LAHAINA, Hawaii – Duke might be the best team in college basketball, but No. 8 Auburn stood toe-to-toe with the Blue Devils on Tuesday and fought to the final whistle before ultimately falling, 78-72, in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational.
"We're very disappointed that we weren't able to take advantage of the opportunity," Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl said. "Our great strength is our balance, and I think when we continue to become a little bit more balanced, we'll continue to become a better team.
"Give our kids a ton credit now. They kept playing hard. There are no moral victories in a loss. But we're playing the best team in the country, and we played them hard. We didn't quit."
Point guard Jared Harper was terrific yet again for Auburn as he led the team with 22 points and six assists. The junior caught fire in the second half, especially down the stretch, as he made five 3-point shots and scored the last nine points for the Tigers in the final three minutes.
"We learned that we can fight to the end," said Harper, who scored 25 points and dished out eight assists in Monday's win over Xavier. "We were in the game the whole time, but we had some crucial plays, some crucial turnovers. I personally had two crucial turnovers that could've swung the game a different way. But we'll use it as a learning experience."
Harper's backcourt mate, Bryce Brown, followed up his 26-point effort from Monday with 16 points against Duke. The senior, who made some critical 3s throughout the game, had a chance to cut the lead to five with a minute to go, but his long ball rimmed out.
The All-SEC duo earned praise from Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski after the game.
"Their two guards are really as good as any two guards in the country," Krzyzewski said. "They are big-time, elite guards. This (Auburn) team would be an outstanding team in any league. A lot of these kids won the SEC regular season last year and I can see why."
It was a breakout game for Auburn big man Austin Wiley, who finished with 17 points and nine rebounds in 19 minutes of action. The junior is still getting back into game shape after missing the opener with a foot injury, but he was physical inside and finished around the rim, shooting 7 of 11 from the floor.
Chuma Okeke, Samir Doughty and Malik Dunbar all battled foul trouble throughout the game. Both Doughty and Dunbar fouled out in the second half while Okeke – who scored six points and grabbed six rebounds – ended the contest with four fouls. For the game, Duke shot 34 free throws to Auburn's nine.
Auburn also started the game cold and fell behind, 31-14, after the first 13 minutes. But the Tigers continued to battle as they went on a 17-6 run to close the gap and only trailed, 41-33, at the intermission.
The Blue Devils were led by freshmen R.J. Barrett and Cam Reddish, who both scored 18 points. Fellow freshman Zion Williamson finished with 13 points and nine rebounds.
Auburn will return to the court Wednesday to play its third game in three days against Arizona. The third-place game from Maui is scheduled for 10:30 p.m. CT and will be televised on ESPN2.
"It's not about reacting right now. It's about toughness," Pearl said. "The games against Xavier and Duke, those are two of the most hard-fought, intense games out there. Nobody's played these two teams. We just have to figure out whether or not physically we're going to be OK."
Greg Ostendorf is a Senior Writer for AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @greg_ostendorf
No. 8 Auburn takes No. 1 Duke to the wire in semifinal loss
