The No. 1 Auburn Tigers suffered its first loss of the SEC slate on Saturday, falling to No. 6 Florida, 90-81 at Neville Arena in Auburn.
The home-standing Tigers gained control early by building a 10-point lead through the first six minutes of the game, but the feisty Gators chipped away and would take a 32-31 lead over Auburn with 4:24 remaining in the first half, a lead they would not relinquish.
Florida was without star guard Alijah Martin but made up for his production as five of Florida’s eight-man rotation reached double figures in scoring. Walter Clayton Jr. led the way by connecting on 54% of his shots en route to a 19-point outing. Off the bench, Thomas Haugh scored 16 points, with seven coming from the free-throw line.
Following the game, Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl praised Florida’s efforts by complimenting their gameplan and their ability to deliver a great performance in a crucial game.
“(Florida) came in here like they had to win it. That is how they played every possession. They played harder, they played better, they played more desperate,” Pearl said after the game. “We did not look like the No. 1 team in the country. We did not act like the No. 1 team in the country. We didn’t prepare like it, and as a result, we got beat.”
The Gators outshot Auburn in every major category and made the most of Auburn turnovers by turning eight Auburn cough-ups into 17 points. Pearl understands that his squad has a tough stretch coming up on the road at Vanderbilt and No. 3 Alabama in its next two games. He plans to begin constructing a game plan immediately.
“I will go home tonight and start working on a little bit of Vanderbilt. I will probably look at this a little bit and just keep doing what we do,” Pearl said. “You definitely have to embrace the grind. There is no question it is a grind. It is a grind for everybody. We go to Vanderbilt where they have only lost once at home. They have beaten Kentucky and they just beat Texas today, so we know that it’s going to be a tough place to win.”
Auburn will look to regroup Tuesday at Vanderbilt before traveling to Alabama for another top-five showdown on Saturday. The Tigers and Commodores square off Tuesday at 6 p.m. CT at Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville.
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