AUBURN, Ala. – Michael Flowers scored a game-high 29 points but Auburn connected on 22 three-point field goals to earn a 90-81 non-conference men's basketball victory over the University of South Alabama Friday at Auburn Arena.
Justin Powell recorded 26 points, including making 7-of-9 from beyond the arc, as all five starters finished in double figures for the Tigers (2-2). Allen Flanigan posted 14 points, Jaylin Williams had 13, Devan Cambridge supplied 12 and JT Thor added 10 as Auburn shot 55.6 percent from the floor and 53.7 percent from three-point range.
Flowers made 11-of-20 attempts from the floor, while Tyreke Locure and David Walker chipped in with 19 and 18 points, respectively, for the Jaguars (3-2).
GAME FACTS
-The Tigers began the contest with a 16-2 run — getting three-pointers from four different individuals — in the first six-plus minutes.
-Auburn was up 28-10 at the midway point of the half, with all but four of those points coming on threes.
-The AU advantage was 47-32 at the half after Flowers scored the final seven points of the period in a 96-second span.
-The Jaguars cut the deficit to 10 on a Locure three-pointer with just under 13 minutes left in the contest and were able to get the margin to single digits after the sophomore completed a three-point play in the final minute.
-Auburn was credited with 24 assists on its 30 field goals.
-South posted a season-high-tying 12 steals, which helped lead to an 18-5 advantage in fast-break points.
NOTES
-It's the second year in a row that the Tigers have defeated the Jags by a single-digit margin after last year's match-up in the Mitchell Center was decided by an Auburn layup in the final three seconds.
-AU's three-point field goal total tied a Southeastern Conference record.
-It was a season-high scoring total for Flowers, who has now recorded 20-plus points in three of five outings this year.
-Locure also posted his best scoring output of the season, falling one point shy of equaling his career high.
-His game-high four steals also matched the most by a Jaguar in 2020-21, a total that Flowers first recorded in USA's defeat of Mobile on Nov. 27.
-After scoring 19 points in South's first three contests, Walker has reached double digits in each of the last two outings with his total against the Tigers a season-high figure.
Up next: The Jaguars return home on Tuesday to take on William Carey at 6 p.m. (CST).
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
Join the South Circle, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics. Contributions to South Circle directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give
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