to give Murray State a 44-42 lead.
The Racers led by as many as six points before the Tigers took control.
Doughty, Harper, J'Von McCormick and Malik Dunbar each made a 3-pointer during a 22-7 run that gave Auburn a 68-59 lead.
Murray State couldn't get closer than seven points until the final minute when it made a furious comeback.
The Racers trailed by 12 before Brown made a 3-pointer with 52 seconds left.
The Tigers committed three consecutive turnovers, and Murray State followed them with a Cowart free throw, a Buchanan field goal and a Buchanan 3-pointer that cut the lead to 91-88 with 21 seconds left.
Harper made two free throws, and the Racers missed their final three shots.
Okeke and Doughty each made a 3-pointer as the Tigers jumped to a 10-2 lead, but the Racers went on a run of their own.
Seven players had field goals, including three 3-pointers, during a 22-9 run that gave Murray State a 24-19 lead.
Brown scored five points during an 11-2 run that gave Auburn a 30-26 lead.
The Tigers increased the lead to seven before Buchanan made a pair of dunks that trimmed their advantage to 38-35 at halftime.
--Field Level Media
Murray St. | Auburn | |
Ja Morant 25 | Scoring | Samir Doughty 20 |
Ja Morant 7 | Assists | Jared Harper 10 |
Tevin Brown 10 | Rebounds | Austin Wiley 10 |
Ja Morant 10 | Free Throws Made | Samir Doughty 6 |
Darnell Cowart 4 | Steals | Chuma Okeke 5 |
Ja Morant 1 | Blocks | Chuma Okeke 2 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Murray St. | 88 | 50.0 | 11-25 | 19-24 | 18 | 34 | 2 | 9 | 17 |
Auburn | 93 | 53.1 | 13-33 | 12-20 | 19 | 29 | 5 | 10 | 14 |