AUBURN, Ala. – The Auburn women's basketball team will play its final home game of the 2021-22 season Thursday night when the Tigers host Ole Miss. Game time is 7 p.m. CT at Auburn Arena.
It will be Senior Night as Auburn will recognize three players – Annie Hughes, Kiyae' White and Xaria Wiggins – participating in their final home game as Tigers. Three senior managers – Allie Coble, Quamaine "Q" Dawkins and Erica Scales – will also be honored in a pregame ceremony set to begin at approximately 6:40 p.m.
In addition, the first 500 fans at the scholarship entrance will receive a No. 34 Becky Jackson replica jersey t-shirt. Tickets are available at AUBTix.com and at the arena box office on gameday.
The Tigers look to finish the home schedule on a high note, building off a 65-60 win over No. 21 Georgia Sunday. Junior Honesty Scott-Grayson has been on fire for the Tigers down the stretch, scoring 20-plus points in three of the last four games, including a season-high 23 in the win over Georgia.
Ole Miss will be playing its third game in five days after wins at Vanderbilt Sunday and at home vs. Arkansas Tuesday. At 9-5 in the league, the Rebels are in fifth place in the SEC standings and one game out of a tie for third.
ON THE AIR
›› Brit Bowen and Larry DiChiara will have the radio call beginning at 6:45 p.m. CT on WQSI 93.9 FM in Auburn. The game can also be heard on AuburnTigers.com and the Auburn Athletics mobile app.
›› Thursday's game can be seen on SEC Network + with JJ Jackson and Hall-of-Fame Coach Joe Ciampi calling the action. SEC Network + is available via WatchESPN.com and the ESPN app.
LAST TIME OUT
›› Honesty Scott-Grayson matched a season-high with 23 points, and Auburn's defense came up huge in the fourth quarter as the Tigers fought back for a 65-60 win over No. 21 Georgia Sunday afternoon at Auburn Arena.
›› The Tigers picked up their third win over a top-25 opponent this season, rallying from an eight-point deficit in the fourth quarter as they held Georgia scoreless for the final 7:16 of the game.
›› Scott-Grayson's 23 points led all scorers; she also had four rebounds, five steals and three assists. Aicha Coulibaly added 19 points with a game-high eight rebounds. Sania Wells had eight points, a team-leading four assists and three steals, and Jala Jordan added eight points and seven rebounds off the bench.
›› Auburn shot 40.7 percent from the floor (22-54) but knocked down 6-of-15 3-pointers (40%). Georgia took advantage of its size for 36 paint points to Auburn's 26, and the Bulldogs were 15-of-18 at the free-throw line. The Tigers also forced Georgia into 21 turnovers, converting those into 17 points.
AN AUBURN WIN WOULD...
›› Be Auburn's third SEC win of the season.
›› Give Auburn back-to-back SEC wins for the first time since the 2019 season when they defeated Alabama and Missouri on Feb. 17 and 24.
›› Be the Tigers' fourth win over Ole Miss in the last five meetings.
AUBURN-OLE MISS SERIES
›› Auburn is 37-26 all-time against Ole Miss in a series that dates back to 1978. Auburn is 7-1 in the last eight meetings at home.
LAST MEETING: Jan. 7, 2021, at Oxford
Ole Miss 62, Auburn 58
›› Auburn sophomore Honesty Scott-Grayson scored a career-high 23 points, but the Tigers' best effort so far in SEC play came up just short in a 62-58 loss at Ole Miss.
›› The Tigers trailed by as many as 12 points late in the third quarter, but opened the fourth on a 7-0 run and got within two in the final minute of the game. But Ole Miss made a pair of free throws in the closing seconds to secure the victory.
›› Scott-Grayson was 9-of-16 from the field and hit three times from 3-point range; she also led the Tigers with five rebounds and shared the team lead with three steals. Romi Levy added 13 points.
›› As a team, Auburn shot 41.8 percent (23-55) and was 6-of-21 from 3-point range (28.6%). But the fourth quarter saw the Tigers hit 8-of-12 shots as they nearly completed the comeback. Ole Miss outrebounded Auburn 34-28, but the Tigers turned 19 Rebel turnovers into 17 points.
SCOUTING OLE MISS
›› Ole Miss is 21-6 overall, 9-5 in SEC play. The Rebels will be playing their third game in five days Thursday after wins over Vanderbilt and Arkansas on Sunday and Tuesday.
›› The Rebels average 67.8 points per game and are one of the league's top defensive teams, holding opponents to 55.2/game.
›› Shakira Austin leads Ole Miss in scoring (14.6/game) and rebounding (9.1/game).
SCOUTING AUBURN
›› Auburn is 10-15, 2-12 in SEC play. The Tigers finally broke through with a stunning 71-61 win over No. 4 Tennessee on Jan. 27, snapping a 23-game SEC losing streak, then added another top-25 win with a 65-60 victory over No. 21 Georgia on Feb. 20.
›› In Auburn's losses, the Tigers have led in the fourth quarter in six games and have been within one possession in the final minute of regulation seven times.
›› Sophomore Aicha Coulibaly leads Auburn and is fourth in the SEC in scoring with 17.8 points/game. She is also the Tigers' top rebounder with 7.7 rebounds per game (9th SEC). She has topped the 20-point mark in nine contests, scoring a career-high 27 against Charleston Southern, 23 against North Florida, 25 vs. Oklahoma State, 24 at Belmont, 23 vs. Kennesaw State, 24 at Florida, 26 vs. Tennessee, 21 at Vanderbilt and 24 vs. Mississippi State. She also has four double-doubles this season, including 14 points and 11 rebounds vs. Kentucky. For her efforts against UNF and OSU, she was named SEC Player of the Week on Dec. 7.
›› Redshirt junior Honesty Scott-Grayson is averaging 13.1 points and 57 rebounds, and she has recorded three double-doubles, including 21 points and a career-high 14 rebounds vs. Florida (2/13). She scored a season-high 23 points at Arkansas (2/10) and matched that with 23 against Georgia (2/20).
›› Junior guard Sania Wells is the SEC's top free-throw shooter at .924 (73-79), which also ranks 6th nationally. She scored a career-high 20 points at Missouri on Jan. 6.
›› Annie Hughes is the only Tiger to appear in every game since the start of the 2019-20 season. Hughes scored a career-high 21 points and hit 5 3-pointers against Charleston Southern on Nov. 26. She also hit a key 3-pointer late in the fourth quarter that was a dagger in the Tigers' upset of No. 4 Tennessee.
TAKING DOWN THE TOP TEAMS
›› With their win over No. 21 Georgia on Feb. 20, Auburn won its third game against a ranked opponent this season. That's equal to the number of ranked victories in the last seven seasons combined, and it's the most in a single season since the Tigers also beat three ranked opponents during the 2009-10 season.
UP NEXT
›› Auburn closes out the regular season with a trip to Lexington, Ky., to face the Kentucky Wildcats Sunday. Game time is 3 p.m. CT at Memorial Coliseum with a broadcast on SEC Network.
Senior Night: Tigers wrap up home schedule with Ole Miss
