Auburn women’s basketball didn’t just end a three-game losing streak Tuesday night — the Tigers reasserted their identity.
Behind a suffocating defensive effort, Auburn flexed their muscle. This was, simultaneously, one of their most efficient offensive nights of the season. Auburn rolled past Middle Tennessee 68–52 at the Murphy Center, snapping the skid and earning its second true road win of the year.
The Tigers (9-3) shot a blistering 57 percent from the floor. They turned 25 MTSU turnovers into 28 points, and completely dictated the game from the opening quarter on.
“Defense is our calling card at this point,” head coach Larry Vickers said postgame. “Especially in the first half. We held that team to 15 points in the first half, and that’s a good basketball team.”
That defensive tone was set early. After Middle Tennessee scored the first basket of the game, Auburn responded with a Jackson jumper and a pair of Kaitlyn Duhon free throws. They never trailed again.
The Blue Raiders managed just two points over the first seven minutes. Auburn closed the opening quarter up 13–9.
The knockout stretch.
Auburn opened the second quarter on a 19–0 run. During, that run Auburn held MTSU scoreless for more than eight minutes. The more impressive thing, for me during that stretch was Auburn forcing rushed shots, shot-clock violations, and turnovers. MTSU could not get a clear look at the basket. Harissoum Coulibaly capped the half with a jumper at the buzzer — her 10th point of the quarter — pushing the lead to 35–15 at halftime.
And the offense wasn’t just opportunistic — it was connected.
Auburn assisted on 13 of its 25 made field goals. One question mark, coming into the game was about Auburn’s ability to compete on the interior. They controlled the paint 28–12, and knocked down 6-of-12 from three.
“That assist number was high,” Vickers said. “That’s the number on the stat sheet that will tell you how we played.”
Coulibaly led the Tigers with 16 points on 8-of-11 shooting, adding four assists and two steals in her first start of the season. Also, getting her first start this season, the hometown girl, Syriah Daniels, who had 14 points on 5-9 shooting, 6 Rebounds, 4 assists, 2 block, and 2 steals. Khady Leye chipped in seven points and six rebounds, while Duhon added eight points.
Sania Richardson delivered a disruptive defensive night, recording a career-best four steals while scoring five points and creating easy transition looks for her teammates.
Auburn pushed the lead to as many as 27 points in the second half, comfortably maintaining control before late MTSU buckets trimmed the final margin.
After three narrow losses, Auburn finally got the result its effort had been building toward.
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