Behind boisterous crowd, Auburn basketball tops Iowa in NCAA Tournament victory
BIRMINGHAM — If Auburn basketball's staff was paying attention to trends heading into its meeting with Iowa in the first round of March Madness on Thursday, it should've been focused on one key stat.
The Hawkeyes, who came in shooting 34.3% from 3-point range on the season, are 16-1 when they shoot better than their season average. When they shoot below it, they were 3-12.
Iowa made 25.9% of its triples in a 83-75 loss to the Tigers (21-12) in Legacy Arena. That mark included the Hawkeyes (19-14) missing all nine of their attempts from beyond the arc in the first half.
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But as with most matchups between No. 8 and No. 9 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, it was a close affair.
It was a five-point game at the half. That was despite Iowa going on two separate scoring droughts in the opening 20 minutes that totaled 8 minutes, 2 seconds. Auburn used some hot shooting in the second half from Tre Donaldson to propel itself to its largest lead of the game − 17 points with 10:50 remaining.
But the Hawkeyes punched back with a 21-8 run, trimming the deficit to as little as four points. Johni Broome was impactful in crunch time, though, helping Auburn close out Iowa. He finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks.
Wendell Green Jr. starts slow, but team effort makes up for it
After knocking down a 3-pointer with eight minutes remaining in the first half − the only made triple for either side in the opening 20 minutes − Wendell Green Jr. missed his next seven shots. He added two steals late in the first half, but also logged a turnover to go into the break with a negative-1 plus/minus.
But in a total team effort, the Tigers made up for Green's struggles. Nine of the eleven players that saw the floor for Auburn in the first half scored, including eight points from Broome and six from Allen Flanigan. Jaylin Williams added four.
Home environment
The Tigers are 14-2 in Neville Arena this season. The win over Iowa will count toward their record at neutral sites, but it should probably be tabbed as a home victory.
With the game about two hours northwest of Auburn, the crowd was massively in favor of the Tigers.
Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on Twitter @rich_silva18.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Auburn basketball: Behind rowdy crowd, Tigers top Iowa in March Madness
