AUBURN, Ala. – K.D. Johnson, Jaylin Williams and Chris Moore combined to score 44 points Friday to lead No. 13 Auburn to a 72-56 victory over Texas Southern at Neville Arena, the Tigers' 42nd consecutive non-conference home win.
"We beat a good team tonight," Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. "Great balance. We did a much better job in the second half."
Auburn (4-0) used an 11-0 run early in the second half to break open a close game, turning a two-point deficit into a nine-point lead.
Williams began the spurt with a 3-pointer. Zep Jasper and Wendell Green Jr. scored in transition and Johnson added four free throws for a 40-31 Auburn advantage.
"When it did get elevated, our guys did definitely respond," Pearl said. "That was a bit of a turning point."
Auburn played without center Johni Broome, who missed practice after his knee collided with an opponent in Tuesday's win vs. Winthrop.
Johnson led the Tigers with 16 points.
"He was still intense, he was still aggressive, but he was under control," Pearl said. "He did it with purpose. He's been working really hard to do that. He was really effective."
Williams and Moore each scored 14 points, with Moore netting 11 in the second half on 100-percent shooting, hitting a pair of 3-pointers, a layup and three free throws after halftime.
"Just being aggressive," Moore said. "Being confident, trusting in my abilities and trusting in my coach's belief. We knew it was going to be a very aggressive game."
"Chris Moore played really well," Pearl said. "He's a team favorite, a fan favorite because he's a great kid, works so hard and has been so unselfish waiting his turn. It's good to see him play with confidence."
Williams led Auburn in rebounds with eight, assists with four and steals with four while blocking two shots. Moore added seven rebounds.
"Being in the right spots at the right time," Williams said. "My shot was finally falling."
"I thought Jaylin played well," Pearl said. "It took us a little while for those guys to get going. The sum of our parts, that's our greatest strength."
The Tiger extended their lead with highlight-reel plays, including Johnson's steal and pass off the backboard to set up Allen Flanigan's reverse dunk, and Williams' assist to Moore for a corner 3 that gave Auburn its biggest lead at 71-50.
Auburn led 29-27 at the half behind eight points apiece from Johnson and Williams.
Johnson scored eight straight for the Tigers to give Auburn a 12-9 lead. Williams broke a 15-15 tie with a dunk after Green's drive and dish, then hit his first 3-pointer of the season to give the Tigers a 29-25 lead.
After four straight home games, the Tigers travel to Mexico for the Cancun Challenge. Auburn plays Bradley Tuesday at 5 p.m. CT and will meet either Northwestern or Liberty Wednesday at either 5 p.m. or 7:30 p.m. CT.
"We did what we needed to do in this four-game homestand," Pearl said. "I do think we've gotten better. I do think we've learned, and we'll go from here."
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer
TEXAS SOUTHERN POSTGAME NOTES>> For the third-consecutive game, Auburn went with the starting five of Wendell Green Jr., Zep Jasper, Chris Moore, Jaylin Williams and Johni Broome (3-0).
>> For the first time this season, Auburn used the starting lineup of Wendell Green Jr., Zep Jasper, Chris Moore, Jaylin Williams and Dylan Cardwell (1-0). It marked the first career start for Cardwell in 65 career games played for the Tigers.
>> With the win, Auburn remains an undefeated 5-0 in the all-time series with Texas Southern.
>> Jaylin Williams scored in double figures for the first time this season with 14 points including two 3-pointers versus Texas Southern. It marked his 23rd career game in double digits.
>> K.D. Johnson poured in a season-high 16 points including a 6-for-7 performance from the free throw line against Texas Southern. It marked his 39th career double-figure game.
>> Johni Broome dressed out for the ballgame, but was sidelined with a bone bruise from the Winthrop game on Tuesday night.
>> The Tigers sported their orange uniforms for the first time this season. They are 23-17 all-time when wearing orange jerseys.
>> AU made a season-high tying 14 steals versus Texas Southern, which matched 14 versus George Mason on Nov. 7. It tied as the fifth-most steals in a single game in the Bruce Pearl Era.
>> Johni Broome dressed out for the ballgame, but was sidelined with a bone bruise from the Winthrop game on Tuesday night.
>> Chris Moore turned in a season-high 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field including a career-high tying trio of 3-pointers versus Texas Southern. He previously made three 3s versus Missouri on Jan. 26, 2021.
>> Texas Southern was held to under 60 points by its third Top 25-ranked opponent: No. 25 Texas Tech (54), No. 3 Houston (48) and No. 13 Auburn (56).
>> The Tigers have now won 42 consecutive non-conference games at Neville Arena. Head Coach Bruce Pearl is 53-3 at Auburn in non-conference home games.
>> It was the 27th-consecutive capacity crowd at Neville Arena (9,121).