Once again, the Auburn Tigers came out on the losing end of a contest.
The month of February was nothing short of a nightmare for the Auburn Tigers, and that trend continued with a loss against the Ole Miss Rebels at home on the final day.
The Tigers (15-14, 6-10 SEC) hosted the Rebels (12-17, 4-12 SEC) at Neville Arena on Saturday, Feb. 28. Ole Miss came away with an 85-79 win, allowing it to snap a 10-game skid.
Momentum swung back and forth between both teams during the first half. Auburn led by seven points with 2:23 remaining until the teams returned to their locker rooms, but by the time the buzzer sounded, Ole Miss had established a one-point advantage.
The Tigers started the second half strong, leading by as many as seven points. An eight-point run for the Rebels turned the game in their favor, qnd Auburn was never able to fight its way back into the driver's seat.
With 7:32 left in the game, Ole Miss had a 12-point lead. Auburn trimmed it down to two points with 3:20 left in the contest, but Ole Miss held on and is heading back to Oxford in the win column.
Similar to many other games this season, Auburn was led on the scoreboard by Tahaad Pettiford and Keyshawn Hall. Pettiford led the way for the Tigers with 24 points, and Hall followed closely with 21. Pettiford also led the Tigers in assists with three, Hall and Elyjah Freeman co-led the team on the glass with six rebounds each.
Despite failing to come out on top, Auburn had a decent shooting performance. The Tigers finished 26-of-51, 51%, from the field, 8-of-24, 33.3%, from 3-point range and 19-of-27, 70.4%, from the free-throw line.
Auburn returns to action on Tuesday, March 3 when they host the LSU Tigers at home inside Neville Arena. The game is set for 9 p.m. CT, and SEC Network will carry the television broadcast.