AUBURN, AL -
Brendon Knox*s Putback With 1.4 Seconds Left Gives Auburn 68-67 Win Over Virginia
AUBURN----Brendon Knox*s putback with 1.4 seconds left propelled Auburn to a thrilling 68-67 victory over Virginia in Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum Monday. DeWayne Reed led the Tigers with 18 points and seven assists while Lucas Hargrove added 13 points and nine boards, Frankie Sullivan 12 points and Knox 11 points and six rebounds.
With the game tied at 58, Auburn (5-4) scored eight straight points in just over two minutes on a Reed 3-pointer, a Knox follow dunk and a Waller 3-pointer to take its largest lead of the game at 66-58 with 4:24 to play. The Tigers didn*t score again until Knox*s heroics to win it.
*Terrific win for our group and our kids, and they had to overcome a lot of adversity during the game,* said Auburn head coach Jeff Lebo. *Different times they had to get up, and then come back at the end and overcome a lot of stuff. Great play at the end by Knox. He*s great on the boards.*
Virginia (4-4) then scored seven consecutive points to take a 67-66 lead on three Sammy Zeglinski foul shots with 7 seconds left. Zeglinski was fouled on a 3-point attempt by Hargrove. Auburn then called timeout to ice Zeglinski before his first foul shot and then before his third attempt, setting up Reed*s drive to the basket and shot that was rebounded and put in by Knox.
*That play was meant for me to screen for DeWayne Reed, and I just followed him to the hoop,* said Knox. *When I saw it come off the rim, I knew I had the opportunity for a putback to get my team the win. I don*t think I*ve ever had a game-winning shot so this felt good.*
Virginia led by as much as 11 in the first half, leading 25-14 on a Jeff Jones 3-pointer with 8:16 left. The Cavaliers then was up 10 points at 34-24 with only 1:49 before the half. A free shot by both Reed and Waller, a 3-pointer by Waller and a 25-foot rainbow fall-a-way trey by Sullivan over UVa 7-footer Assane Sene at the buzzer brought Auburn to within 34-32.
In the final 1.4 seconds of each half, Auburn scored five points combined. The second half was close throughout with seven ties. Zeglinski, who finished with 18 points on 5-of-9 shooting from 3-point range, scored the first points of the second half with a trey to give Virginia a 37-32 lead, the Cavaliers* largest of the period.
The Tigers then reeled off 10 straight points to take a 42-37 lead just over three minutes in. It was Auburn*s first lead since 13-12 only 4:36 into the game.
*We knew that there would be adversity throughout the game so we just stayed mentally prepared,* said Sullivan. *In the huddle I saw the guys come together as a team. We had faith in one another so we knew that we would come out with the win. Tonight, we played as a team, and I can see us doing that more often.*
Virginia was led by Sylven Landesberg*s 20 points, although only three of those came in the second half on 0-of-6 shooting from the field as he was guarded by Sullivan. Jones added 16 points off the bench going a perfect 4-of-4 from 3-point range.
*I think Frankie did a great job,* said Lebo. *We played small on Landesberg a lot. The second half I thought Frankie was on him the majority of the time and just did a great job on him tonight. He was the difference for us defensively in the second half.*
Auburn shot 47.2 percent (25-of-53) from the field, 38.5 percent (10-of-26) from 3-point range and 47.1 percent (8-of-17) from the foul line while Virginia went 43.1 percent (25-of-58) from the field, 40.9 percent (9-of-22) from 3-point range and 80 percent (8-of-10) from the free throw line. The Tigers outrebounded the Cavaliers 35-31.
Auburn takes nine days off for final exams before returning to action at No. 21 Florida State on Dec. 17 at 6 pm Central. Saturday Six Pack ticket packages are on-sale now and include a reserved ticket to six Saturday games for only $59. Purchasing the Six Pack saves $36 off the regular price and guarantees a seat for the Kentucky, Georgia Southern, South Carolina, Arkansas, LSU and Alabama games. To purchase, visit AuburnTigers.com or call 800-AUB-1957.
AUBURN----Brendon Knox*s putback with 1.4 seconds left propelled Auburn to a thrilling 68-67 victory over Virginia in Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum Monday. DeWayne Reed led the Tigers with 18 points and seven assists while Lucas Hargrove added 13 points and nine boards, Frankie Sullivan 12 points and Knox 11 points and six rebounds.
With the game tied at 58, Auburn (5-4) scored eight straight points in just over two minutes on a Reed 3-pointer, a Knox follow dunk and a Waller 3-pointer to take its largest lead of the game at 66-58 with 4:24 to play. The Tigers didn*t score again until Knox*s heroics to win it.
*Terrific win for our group and our kids, and they had to overcome a lot of adversity during the game,* said Auburn head coach Jeff Lebo. *Different times they had to get up, and then come back at the end and overcome a lot of stuff. Great play at the end by Knox. He*s great on the boards.*
Virginia (4-4) then scored seven consecutive points to take a 67-66 lead on three Sammy Zeglinski foul shots with 7 seconds left. Zeglinski was fouled on a 3-point attempt by Hargrove. Auburn then called timeout to ice Zeglinski before his first foul shot and then before his third attempt, setting up Reed*s drive to the basket and shot that was rebounded and put in by Knox.
*That play was meant for me to screen for DeWayne Reed, and I just followed him to the hoop,* said Knox. *When I saw it come off the rim, I knew I had the opportunity for a putback to get my team the win. I don*t think I*ve ever had a game-winning shot so this felt good.*
Virginia led by as much as 11 in the first half, leading 25-14 on a Jeff Jones 3-pointer with 8:16 left. The Cavaliers then was up 10 points at 34-24 with only 1:49 before the half. A free shot by both Reed and Waller, a 3-pointer by Waller and a 25-foot rainbow fall-a-way trey by Sullivan over UVa 7-footer Assane Sene at the buzzer brought Auburn to within 34-32.
In the final 1.4 seconds of each half, Auburn scored five points combined. The second half was close throughout with seven ties. Zeglinski, who finished with 18 points on 5-of-9 shooting from 3-point range, scored the first points of the second half with a trey to give Virginia a 37-32 lead, the Cavaliers* largest of the period.
The Tigers then reeled off 10 straight points to take a 42-37 lead just over three minutes in. It was Auburn*s first lead since 13-12 only 4:36 into the game.
*We knew that there would be adversity throughout the game so we just stayed mentally prepared,* said Sullivan. *In the huddle I saw the guys come together as a team. We had faith in one another so we knew that we would come out with the win. Tonight, we played as a team, and I can see us doing that more often.*
Virginia was led by Sylven Landesberg*s 20 points, although only three of those came in the second half on 0-of-6 shooting from the field as he was guarded by Sullivan. Jones added 16 points off the bench going a perfect 4-of-4 from 3-point range.
*I think Frankie did a great job,* said Lebo. *We played small on Landesberg a lot. The second half I thought Frankie was on him the majority of the time and just did a great job on him tonight. He was the difference for us defensively in the second half.*
Auburn shot 47.2 percent (25-of-53) from the field, 38.5 percent (10-of-26) from 3-point range and 47.1 percent (8-of-17) from the foul line while Virginia went 43.1 percent (25-of-58) from the field, 40.9 percent (9-of-22) from 3-point range and 80 percent (8-of-10) from the free throw line. The Tigers outrebounded the Cavaliers 35-31.
Auburn takes nine days off for final exams before returning to action at No. 21 Florida State on Dec. 17 at 6 pm Central. Saturday Six Pack ticket packages are on-sale now and include a reserved ticket to six Saturday games for only $59. Purchasing the Six Pack saves $36 off the regular price and guarantees a seat for the Kentucky, Georgia Southern, South Carolina, Arkansas, LSU and Alabama games. To purchase, visit AuburnTigers.com or call 800-AUB-1957.
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