Auburn's decade-long drought against Vanderbilt continued Sunday, and it might cost the Tigers a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.The Tigers (29-3) lost by seven to the Commodores (24-8) in the SEC tournament championship in North Little Rock, Ark., the 15th straight game they've lost to their nemesis from Nashville, a streak that dates back to 2000.
It was Vanderbilt's sixth SEC tournament championship and its second in three years.
We at the War Eagle Extra had a great view from my new recliner. The 'Dores did an incredible job defensively, holding Auburn to a season-low 54 points. The Tigers' previous low was 58 points in a loss at Georgia. They were averaging 77.8 points a game this year.
The Commodores used a variety of defenses to stymie SEC Player of the Year DeWanna Bonner, who finished with a season-low nine points, just the third time she hasn't reached double digits this season.
Other key stats:
3-point shooting
- Auburn: 0-for-7
- Vanderbilt: 10-for-28
- Bonner: 4-for-11, 9 points
- Vanderbilt's Christina Wirth: 8-for-19, 20 points
- UConn: the Big East tournament is a mere formality. The Huskies would be a 0 seed if possible.
- Maryland: the Terps have won 12 straight and took their first ACC tournament title in 20 years on Sunday.
- Oklahoma (27-3): the Sooners are the top seed in next week's Big 12 tournament and have the best RPI in the country.
- Stanford (26-4): the Cardinal enters next week's Pac-10 tournament as the No. 1 seed.
- Baylor (24-5): would probably need to knock off Oklahoma in the Big 12 tournament to be considered.
- Louisville (28-3): probably isn't going to knock off UConn in the Big East tournament, but stranger things have happened.
I can't imagine Auburn falling any lower than a 2 seed. It's just a matter of where the Tigers will end up. But by being a No. 2, they very well could end up in a bracket with UConn, which is something every team in the tournament wants to avoid.
Auburn has some time to sit on pins and needles. The women's bracket will not be unveiled until Monday, March 16. It will be televised live on ESPN starting at 7 p.m. EST.
1 comment:
.....It was a heartbreaking loss. Auburn FINALLY figured out how to keep Wirth from driving down the middle for layups (leave a shooter open...), and the Tigers could lay nothing but bricks at the other end. One possession, I think they got five clangs off the rim. I think Auburn got what, maybe two baskets out of their last 20 shots?
.....War Eagle. It's great to be an Auburn Tiger! Time now to regroup, and get ready for March Madness...
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