AUBURN, Ala. (AP)– Danuel House scored 19 points and No. 20 Texas A&M rolled off 20 straight in a come-from-behind 81-63 victory over Auburn on Tuesday night.
The Aggies (23-7, 12-5 Southeastern Conference) remain tied with Kentucky for the league lead going into the regular season finale Saturday night against Vanderbilt. Texas A&M is seeking its first regular-season title since sharing the Southwest Conference championship with Texas and TCU in 1985-86 and would win the tiebreaker after beating the Wildcats on Feb. 20.
The Aggies trailed the Tigers (11-18, 5-12) by as many as 11 points in the first half before racing back, overcoming icy shooting by gobbling up rebounds. They took charge with a 26-3 onslaught fueled partly by a series of dunks carrying into the second half.
Jalen Jones had 16 points and eight rebounds while Tyler Davisscored 14 and had nine rebounds for the Aggies. Alex Caruso had only five points but padded the stat sheet with nine rebounds, seven assists and two steals. Admon Gilder scored 10 points.
Texas A&M outrebounded Auburn 51-27 and grabbed 21 offensive boards.
Tyler Harris led Auburn with 20 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots. TJ Lang had 10 points for the Tigers.
The Aggies trailed by as many as 11 points in the first half after missing 12 consecutive shots during a scoring drought of more than 6 minutes. They scored the final eight points before the half and the initial 12 afterward.
Anthony Collins set up two straight dunks with passes and hit a jump shot to fuel the end-of-half run that tied it at 33-33. It only took a few more minutes after that to turn it into a double-digit game the other way.
Texas A&M Basketball
Postgame Notes
#20 Texas A&M 81, Auburn 63
March 1, 2016 ? Auburn Arena (Auburn, Ala.)
RECORDS & SERIES NOTES
? Texas A&M won its fifth consecutive contest by defeating Auburn 81-63 Tuesday night inside Auburn Arena … The Aggies’ record now stands at 23-7 with a 12-5 record in SEC play.
? The win left A&M’s record in road SEC games at 5-4, making the Aggies the only team who will finish the conference season with a winning record away from home.
? The victory also leaves the all-times series between the schools at 9-5 in favor of Texas A&M.
TEAM NOTES
? The Aggies dominated the glass by out rebounding the Tigers 51-27, including 21 offensive boards, the most since 24 vs Dayton on Nov. 20 of last season.
? After struggling from field much of the first half, A&M ended the opening period on a 14-3 run over the final 4:58 of the period to go to the intermission tied at 33-33.
? The Aggies continued the run after the break, scoring the first 12 points after halftime to open a 45-33 advantage … A&M outscored the Tigers 48-30 in the second half.
? A&M shot 24-for-26 from the free throw line (92.3 percent)
? Texas A&M used the starting combination of Anthony Collins, Alex Caruso, Danuel House, Jalen Jones and Tyler Davis for the 16th time this season (12-4).
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
? Led by Alex Caruso and Tyler Davis‘ nine, five Aggies finish with five or more rebounds.
? Senior Danuel House scored a team-high 19 points, going 7-of-13 from the floor and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
? Caruso dished out seven assists against only one turnover.
? Texas A&M head coach Billy Kennedy is now 94-68 in his fifth season at Texas A&M and 305-247 in 18 seasons as head coach.
UP NEXT
? The Aggies conclude the regular season on Saturday when they host Vanderbilt at 11 a.m. inside Reed Arena … A win would give the Aggies at least a share of the 2016 SEC Championship.