AU HOOPS: Alabama A&M no match for Tigers

Head coach Jeff Lebo has been looking for his Auburn Tigers to play a complete, 40-minute game.

How did the Tigers do Monday night?

“About 30 minutes,” Frankie Sullivan said.

Thirty minutes of good play was enough for the Tigers in an 82-40 win over Alabama A&M.

It became apparent early on that Alabama A&M was in for a long night.

On the game’s very first possession, the Bulldogs’ John Smith pulled down a rebound on a missed Auburn shot only to have the ball ripped from him by the Tigers’ Korvotney Barber, who then went up for the shot and drew the foul for the Tigers’ first points.

After a little back-and-forth in the game’s first 10 minutes, it was all Tigers (8-4) as they cruised to their fifth win in a row.

“I thought defensively for probably 30 minutes we played pretty doggone good,” Lebo said. “We rebounded pretty well, we finally shot well from the perimeter. Tay (Waller) was outstanding shooting the ball … I thought Korvotney Barber was outstanding tonight. Offensively, it was the best we shot all year.”

Waller, a junior guard, led the Tigers with 14 points, 12 of which came in the first half. Sullivan (12), Barber (11) and DeWayne Reed (10) also were in double figures for AU.

Quantez Robertson had six assists to move into fifth place on the school’s all-time assists list with 467.

The key stretch of the game began after the first TV timeout, as Alabama A&M went nearly seven minutes without a point as AU went on a 10-0 run to take a 28-12 lead.

A&M went on a 9-0 run to close the gap to 7, but never got any closer.

Auburn went on a 9-1 run just before the half to take its biggest lead of the game at 46-28.

“That was big,” Lebo said. “We did a nice job to go in with a comfortable lead at the half.”

The Tigers quickly stretched the lead into the 30s in the opening minutes of the second half before Lebo began emptying the bench. The Bulldogs (2-6) were held to only 12 points in the second half.

“Every shot was contested,” Lebo said. “They didn’t get anything easy.”

“We’ve come a long way,” Sullivan said. “We’re jelling a lot more … Once we get the whole team it’s amazing to see what we can do.”

Alabama A&M coach Vann Pettaway was not happy with his team’s performance.

“We didn’t do a very good job of shooting the basketball,” he said. “I guess with the layoff they’re still thinking about being at home. Certainly our minds were not here. We didn’t shoot the ball well or execute offensively or defensively.”

Trant Simpson led A&M with 15 points. He was the only Bulldog in double figures.

Senior guard Rasheem Barrett was scratched at gametime with a hamstring injury.

“He just couldn’t get loose,” Lebo said. “Just when I say we’re going to be healthy … we lose another one. We don’t know when he’ll be back.”

Auburn will host Southeastern Louisiana on Wednesday at 5 p.m.

tcottrell@oanow.com | 737-2511