LEXINGTON, Ky. – One down, five to go.
Miles Kelly tied Bryce Brown’s March Madness program record with seven 3-pointers to lead top-seeded Auburn to an 83-63 victory over 16th-seedfed Alabama State Thursday at Rupp Arena in the NCAA Tournament round of 64.
One of four Tigers in double figures, Kelly led Auburn with 23 points, hitting with 2:23 to play to tie the record Brown set vs. Kansas during the Tigers’ Final Four run in 2019.
Tahaad Pettiford added 16 points, five rebounds and five assists. Johni Broome scored 14 points and a game-high 11 rebounds, while Chaney Johnson chipped in 13 points and seven rebounds.
Leading by 10 at the half, Auburn turned up the defensive intensity while doubling its lead within seven minutes.
Tahaad Pettiford drew a foul while banking in a 3-pointer for a 4-point play before Denver Jones hit a 3-pointer.
After Pettiford and Jones scored in the paint, Dylan Cardwell delivered the highlight of the game, grabbing an offensive rebound, circling the key and driving the lane for a thunderous dunk.
Kelly gave the Tigers a 20-point lead by making a steal, running the floor and scoring in transition after Pettiford’s assist, adding his sixth 3-pointer a few minutes later.
Broome continued his history-making season with a 3-point play that gave the All-American his 19th double-double of the season, breaking the program record he shared with Mike Mitchell (1974-75).
Kelly, who says he fell in love with the Rupp rims earlier this month before making nine 3-pointers in Auburn’s win over Kentucky, made three 3s before the first media timeout to give the Tigers a 12-5 lead.
After Kelly sank his fourth 3-pointer minutes later, the Tigers looked inside to Chaney Johnson, who made three consecutive baskets in the paint to give Auburn a 13-point lead with 8:02 to play.
The Hornets rallied from there, using a 9-0 run to get within four before failing to tie or take the lead by missing a pair of free throws with 1:27 remaining.
Auburn closed the half on a 9-0 run, with Broome hitting a baseline jump hook and drawing a foul. He missed the free throw, but Johnson battled for the rebound which Denver Jones controlled from the floor and passed to Kelly in the corner for his fifth 3-pointer and a 5-point possession.
Broome scored on a putback with 26 seconds left before Tahaad Pettiford gave the Tigers a 41-31 halftime lead with a runner in the closing seconds.
Auburn advances to Saturday’s round of 32 against ninth-seeded Creighton, an 89-75 winner over eighth-seeded Louisville in Thursday’s first game with tipoff time yet to be determined.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer
