AUBURN, Ala. – Jaylin Williams scored a season-high 21 points to lead No. 21 Auburn to a 69-63 victory over Mississippi State Saturday, the Tigers' 28th consecutive win at Neville Arena.
"Jaylin Williams, one of the best games I've ever seen him play," Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. "It was as hard and as physical as I've ever seen him play. If you want to give anybody credit for winning that game, give it to Jaylin Williams."
Williams started hot, making his first four shots including a trio of 3-pointers to stake Auburn to a 13-6 lead.
"My teammates trusted me. They're always telling me to shoot the ball," said Williams, who made 5 of 7 3-pointers.
Allen Flanigan added a pair of 3-pointers in the half, beating the buzzer to give Auburn a 30-22 halftime lead. Starting in place of Chris Moore, who missed the game with a shoulder injury, Flanigan scored 10 points and tied Williams for the team lead with seven rebounds.
The senior southpaws scored 23 of Auburn's 30 first-half points, combining to make 9 of 13 shots and 5 of 8 3-pointers.
Auburn made 11 of 25 3-pointers, a 44-percent clip, while the Bulldogs misfired on all 18 of their 3-point attempts.
State used a 6-0 run to cut Auburn's lead to 50-45 before Flanigan grabbed a defensive rebound and drove coast-to-coast for an authoritative dunk, then made a steal and assisted Zep Jasper for a 3-pointer that restored the Tigers' lead to 10 points.
A late rash of Auburn turnovers and missed shots opened the door for State to trim the Tigers' lead to 57-53 with 2:34 to play.
Wendell Green Jr. took over from there, hitting a deep 3-pointer from well beyond the top of the key, making a steal and layup, and hitting seven consecutive free throws to secure Auburn's victory. Green scored 14 of his 17 in the second half.
"All of a sudden now the game is ours," Pearl said of Green's sequence. "Making plays on both ends of the floor. It's what you have to do to win."
"I'm experienced. Coach trusts me out there," Green said. "I have experience from last year. My guys expect me to take care of the ball at the end of the game and make my free throws. It's what's expected."
Tolu Smith scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead Mississippi State (12-5, 1-4).
Auburn (14-3, 4-1) hits the road for its next two games beginning Wednesday at LSU at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN2.
"We feel good, we're getting in that groove," Green said. "We want to keep finding a way to win no matter what."
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer
MISSISSIPPI STATE POSTGAME NOTES>> For the first time this season, Auburn started Wendell Green Jr., Zep Jasper, Allen Flanigan, Jaylin Williams and Johni Broome (1-0). Chris Moore did not start or suit up due to a right shoulder injury from the Ole Miss game.
>> With the win, Auburn claimed its 81st victory in the all-time series with Mississippi State. The Tigers are now on a five-game win streak in the series. All three of the last home games in the series have been decided in single digits (+6) in 2023, (+7) in 2021 and (+5) in 2019.
>> Jaylin Williams scored 13 of Auburn's first 15 points in the ballgame against Mississippi State. He scored 15 of his game-and season-high 21 points in the first half. Williams also shot a season-best 5-for-7 from long range. It was the most for Williams in the first half this season ahead of 14 first-half points at Washington. It marked his eighth game this season in double figures and four career 20-point outing.
>> The Auburn defense held Mississippi State to the second-fewest first-half points by an opponent this season (22 points). The Tigers previously held Northwestern to 19 first-half points and Washington to 23 first-half points. It was tied as the second-fewest first-half points for MSU.
>> AU, which ranks No. 4 nationally in 3-point field-goal percentage defense (.270), held MSU to 0-for-18 shooting from beyond the arc. It was the first time this season to hold an opponent to zero threes made.
>> Both the Tigers and Bulldogs did not go to the free throw line in the first half of play. It was the first time for that to happen in an AU game all season.
>> Allen Flanigan extended his double-digit scoring streak to four-straight games with 10 points and seven rebounds against Mississippi State.
>> Wendell Green Jr. recorded his third-straight double-figure game with 17 points including another perfect night from the free throw line (7-for-7) versus Mississippi State. He has gone 18-for-18 over the last two SEC games for the Tigers.
>> Senior walk-on Lior Berman contributed a season-high tying three points and season-best three rebounds in 13 minutes of action off the bench against MSU. It was one rebound short of his career high.
>> The Tigers drained a season-high 11 3-pointers against Mississippi State. The team's previous high was Colgate (10-for-22) on Dec. 2.
>> Auburn has now won 28-straight home games at Neville Arena – the second-longest home-court win streak in the country behind Gonzaga (75) and the longest in the SEC.