The Auburn Tigers started their season with a bang on Wednesday night, taking down the Southern Louisiana Lions, 92-59, marking the third straight season-opener in which the Tigers have been able to score 90 points or more.
The Tigers got off to a slow start, trading leads with the Lions throughout the first eight minutes of the game, but the Tigers took the lead with 12 minutes to play and never looked back, slowly building the margin until an 11-0 Tahaad Pettiford run sealed the half, and the Tigers hit the locker room up 17 points.
The second half started much like the first, as the Tigers and Lions traded baskets for the first eight minutes, but a 15-2 Tiger run midway through the half created a good bit more cushion, and after a little bit more back-and-forth, the Tigers rained three-pointers on the Lions to close the half.
Pettiford, who was an All-SEC Preseason Third Teamer, struggled to get going early, missing all of his first eight shots before finally scoring the first points of his season on a dunk midway through the first half. Then, towards the end of the half, Pettiford cashed in on a trio of high-contact layups, two of which came with a foul, and drilled a half-court shot to end the half with 13 points.
In the second half, Pettiford added four assists and five points over 11 minutes to end the game with a team-high 18 points, four assists and two rebounds.
Defensively, several Tigers, including forwards Narcisse Ngoy, Owen Freeman and Thomas Dowd, contributed to the Tigers' 11 blocks, a massive step up from the 4.1 blocks per game the Tigers' 2025 squad averaged. However, the standout in that regard was Bukky Oboye, a Santa Clara transfer, who led the team with a staggering five blocks.
Five Tigers finished the game with 10 points or more, including Pettiford's 18, Ngoy's 10, returning guard Kevin Overton's 12, Vanderbilt transfer guard George Kimble's 10 and Utah State transfer guard Kolby King's 12.
Additionally, new Troy transfer Thomas Dowd may not have lit up the score sheet in any area in particular, but he covered just about every area of it, tallying nine points, six rebounds and two blocks, a strong start for the senior, who averaged a double-double last season.
The Lions were led by Quincy Allen, a fifth-year senior guard who managed 16 points, three rebounds and two assists, along with Yanis Ndjonga, a senior guard who totaled 13 points, six rebounds and one assist.
The Tigers will look to carry this momentum into their next matchup, against Appalachian State, which is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 9, in Neville Arena at 8:00 p.m. CT.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/auburn as Auburn Basketball Blows Out Southeastern Louisiana to Open 2026-27 Season .
