In basketball, the Clemson Tigers dominated the Syracuse Orange with Joe Girard's return to the Dome. Girard's impressive performance led Clemson to victory, marking their consecutive wins over North Carolina and Syracuse. Meanwhile, the Auburn Tigers faced a tough loss against the Florida Gators, with the Gators securing a significant win. Bruce Pearl, Auburn's head coach, expressed disappointment over the team's performance and highlighted the challenges faced by Auburn. The game saw uncharacteristic issues for Auburn, including turnovers and free throw percentage, ultimately leading to their defeat.
to Bruce Pearl's point... Auburn goes from No. 4 to No. 6 on KenPom after this 16-point loss to Florida the Tigers are No. 15 in offense and No. 5 in defense — both marks slipping after this performance in Gainesville Florida, meanwhile, went from No. 35 to No. 26 in KenPom https://t.co/DFs83vZ5fu
Auburn falls from No. 4 to No. 6 on KenPom after this 16-point loss to Florida the Tigers are No. 15 in offense and No. 5 in defense — both marks slipping after this performance in Gainesville
Bruce Pearl notes Auburn had a light practice Thursday after the win over Alabama, so the only full practice for Florida was Friday — right before leaving for Gainesville. Florida had a bye week. Pearl suggest the SEC should always have teams play road games after byes.
Bruce Pearl notes Auburn had a light practice Thursday after the win over Alabama, so the only full practice for Florida was Friday — right before leaving for Gainesville. Pearl thinks a good solution for the SEC is to always have teams play road games after bye weeks.
Bruce Pearl jokes that his Tennessee teams beat national championship-winning Florida twice on the road, so now "I'm paying for it" at Auburn.
Bruce Pearl predicts Florida will finish in the top 5 of the SEC.
The Gators roll past No. 12 Auburn in Gainesville with the 81-65 win 🐊 https://t.co/x1EiUJl52W
3s, frees and turnovers were basically all the difference today Auburn didn't get beaten that much on the boards and actually held Florida to a lower shooting percentage everywhere else was close to even https://t.co/iUqUvZ7MJg
Some uncharacteristic issues for Auburn today: - 15 turnovers, most in a road game this season - 53.8% from the FT, second-worst this season https://t.co/kxeywMlqyq
Instant Impressions: Florida 81, Auburn 65 https://t.co/20H4Qyucja https://t.co/WemOSXqDUn
FINAL | Florida 81, No. 12 #Auburn 65 The Tigers can't extended their win streak to four, nor can they snap the 28-year-old losing skid in Gainesville. The record is 19-5 and 8-3 in the SEC. Here's the instant analysis. Stay tuned for updates. https://t.co/i75Zu0lAoP
FINAL: Florida 81, Auburn 65 Auburn's effort down the stretch will make this one look better than it was for most of it a tough loss, a rough loss, a gotta-learn-from-it loss... but not a totally killer loss for the Tigers ultimate goals pressure's on next week with SC and UK https://t.co/bygV8Q9D4w
FINAL: Florida 81, No. 12 Auburn 65 If the final score doesn’t do it for you, here’s a stat: Florida didn’t make a FG in the final 9:40 and still scored 81 in a 16-point win. Led by as many as 29. Massive resume win for the Gators. Letdown game for Auburn after ‘Bama win.
15-4 run here for Auburn, so you can't say the Tigers completely packed it in during this second half
7:45 2H | Florida 75, #Auburn 48 Denver Jones has 10 points. He's scored all of them in the second half.
Auburn is a great home team. Take the Tigers out of Neville Arena and results may vary. Florida is wire-to-wire destroying them in Gainesville.
The pupil is blasting the teacher today in Gainesville. Todd Golden and Florida are up 27 points midway through the second half against Bruce Pearl’s Auburn Tigers. This is a HUGE win for the Gators and their NCAA tourney resume.
Auburn gets to 49 points, so this won't be quite as bad of an offensive performance as the one here four years ago that team (which finished No. 2 in the SEC) shot 31.2% from 2 and 17.4% from 3 this team is shooting 55.2% from 2 and 13.3% from 3 with a lot more turnovers
K.D. Johnson and Chaney Johnson have combined for 19 points and are shooting 7-10 from the field everybody else for Auburn has 20 points and is shooting 8-32 from the field Auburn trails by 27 with 11:55 left
Florida is up 27 on Auburn.
15:57 2H | Florida 55, #Auburn 33 Gators have their biggest lead yet. They're up 13-7 in the second half.
Florida now up 22 at home over Auburn. Trap games trap.
Auburn was +9 in the first four minutes of the second half at Alabama and at Ole Miss gonna likely need something like that to have any chance at Florida today
HALF | Florida 42, No. 12 #Auburn 26 Was that #Auburn's worst half of basketball this season? I'd say so. Will be curious to see if Florida can keep this up for 40 minutes, but even if it can't, #Auburn's got to be better in *so* many aspects. https://t.co/dqyeeSKhBa
Auburn trails Florida 42-26 at the half. Tigers just 10-31 from the floor with eight turnovers. Gators with their usual home-court offensive efficiency. Auburn players not named K.D. Johnson and Chaney Johnson are 4-22 shooting.
I wrote that Auburn was heading into a classic trap game in Gainesville. Florida leads by 12 with 3:55 to go in the first half. Lotta game left.
it's still at 12 with 3:45 left in the first half Auburn's passing has been great in recent games, but it feels like the Tigers have tried to do a bit too much with their attempts here today already seven turnovers, which is a percentage of 25% in this first half
Auburn isn't exactly making the easy pass today. Seven turnovers in the first half — two more than the Tigers had the entire game against Alabama — and most have been trying to force the ball into traffic.
4:49 1H | Florida 30, #Auburn 18 Tigers on a small run right now, 7-2, over the past 3-plus minutes.
Bruce Pearl calls a 30-second timeout after a Tre Donaldson breakaway layup cuts this to a 12-point deficit for Auburn like the Ole Miss matchup, it feels like cutting it to single-digits by the half would be significant — even though Florida is bigger, deeper and better
Auburn getting roughed up at Florida. Not the same group that beat Alabama. Gators up 28-12 after 13 minutes in Gainesville.
of note: Auburn had five turnovers in 40 minutes against Alabama on Wednesday night and already has five in 12:16 today against Florida Florida has turned those into nine points on the other end, too https://t.co/MvmNf5TeGg
Auburn is down 17 and playing its roughest basketball in a while, especially on offense
Probably the worst Auburn has looked on offense all season. No spacing, bad passing, poor shooting. It's 26-9 Florida.
11:09 1H | Florida 19, #Auburn 9 Tigers have not had their shooting travel to this point. They're 4-16 (25%) from the field and 1-7 (14.3%) from deep. Gators shooting 53.8% from the field — and 50% from 3.
there's just something about this building that takes the life out of Auburn's offense 2024: 25% FG (so far) 2022: 45% eFG 2020: 29.1% eFG 2018: 51.8% eFG, but a near-25% turnover rate Auburn trails Florida by 10 with 11:09 left in the first half
KD Johnson with 5 points on 2-2 shooting off the bench right now. He just hit a 3 to pull #Auburn within 7. (19-6 UF, 12:40 1H)
Last 2 wins for @ClemsonMBB -1st win at Syracuse since 2016 -2nd win EVER at UNC
it's 9-2 for Florida at the under-16 break Auburn settled down a little after the early blitz from Florida and will get the ball out of the timeout the in-house stats aren't working, so this is going to be an adventure for a little while
Florida nearly opens the game with a Kill Shot in the first three minutes Auburn going one-and-done on offense, while Florida has taken advantage of some 50-50 balls already
Auburn down a touchdown early to Florida
It'll be No. 12 #Auburn's (19-4, 8-2 SEC) usual starters vs. Florida (15-7, 5-4 SEC) in Gainesville. G Tre Donaldson; G Denver Jones; F Chris Moore; F Jaylin Williams; C Johni Broome Tipoff expected in a little under 20 minutes.
Joe Girard hugs his dad after an 18-point performance in his return to Syracuse https://t.co/K5fCQmQhpU
How do you win at Syracuse while racking up 21 turnovers? Pretty simple: You shoot 60.8 percent (to 39.1 for Orange) and own a 41-24 rebounding advantage. Two huge road wins for Clemson this week. Best four players (Hall, Schieffelin, Girard, Hunter) are playing really well.
Clemson has now won consecutive games for the first time since victories over Queens and Radford to close out the non-conference slate. Wins over No. 3 UNC and Syracuse mark the first time the Tigers have strung together ACC wins. https://t.co/VTvEPpBVKR
Clemson guard Joe Girard has joined BYU's Jimmer Fredette in becoming the second Glens Falls (NY) High School graduate with 2,000+ Div. I points. Girard hit the 2K plateau moments ago, playing against his old team at Syracuse.
Clemson has now won consecutive games for the first time since victories over Queens and Radford to close out the non-conference slate. First time the Tigers have strung together ACC wins. https://t.co/VTvEPpBVKR
Clemson had about as impressive a week as just about anyone with a pair of road wins over North Carolina and Syracuse. Joe Girard III averaged 19.5 points and was 9-of-15 from 3 in the two wins.
Two big road wins for Clemson basketball this week... At No 3 UNC and at Syracuse
Clemson guard Joe Girard has joined BYU's Jimmer Fredette in becoming the second Glens Falls (NY) HS graduate with 2,000+ Div. I points. Girard hit the 2K plateau moments ago, playing against his old team at Syracuse.
Both of Clemson’s games this week played out in a similar manner. Tuesday at North Carolina: Led by 16 in 1st half Tied with less than 4 min to play Won by 4 Saturday at Syracuse: Led by 15 in 1st half Tied with less than 4 min to play Won by 9
Bell hits a 3 (he's getting good at faking out defenders there) and cuts the Clemson lead to 73-68. :51 to go. Girard has been at the FT line a bunch down the stretch. They'll keep giving him the ball.
Joe Girard just reached 2,000 career points with two clutch free throws on the road against his former team. What a moment.
Girard, the best #FreeThrowsMatter shooter in the ACC, makes 2. Clemson 71, SU 63. 1:04 to go.
Judah hits 1/2 #FreeThrowsMatter. Schefflien lets a couple defenders soar by him and scores. Quadir with the bucket. Clemson 69, SU 63. 1:12 to go.
JJ Jumper ties it at 60. Then Hall inside and Hunter scored to give Clemson a 64-60 lead 2:28 to go. https://t.co/zLo6JCNfFQ
We got to the U-8 timeout. Clemson leads 57-53 after being up 13 at half. SU has the ball. JJ Starling with 12 2nd-half points.
Maliq Brown picks up his third foul. Really weak call. Bert Smith, Raymie Styons and Justin Porterfield are having a rough 2nd half. Clemson 57, SU 53. 7:55 to go.
Loud boos here at the Dome. No for Girard this time, but for the refs who called a foul on JJ Starling even though it appears he was hit with an elbow. Clemson 57, Syracuse 53. They are reviewing the play. 8:56 to go.
Judah Mintz hits back-to-back jumpers in the paint and cuts the Clemson lead to 52-49 with 10:39 to go. SU has built back into this thing possession-by-possession, taking what Clemson gives them. Better movement on both ends. A Girard missed 3 (and attempted flop) sets up Judah
Judah Mintz with back-to-back jumpers in the lane and SU has crawled to within 52-49 with 10:39 remaining. Mintz's buckets book-ended Girard's first miss of the day. Timeout Clemson.
Rebounds are 6-6 in this half. The Clemson TOs are helping Syracuse climb back into it.
SU draws with 48-43, but Joe Girard drains a 3. He's now 4-for-4 with 3 3s and has 11 points. And, yes, he did the Shush gesture after hitting that last 3.
JJ goes 1-2 at the #FreeThrowsMatter line. Schiefflein scores inside. Clemson 48, SU 41. Tigers have 16 turnovers. Definitely more whistles this half as well after the refs took the 1st half off. 12:55 to go.
Boy. Clemson is literally trying to give this thing away. Tigers are up to 15 turnovers. Really sloppy out of halftime. Clemson 41, Syracuse 34. 15:49 to go.
Girard with a big shot. A jumper off a dribble to stop SU's 8-0 run. He's 3-for-3 on the day with 8 points.
Well, I didn't see this coming. Syracuse opens half on a 8-0 run with 3s from JJ Starling and Chris Bell. Clemson leads 37-32
Chris Bell has hit back-to-back 3s for his first points of the game. SU down 33-22 with 1:15 left in the half. Autry taking Maliq Brown out (he's got 2 fouls). In comes Hima.
When No. 12 #Auburn and Florida square off this afternoon, the Tigers will be exactly 28 years removed from their last win in Gainesville. "That's a long, long time ago." More here on the streak, Bruce Pearl getting another reunion with a former assistant, and (of course) the… https://t.co/nCBCvl7rb4
Clemson is on an 11-0 run here at the Dome and leads Syracuse 24-12. Mixed scoring from the Tigers. Clemson up 15-4 on the boards.
With Peter Carey out, it's going to be really interesting to watch the Brown-Hima dynamic. Hima has bern limited to this point and Brown has to be careful about fouls. PJ Hall does not make that easy. Clemson 15, Syracuse 12. 11:47 to go in the 1st half.
SU takes a 10-9 lead on Judah Mintz's 3-pointer. Clemson has 4 turnovers. Joe Girard has not taken a shot yet.
Joe’s back: Syracuse welcome Joe Girard back to JMA Wireless Dome (Live updates) https://t.co/s1tFVDx2MX
Joe Girard and Syracuse assistant Gerry McNamara. https://t.co/7Wr3pZO5Jl
The 2-4-7: Auburn at Florida https://t.co/k5tvCqbUv1 https://t.co/H91RDIDW6S
Syracuse vs. Clemson: Q&A with former Orange guard Joe Girard https://t.co/mC254lFrQB via @JamesSzuba
Bruce Pearl on Todd Golden: "I want him to do well. I want Florida basketball to do well. And I want to beat the pants off them Saturday."
#Auburn's played Florida five times since Bruce Pearl's hire. BP: "I think every game's been its own challenge." He says the first couple matchups were just a matter of not being good enough. Tigers past three games at UF have been lost by an average of 9.7 points.
Bruce Pearl on Florida having a bye week this week, which every SEC team gets at some point this season: "I like the bye. We get one here in about a week. ... But, boy, that's quite an advantage."
#Auburn HC Bruce Pearl says Florida is the seventh-best offense in the country in its home splits.
Auburn HC Bruce Pearl, looking back at the Alabama win: "We needed that one... and I think we played with that urgency. I think Florida will do the same. Our math is so good, and a win would put Florida in great position to make the tournament."
Auburn HC Bruce Pearl: "Alright, 1996... 1996. Steven Pearl was 7. Mike Burgomaster was 2. Chad Prewett was in his second year of coaching high school basketball. Ira Bowman was a player at Penn... Gas was $1.22. That was the last time we beat Florida at Florida."
Joe Girard returns to the Dome on Saturday when Syracuse hosts Clemson. Here’s my podcast/interview with @JG3_____ https://t.co/f9UMyxV7cG
This was a four-point game with 8:41 left in the 1st half. Since then? The Tigers hit 10 of their next 13 FGs and the Owls went 4-14 to close the half. https://t.co/dT2pabULvB