20 Wins… Who Would Have Thunk It?

by WarDamnZach on Mar 3, 2009 10:04 PM CST in Basketball

Well last night was fun… well fun for every one except Auburn’s SGA President. For the first time in 6 years the Auburn SGA President had to sing the Alabama Fight Song, because Auburn lost the Iron Bowl this past season. The good news is that someone in Coleman Coliseum actually knew the words to the Alabama Fight Song… that is another gripe of mine for another day. It is always fun, no matter what sport it is to watch Auburn beat Alabama on national TV. Thanks ESPN for making me smile again.

On to basketball… Auburn has played inspired ball since February started, and seem to be trying to keep it going into March. The Tigers are winners of 7 of their last 8, with our only loss coming to LSU at LSU, where Auburn played hard but was beaten by a great team. ESPN picked up the game last night which in my mind is a reward for all the stellar play over the last month. Auburn has 20 wins now, and is a lock for the NIT. With another building win on Saturday, this one over the 11^th ranked Purple Tigers, it could put Auburn in the discussions for the Big Dance. I still think that we would need to at least get to the finals of the SEC Tourney, more than likely win it to get in. I will give Auburn the old fashion “Pick Em” for the line on Saturday. It is a must win… which they all seem to be now.

No one and I mean no one thought that the game last night would amount to anything one month ago. Lebo looked like a lame duck coach, and Auburn seemed to have fallen to the bottom of the SEC again, after getting blown out by Ole Miss. Some how, Lebo got his guys ready and Waller and Barber seemed to wake up. One month later, the entire team has woken up… DeWayne Reed is playing well, freshman Frankie Sullivan finally is shooting well again, and Brendon Knox might be the key right now. He is giving Barber the rest needed to keep playing at his high level. If we could hit free throws, I would put us against any team right now. We are hot. I would even go so far as to say that we are the second best team in the SEC right now. No one would want to face us in the SEC Tourney.

Bama was on a 3 game streak of their own, they had just thrown a beat down on Ole Miss in Oxford. Bama was raining threes all over the place. The Rebels were never in it. Coach Pearson was trying to work his magic and get the Tide ready to pull the upset. They came out fired up along with the Tide Fans. Coleman was packed, and loud.

Auburn was having a really hard time with Bama’s size. The Tide seemed to get every rebound, but somehow Auburn hung around. Whether it was the speed and hustle of Auburn, or the fact that Bama went cold and also could not hit a free throw… I cannot say for sure. But what I can say is that Auburn was down 13 and did not take a second half lead 6 and a half minutes left in the game. The three ball was no where to be found for the Tigers until then and up until that they had to rely on truly battling for every loose ball. When the three ball started falling… boy it came in bunches.

Auburn was up 8 with just under 4 minutes left. That’s when Bama started going back inside and the fans came alive again. The game was tied with 1:01 remaining. Both teams battled and Auburn just had a bit more. For what it is worth, I will concede that the officiating was questionable, but at least the officials were not one sided.

Auburn showed me that they had guts last night. They played hard and fought valiantly, and it paid off in the end. Free Throws were the difference late. Auburn finished the game with 7-11 from the charity stripe. I have to agree with Brad Nessler… Auburn is one tough team, we are scrappy

Now we look toward LSU on Saturday. Let’s get some fans in the seats, and show that we are proud of our Tigers for sticking it out this season. 10 wins in the SEC would be huge.

EDIT TO ADD... Did anyone think that Nessler and Dykes did a pretty good job of giving Auburn some props for NCAA considerations? They compared us to teams that in my opinion were going to get in, and against teams that were obviously not going to get in... it just seems like we have not done enough without beating LSU and getting another "signature" win. I really liked the "blind resume test" that was done late in the game, comparing Auburn, Penn State, and Virginia Tech. The only disadvantage we had was the record vs Top 25. If we beat LSU we would improve there... too bad the SEC is so down this season.

War Damn Lebo

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Comments

Totally different team in the 2nd half

Those are a bunch of scrappy guys. They shot the lights out compared with the first half.

Offensive boards were the key.

Great comeback and it’s always great to sweep the Tide away…

by War Eagle Atlanta on Mar 3, 2009 10:08 PM CST reply actions

It was like they threw a switch in the second half

Once they shut down Bama’s inside game, the whole game turned.

War Damn Eagle, what an effort.

by atlWDE on Mar 3, 2009 10:18 PM CST up reply actions

Great game, and great article Zach

One quibble:

ESPN picked up the game last night which in my mind is a reward for all the stellar play over the last month.

Actually, this game has been marked for a Tuesday night since the season started. ESPN always shows an SEC game on Tuesday nights, and since we were the only SEC act, it was us.

Jerry at JCCW said it best tonight. This is like watching the ’91 Braves, you keep expecting them to choke, but they just keep on winning and defying expectations.

The artist formerly known as...
Mr Redbird @ Viva El Birdos
PowerOfDixieland @ Track Em Tigers, other SEC blogs

by jd is legend on Mar 3, 2009 11:43 PM CST reply actions

The sad thing is that I bet you 90% of the AU student body had NO IDEA that there was a basketball game tonight. Nobody cares about basketball at AU, and that is a SHAME. We need a PACKED HOUSE against those other tigers Saturday. WAR EAGLE!!! THIS Auburn student is behind our basketball team!

What do an Auburn fan and a bammer have in common? (Neither of them ever attended that school in tuscaloosa).

by AUshorecm on Mar 4, 2009 1:26 AM CST reply actions

If you build it, they will come.

by LSU Jonno on Mar 4, 2009 8:07 AM CST up reply actions

That was the first game...

…I’d seen all year. Some of the things I noticed about us:

Lebo lets these kids run. There were very few timeouts called, even when Bama went on a run.

Our one kid ?? is the only player in the SEC to average a double-double? Impressive. He’s a rebounding dynamo—especially with the offensive boards.

Two of our guys have an incredible first step towards the bucket. I saw them beat Bama defenders many times right off the dribble. That’s speed…

We like to set a lot of high picks, which usually result in medium-range shots or threes—which our guys are good at making.

I might have to rethink that game on Saturday.

by War Eagle Atlanta on Mar 4, 2009 9:05 AM CST reply actions

Fantastic game.....

AU didn’t play as well offensively as they have in the past couple of games but managed to keep it close and when they did get hot from the outside they turned up the defense even more. Very good win on the road……good teams have to win when they are not at their best and AU managed it. Let’s just hope we can beat the purple tigers and keep the bubble hopes alive.

I would have gone to bammer if my grades hadn't been good enough to go to AU

by Todd92 on Mar 4, 2009 9:39 AM CST reply actions

First time since 98'

that i can remember being this excited about basketball and i dont even like the sport. A couple of times during the game i wished we had the 3 point shooting ability of Scotty Pohlman the agressiveness of Chris Porter and inside domination of Mamadou N’Diaye

Sorry not trying to sound like a bammer about the Good ole days but thats the last team i remember watching

Gotta Love those "classy" Tide Detergent Box Hats

by auskip07 on Mar 4, 2009 11:46 AM CST reply actions

That was a good team

That was the team that was the number one seed in the NCAAs. We beat Winthrop (I think) in the first round, and then got beat by Ohio State in the second. We played at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis… the OSU fans were there in force. Auburn should have won that game too. I was there and it was awesome. There was a snow storm that week that shut down I65 through Kentucky. Ahh the memories.

If you are a War Damn Eagle, you can War Damn anything.

by WarDamnZach on Mar 4, 2009 1:07 PM CST up reply actions

ahh yes

i was in 8th grade when all that happened

Gotta Love those "classy" Tide Detergent Box Hats

by auskip07 on Mar 4, 2009 3:29 PM CST up reply actions

We had them too...

Scooney Penn just happened to play better with four fouls than he had all game. Plus, Michael Redd was on that team and we just had a really hard time dealing with him.

by Sparkey on Mar 4, 2009 3:32 PM CST up reply actions

We got beat by Ohio State...

…in the Sweet 16, not the 2nd round.

What do an Auburn fan and a bammer have in common? (Neither of them ever attended that school in tuscaloosa).

by AUshorecm on Mar 4, 2009 6:00 PM CST up reply actions

and it was in Knoxville that we lost to OSU.

What do an Auburn fan and a bammer have in common? (Neither of them ever attended that school in tuscaloosa).

by AUshorecm on Mar 4, 2009 6:01 PM CST up reply actions

I thought it was the Sweet 16. We got put out in the Sweet 16 the year before right?

by Sparkey on Mar 4, 2009 6:17 PM CST up reply actions

Dont forget...

Bryant Smith. He was our lefty 3 guard that would take you to the rack…

If you are a War Damn Eagle, you can War Damn anything.

by WarDamnZach on Mar 4, 2009 1:07 PM CST reply actions

Well...I'm not jumping on the Lebo wagon still

Yes, we played well last night. And, that was a great game to watch. However, with all of the timeouts Lebo called close to the end, I was thinking that it is still possible for us to lose this thing if he keeps calling timeout. Plus, a couple of times after he called timeout, Alabama went straight to the bucket. That one was a nail biter.

Having stated my disdain for Lebo once again, that was an awesome game and those guys are fighters. The guy said last night it’s the toughest group of watched play all year. They didn’t give in, and that was even after being down by 13 at UA in the second half. The poise that we’re showing is awesome, and maybe, just maybe, recruiting will be better next year. We have a lot of speed, defense, and most of all, heart. That’s a team full of determination and grit.

You know, there’s a good chance that Auburn will lose Saturday. However, go out there anyway and give the players a standing ovation regardless of the outcome Saturday. They’re working hard and we should take notice of what they’re doing. They deserve that much.

by Sparkey on Mar 4, 2009 1:33 PM CST reply actions

Saturday

I do not expect a loss. I expect a win. We played them extremely close at their place — no reason not to beat them at our place on senior night. I think it’s sad that a lot of people treat basketball at AU as some sort of exhibition sport, something to help pass the time ’til next football season. Anyway, WAR EAGLE!!!

What do an Auburn fan and a bammer have in common? (Neither of them ever attended that school in tuscaloosa).

by AUshorecm on Mar 4, 2009 6:06 PM CST up reply actions

I agree with you on that about our basketball program

I mean we should be more supportive of our basketball team. Yet, until recently, we haven’t really been any good for the last five years. So, there hasn’t been anything to really cheer for. Auburn will not be a city that has people come out when the team hasn’t been good for a few years. I’m just trying to say that to the people who may show up Saturday should still cheer our guys on after the game regardless of the outcome.

by Sparkey on Mar 4, 2009 6:30 PM CST reply actions

Hey guys, I was mad when they let Cliff go!

I really decided not to watch listen or endorse the program because CCE was doing a good job.

But I realize I was wrong in not caring about these young men, they are after all Auburn men.

WAR EAGLE!

by KoolBell777 on Mar 4, 2009 7:06 PM CST reply actions

Gotta beat LSU on Saturday

If we want any bubble consideration, we need to take out the Purple Tigers. If we want everyone to take notice, we need to beat them by double digits, like 15+. If we did that, I think the national media would start to take notice. I still doubt we get in without the auto bid, but a blowout win over the class of the conference would look very good.

The artist formerly known as...
Mr Redbird @ Viva El Birdos
PowerOfDixieland @ Track Em Tigers, other SEC blogs

by jd is legend on Mar 4, 2009 7:20 PM CST reply actions

I thought the announcers...

were rooting for Bama most of the game, but they came around in the end.

I did like that blind resume segment, but what was that first stat, RBI or RPI? Anyone? We had a 78. I don’t know if that was better than Penn State’s or VT’s…

by War Eagle Atlanta on Mar 4, 2009 10:40 PM CST reply actions

I believe both Penn State and Va Tech....

had better RPI ratings than we do but we have a chance to greatly improve it with a solid win against LSU and a good showing in Tampa. And JD you are starting to sound like me……optimistic. War Damn Eagle.

I would have gone to bammer if my grades hadn't been good enough to go to AU

by Todd92 on Mar 5, 2009 1:01 PM CST up reply actions