AUBURN, Ala. – It will be the first back-to-back home games for Auburn women's basketball since 2003 when the Tigers host Stephen F. Austin and North Florida on Wednesday and Thursday night, respectively.
Game time for both contests is set for 6 p.m. CT at Auburn Arena. Tickets are available at AUBTix.com; all tickets are $6 and valid for general admission seating in the 100 level of the arena. All persons inside Auburn Arena must wear a face covering at all times, sit in designated seats, and maintain appropriate social distancing. Visit the Women's Basketball Gameday page at AuburnTigers.com for more information.
The Tigers (4-1) are coming off a hard-fought 74-66 win over South Alabama Sunday afternoon that saw Auburn, with just 10 players dressed, fight back from a 12-point deficit to remain unbeaten at home on the season. Stephen F. Austin is 5-2 on the year after falling 61-59 at Houston last Friday. North Florida enters Thursday's game at 2-3; the Ospreys defeated Edward Waters 93-35 on Sunday in their last game.
For the latest on Auburn women's basketball, follow @AuburnWBB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
ON THE AIR
›› Brit Bowen and Larry DiChiara will have the radio call of both games beginning at 5:45 p.m. CT on WQSI 93.9 FM, AuburnTigers.com and the official Auburn Tigers app.
›› Fans can watch both games on SEC Network + with the Auburn radio call. SEC Network + is available via WatchESPN.com and the ESPN app.
LAST TIME OUT
›› A shorthanded Auburn women's basketball team fought its way back from an early double-digit deficit to earn a 74-66 win over South Alabama Sunday afternoon at Auburn Arena.
›› Led by 21 points and 14 rebounds from senior Unique Thompson, four players scored in double-figures as the Tigers (4-1) trailed by as many as 12 and led by as many as 12 in a game that was truly a tale of two halves.
›› Thompson's double-double was her fourth of the season and 46th of her career; she's totaled 47 points and 37 rebounds over her last two games. Sophomore Sania Wells added a career-high 11 points, knocking down three 3-pointers and a pair of free throws to go along with a pair of assists.
›› Sophomore Annie Hughes also poured in 11 points with a career-high three 3-pointers, and junior Kira Lowery added 10 points on the night. Freshman Romi Levy also had a strong performance with 8 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals.
AN AUBURN WIN OVER SFA WOULD...
›› Give the Tigers a 5-1 start to the season for the fourth time in the last six seasons.
›› Be Auburn's 22nd win in its last 23 home non-conference games.
›› Snap an 11-game losing streak against opponents from the state of Texas (last win: SMU, Dec. 21, 2014).
AUBURN-SFA SERIES
›› This is the sixth meeting between Auburn and SFA in women's basketball. The Tigers own a 4-1 advantage in the series that dates back to 1983. Auburn has won the last four meetings, two each in Auburn and Nacogdoches.
›› Auburn is 25-1 all-time against opponents from the Southland Conference.
LAST MEETING: Jan. 3, 2009 in Auburn
Auburn 79, SFA 56
›› The ninth-ranked Auburn women's basketball team finished non-conference play undefeated and unscathed with a 79-56 win over the Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks. The Tigers were led by a 19-point effort from senior Sherell Hobbs after putting up a perfect 11-of-11 from the charity stripe.
›› Joining Hobbs in double-digits were senior DeWanna Bonner with 17, senior Trevesha Jackson with 12 and sophomore Alli Smalley with 10.
›› On the day, Auburn shot 47 percent from the field and 72 percent from the line. The Tigers were, however, held to a season low six steals, less than half of their 12.5 average per game coming into today's matchup.
AUBURN-NORTH FLORIDA SERIES
›› This is the first meeting between Auburn and North Florida in women's basketball. Auburn is 7-1 all-time against opponents from the Atlantic Sun Conference.
SCOUTING STEPHEN F. AUSTIN
›› Stephen F. Austin is 5-2 on the season. The Ladyjacks have earned Division I wins over St. Mary's, VCU, Jackson State and UT Arlington while falling on the road at Arizona State and at Houston.
›› SFA was picked to win the Southland Conference in 2020-21 by a vote of the league's coaches. The Ladyjacks finished 23-6 overall, 16-4 in league play last season.
›› SFA is among the nation's defensive leaders, ranking 7th nationally in steals per game (14.7) and turnovers forced (24.0) and 11th in turnover margin (+9.3). They average 24.7 points off turnovers.
›› Zya Nugent leads SFA with 13.3 points/game while Stephanie Visscher adds 11.9. Avery Brittingham is the team's top rebounder with 6.4/game.
SCOUTING NORTH FLORIDA
›› North Florida enters Thursday at 2-3 overall. The Ospreys have one Division I win, 84-66 over FIU. UNF has lost to NC State, Miami and Florida Atlantic.
›› The Ospreys are one of the nation's top 3-point shooting teams, averaging 10.8 per game. Marissa Mackins ranks 10th in the nation, averaging 4.0 3-pointers. She is the Ospreys' leading scorer with 18.4 points/game. Senior Jazz Bond was picked as the ASUN Preseason Player of the Year.
›› UNF was picked to finish third in the ASUN by a vote of the league's coaches.
SCOUTING AUBURN
›› Through five games, Auburn is averaging 76.0 points/game while holding opponents to 60.6 points. At the same point in the season last year, Auburn was scoring 70.4/game while giving up 63.4.
›› Auburn is second in the SEC and ranks 14th nationally in steals per game at 13.0; the Tigers are also 26th in the nation and 4th in the SEC in turnover margin (+6.4/game).
›› Senior forward Unique Thompson is averaging 20.0 points and 13.4 rebounds through five games; she also has four double-doubles on the season. Thompson leads the SEC and ranks 4th nationally in rebounds/game. An honorable-mention All-American and first-team All-SEC performer a year ago, Thompson is Auburn's lone returning starter. She averaged a double-double for the second straight year in 2020 with 16.2 points and 11.4 rebounds, leading Auburn in both categories. Thompson is also the nation's leading returner in double-doubles with 22 last season.
›› Two redshirt sophomore transfers that sat out last season are making an immediate impact. Honesty Scott-Grayson (Baylor) and Jala Jordan (West Virginia) have both earned significant minutes through the first several games. Scott-Grayson has started all five games and had 14 points, 7 rebounds and 5 steals vs. Gardner-Webb. Jordan is Auburn's second-leading scorer with 10.8 points/game; she's also the Tigers' third-leading rebounder (4.4/game) and earned her first start against South Alabama.
›› Four other returners saw game action for Auburn last season: redshirt junior Kiyae' White and sophomores Annie Hughes, Morgan Robinson-Nwagwu and Sania Wells. Wells and Robinson-Nwagwu played significant minutes in the opener; Robinson-Nwagwu had a career-high four steals and matched career-highs with 6 points and 4 rebounds. Hughes has started four of five games so far; Wells and Hughes each had 11 points in the win over South Alabama.
ALL THE NEW FACES
›› Of the 15 players on the roster, 10 of them wore an Auburn uniform for the first time in game action vs. USC Upstate. All 10 newcomers saw the floor in the Tigers' 82-41 win on Nov. 25 and again vs. Gardner-Webb on Dec. 1.
›› Auburn added three junior college transfers during the offseason, including two NJCAA All-Americans:
›› Kira Lowery came to Auburn from Dyersburg State CC (Tenn.) where she ranked third in the nation in scoring (23.3 ppg) and second in steals (4.0/game) and was an NJCAA All-American in 2020. Lowery has started all five games at PG.
›› Keya Patton was a two-time All-American at Wabash Valley College (Ill.), where she scored over 1,000 points in two seasons and averaged 20.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 6.4 steals as a sophomore. She scored a season-best 14 points vs. Gardner-Webb (12/1) and is Auburn's third-leading scorer at 8.8 points/game.
›› Alycia Reese joins the Tigers from just down the road at Chattahoochee Valley CC in Phenix City, where she led the team with 12.8 points/game last season. Reese scored 10 points and hit Auburn's only two 3-pointers at Houston (12/5).
›› Sophomore Alaina Rice joined the Tigers in June after transferring from Florida A&M. Rice was MEAC Rookie of the Year in 2020 at FAMU where she averaged 10.3 points and 4.7 rebounds. Rice led Auburn with 5 assists in the season-opener.
›› The Tigers signed two freshmen during the offeseason: Romi Levy (6-2, F, Herzliya, Israel) and Aicha Coulibaly (6-0, F/G, Mali). Two others joined Auburn as walk-ons: Riley Donahue (5-10, G, Atlanta, Ga.) and Carsen McFadden (5-7, G, Fairview, Texas). Coulibaly started the first four games; Levy is averaging 6.2 points and 3.2 rebounds. McFadden played significant minutes in the win over South Alabama, sharing the team lead with three assists.
UP NEXT
›› Auburn closes out the non-conference season Sunday, Dec. 20, as the Tigers host Belmont at 2 p.m. CT. The game was rescheduled from its original date of Dec. 8.
Tigers host SFA, North Florida on back-to-back nights
