Auburn fans sold out Legacy Arena as Auburn basketball hosted No.1 Houston in the Rx Benefits Battleground 2K25 inside Legacy Arena.
It was a back-and-forth battle between two elite programs, as Houston escaped with an 73-72 victory over Auburn.
Auburn drops to 3-1 overall, as the Tigers return to Neville Arena Wednesday evening to host Jackson State.
Next week, the Tigers travels to Las Vegas, Nevada, for the Players Era Festival.
Here are three takeaways from the Tigers games against Houston.
Freshman leads Houston in the first half
It was not the cleanest shooting start for both Auburn and Houston, as the Tigers shot 32% from the floor and Houston shot 40%.
Houston freshman Kingston Fleming led the game with 18 first half points. Chris Cenac Jr. added 10 points and four rebounds. Isaiah Harwell contributed five points, as all three freshmen combined for 33 of Houston’s 39 first half points.
Auburn Keyshawn Hall and Tahaad Pettiford combined for 18 points, leading the Tigers in first half points scored.
Auburn starts second half with spark.
Auburn turned the ball over six times and Houston scored 11 points off them in the first half. The Tigers came out the second half on a 6-0 run to cut its deficit to one point.
Elyjah Freeman gave the Auburn’s fans in attendance something to cheer about after dunking on two Houston defenders for a highlight dunk during that run for the Tigers.
Houston’s largest lead of the game was only eight points, as Auburn’s zone defense help eliminate outside shots from Houston. However, the Cougars led the game with 34 points coming from inside the paint and 12 fastbreak baskets.
Auburn’s frontcourt struggles in Keyshawn Hall’s absence
Hall was the Tigers leading scorer with 20 points before going down late in the second half, after being carried to the bench with a foot injury.
Houston shot 50% from the floor in the second half, as Emmanuel Sharp and Milos Uzan scored nine points apiece to close out the game for the Cougars.
Auburn’s 64% free throw percentage came back to hurt the Tigers, missing 12 total as a team while also getting outrebounded down by Houston.
Cenac Jr. and Joeseph Tugler both fouled out of the game for Houston. However, the Cougars still won the rebound battle 40-37.
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