Auburn Gets Destroyed by Clemson to End Season

Clemson 84, Auburn 53.

It wasn’t pretty as Auburn’s season ended in the second round of the NCAA Tournament out in San Diego. Clemson was hot from the start and never let up. building a lead of as much as 41 points in the second half as they ended Auburn’s season. The lead swelled to its largest point with 11:38 to play as Elijah Thomas’ three-point play made it 70-29 in favor of Clemson, but the issue was decided long before that.

Tied 13-13 after a Chuma Okeke three, Clemson ran off a 29-6 run to finish the half, leading 43-19 at the intermission. Out of the break, the Tigers hit three three-pointers in the first three minutes, building a 54-22 lead and squashing any chance that Auburn may have had of mounting a comeback to start the second half. Auburn did end up running out a 14-2 streak late in the ballgame, but it merely allowed them to cross the 40-point margin and make it a little more respectable.

Gabe DeVoe led the way for Clemson with 22 points, Elijah Thomas added 18, and Marcquise Reed ended up with 16. The purple Tigers shot 47.5% from the field and hit ten threes while grabbing 50 rebounds.

Meanwhile, Auburn was led by 12 points each from Bryce Brown and Mustapha Heron, but the team shot just 25.8% from the floor, 7-32 from three, and had by far its most frustrating game on both ends of the floor.

Auburn’s season has ended at 26-8 overall, while Clemson advances to the Sweet Sixteen where they’ll play top-seed Kansas later this week.