Big win at Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum this afternoon for the No. 9 Tigers, who remain unbeaten at 17-0. That's their best start since 1988-89, when they reeled off 28 straight to start the season.

Auburn (2-0 SEC) got big-time games out of DeWanna Bonner, who makes scoring 29 points look easy, Sherrell Hobbs, who scored a season-high 23 after making her first eight shots, and Whitney Boddie, who had 14 points, 11 assists and four steals.

Start paying attention folks. This is shaping up to be a special team.

Some other thoughts:

• KeKe Carrier came up huge for Auburn. The 6-foot-7 reserve blocked seven shots Sunday, keeping the No. 18 Gators out of the paint all day. She added eight points and six rebounds. “She came out like a warrior today,” Tigers head coach Nell Fortner said. “She’s just such a defensive presence inside. And offensively you have to respect her, whether she touches the ball or not, you have to respect her. She just gives us a whole different dimension.”

• Since Jordan Greenleaf went down with a knee injury in early December, Carrier has avearged 9.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.9 blocks. She played a season-high 21 minutes Sunday. With Auburn lacking a deep bench (it only played seven players Sunday), she could be instrumental in how far the Tigers go this year.

• One concerning stat: Florida, which didn't start anyone over 6 feet tall, won the reboudning battle 39-32.

• Hobbs is a streaky shooter. When she's on, she's fun to watch. But here are her last eight point totals: 20, 3, 9, 13, 8, 19, 8 and 23. I bet Auburn would like to see a little more consistency.

• No-show night for Alli Smalley, who scored two points on 1-of-4 shooting in 32 minutes.

• Auburn used a 2-3 zone defense for most of the day that confused Florida. The Gators shot just 35 percent for the game. Guard Sha Brooks, the team's leading scorer who just dropped 31 on Mississippi State earlier this week, was 3-for-18 from the field for 11 points.

• There was an announced crowd of 6,090, the seventh-largest in school history. It seems some people are starting to catch wind that this team is pretty good.

• Bad news for people who like big-hype games. Vanderbilt beat Tennessee by 16 today, which throws off what would have been some great timing. If they had won all of their games prior to their Jan. 25 meeting with Auburn, Pat Summitt would have been shooting for her 1,000th career victory at Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum. That won't be the case now. Bummer for everyone, but it should still be a great game.