ATLANTA - Saturday afternoon, Indiana met Auburn at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia for the second game of the Holliday Hoopsgiving doubleheader. In front of an evenly split crowd of Hoosier and Tiger fans, Indiana was run out of the gym by Auburn, losing 104-76.
Sixth-year point guard Xavier Johnson missed his third consecutive game on Saturday. In Johnson's absence, freshman Gabe Cupps got his third straight start.
Two teams that came into the game shooting less than 30% from 3-point range on the season started the game a combined 6-9 from downtown. The Hoosiers' first 12 points of the game came from behind the 3-point line. Just 4 minutes into the game, Indiana had already matched its season-high of four 3-pointers made.
After building an early 12-point lead at the 12:54 mark of the first half behind strong play from Kel'el Ware and Mackenzie Mgbako, the Hoosiers began to struggle offensively when those two headed to the bench. Largely without those Ware and Mgbako on the floor, Auburn came back to tie it up with 8 minutes to go in the half.
Even when Ware and Mgbako checked back into the game, the Hoosiers had no answer for the Tigers. Auburn closed the first half on 42-12 run in which Indiana looked completely discombobulated. The Hoosiers converted just one field goal in the final 10:13 of the first half.
Kel'el Ware and Malik Reneau, Indiana's leading scorers, combined for 14 points on 4-15 shooting in the first half. At the halftime break Indiana trailed 52-34.
To start the second half, Indiana cut the deficit to as low as 11 points behind seven quick ones from Malik Reneau. However, it didn't take Auburn long to answer and take its largest lead of the game behind an 11-1 run.
With the result, all but official, Auburn coasted the rest of the way, leading by as many as 24. When the second half buzzer sounds, the final score read 104-76 in favor of the Tigers.
The biggest disparity between the two teams was from distance. After knocking down four of their first five shots from 3-point range to start the game, the Hoosiers went 2-12 from downtown the rest of the way. The six 3-pointers Indiana made are a new season-high for the Hoosiers. Meanwhile, the Tigers shot 14-29 from long range.
Indiana was led by the 15 points of Malik Reneau. Auburn had six players in double figures.
Final Box Score
The Hoosiers are back at home in Bloomington next Saturday when they host No. 2 Kansas inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
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