Postgame Pod: Auburn defeats Seattle U 91-85

Welcome back, everybody here to the post game pod at Auburn undercover, Nathan King joined

by Patrick Bingham back here inside of Neville Arena, where the Tigers will get a third

postseason game here at home sometime this week at time of recording right now. We don't

know Cal and Oklahoma State are still playing in the NIT tonight tonight being Sunday, but

it'll be their Tuesday or Wednesday against Nevada as Auburn wins tonight on Sunday evening

over Seattle 91 to 85. It's maybe looked a little closer than it actually was Auburn was in

control of the game for most of the second half. They led by as many as 16 second half led by 15

in the first half, but as we've come to expect Patrick from this Auburn team, there were sort

of the hiccups that Auburn fans got frustrated with throughout the season. It was almost like a

reminder of like, hey, this is this is what got you during the season, but the difference is this

time around. I think you built enough of a lead because three point defense and late game turnovers

were a problem for Auburn, but they did enough today to to move on and now they're trying to make

their deepest NIT run ever because one more one more win would do that for them. And like we all

thought would happen, Auburn made a deeper march run than Florida this year and everything's going

as expected. But yeah, I mean overall it was they had a really good start to the game. They're

kind of able to let a lot of that stuff happen late. I think Sebastian Williams Adams not being

in late definitely contributed to that. He got this 3,000 like 40 seconds. Yeah. And I don't think

anyone knew he fouled out in that moment. And then and Steven even said that in the post game was

like we should have known to take him out with four fouls. That was a miss by us, but most people

don't normally get three fouls that quickly. And I think that hurt Auburn a little bit, but

ultimately they had built the leads. They were okay. Yeah. Brad Maldonado for Seattle was just

making everything in the second half. He made seven threes. He was seven of 13 from deep in the

second half. Auburn as a team was seven of 13 from deep in the second half. So he matched their

their three point, you know point total there all by himself. Seattle just kept on coming from beyond

the arc. No surprise to anyone that this is a new season high for this team in three point makes.

Most teams did that against Auburn this year and they made 16 of them. They made 12 three

pointers in the second half. That would have tied their site their season high period in just the

second half. It actually would have been the most they had made in regulation because their season

high came against Gonzaga again, the one to overtime. And so Steven Pearl was very blunt about it after

the game. He said, look, we're not a good defensive team. And that's got it. It's exactly what he said.

It's kind of like, you know, yeah, no, that's verbatim. That's not me like making it up like, you know,

it's at the point of the year, though, where it's like when you were in SEC play and you were trying

to make a tournament and you're trying to get to the tournament, you kind of had to like beat around

the bush and try to make fixes for every game. And, and you know, they want to make the fixes for

the Nevada game. But it's like when you're here and you've made this decision to play in the NIT,

it's kind of like, look guys, like we're not good on defense and like we'll fix it in the offseason.

Like for now, and you're a man down and you're playing guys out of position. And that's the next

thing I wanted to touch on. Patrick was Auburn's front court was was pretty dominant in this game.

Points in the paint. They were plus plus 15 in points in the paint. Yeah, plus 18 rebounding plus 18

rebounding. I mean, there was really nobody that that could hang with the physicality and the

athleticism of Sebastian Williams Adams, who had a really good game. But Philip, you have it

as well as good for him to just kind of assert himself. Wilhelm brought is the defensive player

the year the West Coast Converse. He's a really good shop blocker, but he's not big. And so Auburn

just kind of got down there. And I thought you mentioned how they started better in this game as

compared to South Alabama. I thought it was very purposeful by them to just, hey, this is a good

defense. Just get to the foul line and settle in from there. The first lot of Auburn's points for

fat. I mean, it was honestly both teams. It was a lot of foul trips. And I think that's the

thing as we saw from, you know, in the NIT and someone asked it in post game of like, you know,

the whole goal is like in theory, a lot of your younger guys, Auburn's younger team, you want

them to improve, you know, get more chemistry, whatever. And for guys like Sebastian Williams Adams

or Philip, who kind of struggled down the stretch of SEC play, kind of started to hit those

freshman walls. Yeah, both of us. Yeah, really good nights tonight. Yeah, that's a good point.

Both of them really just kind of faded down the stretch of SEC play, which, you know, to your point,

that does happen for a lot of those guys. But another guy who had not been, you know, who had

had some flashes late in SEC play Elijah Freeman ever since entering the starting lineup,

this was one of his biggest games in quite a while. 19.7 rebounds, two blocks on a steel, which

is a really good all-around game for him. This was the most points he had scored since the Queens

game all the way back in non-conference. I mean, it's been a minute since he had played this

well on the offensive end of the floor. He was four or four from deep in the second half, him and

Kevin over. Kevin ever did his thing. Sebastian Williams, Adam said that the team refers to him as the

second half merchant, which is pretty apt. They combined for seven three-pointers after half time.

But to your point, Patrick, you lump Freeman in there as well. Magwood had a really nice play

in Ann one early on. Wasn't really his night to like, I don't know, he shot, he didn't, he shot

probably just fine, but it's like the focus wasn't really on him, but you can put him in there as well.

I had to assist. I had to assist in no turnovers. He's another one of those guys. But really, to

me, it was that trio, because I think that is the group, the core of youngsters, because Magwood's

situation, we'll see what happens in the off season, but like Sway, Yovitch, and Freeman are the

guys that I think Auburn fans look at and say, okay, their ceilings are probably pretty high.

You want to hang onto them and coach them through another year. And so I think it's the outcome

you wanted by accepting an IT bid. Hey, you can win it a few games on your home floor and see

your young guys maybe get a little bit more reps. And naming even Kevin over to not

freshman at all, but you love to have him back. Again, and he's continued to play well.

Yeah, I mean, those four guys really, it's like, if you start there next season, that would be a

big, a big, a big point for this team. But I mean, not even looking forward to next season,

they will play another game here with an opportunity to make it to the semi-finals. They're now

going to be in the quarter finals. They've never made it off campus. In the NIT, usually the semis

and championship game are played in Madison's World Garden. This year, they will be in Indianapolis

at Hinkelfield House will be the semi-finals. That's where Butler plays basketball. And then I

do not remember the name of the Pacers Arena, but that's where the championship game is. And so

we'll see if a game bridge. We will see if they are able to take down a Nevada team that's very

good, that was kind of a bubble team middle of the season. And then it was like, okay, they're just

not going to do enough unless they win their conference arm. And you see lots of kind of teams

like that. Seattle was one that maybe kind of fell into that category as well. But they're going

to bring kind of a more well-rounded, I think you've seen Patrick these first couple teams. I

hesitate to say gimmicky. South Island was definitely gimmicky. So yeah, Seattle is not, they were

more well-rounded and they shot the ball away better than they usually do because I was in defense

is bad. But like it was kind of, hey, you're way bigger than them. They have a shot blocker who's

six foot seven. If you can just kind of get away from him, you can you can do whatever you want.

Nevada's going to be more well-rounded. And we'll see what did you say you said in your 2009.

2009 was the last time they made it this far. Yes. And the last time they'd been in the IT

until this year as well. Gotcha. Gotcha. So they'll be, you know, they talk about making history.

But, you know, this is still, this is still an opportunity for this team to be playing games

into a late barch. It's an opportunity like Patrick said. If you want to get off some jokes about

the fact that if you're an armored fan, if your team's still playing while other teams are not,

that's those are always some nice low-hanging fruit that you can take in the in the NIT. So

Auburn gets a win here on its home floor. And really, I think you and I talked about this when

they took the bid. Like, you know, getting three games on your home floor is like from a even just

bottom of the barrel baseline revenue perspective. Like, well, that's a big win. You know,

it's the maximum amount of games you can get on your campus. And I think it can just,

the fact that they got there, obviously, they want to make it a step further. But I,

I do think you can look at this NIT birth for them right now and say, okay, you probably did

the right thing all things. Yeah. And it's like, it was easy. Not like easy, but like, you didn't

have to go travel anywhere or doing it. Like, Port Seattle, I heard they took three flights to get

here because it was that late notice. We'll see about Nevada. But yeah, it's the thing is like

in Sebastian even said it post games like, I would have just been board training. Like, I'm glad

I just I'm on campus getting to play games. I think that point spoke to, I think that sort of

illustrates when you when you read between the lines of that one a little bit, what do players

who are bored and just sitting around and watching other teams play basketball? What does that sort

of breed that breeds more conversations about what are you going to do next season that breeds

more conversations about why aren't you playing in the NCAA tournament? I think it's all that kind

of that kind of speaks to why this was important. Just having those guys in practice and Steven Pearl

being able to keep coaching those basketball players because when they're being coached and they're

playing basketball with their teammates, they're not talking to people about the potential of entering

the transfer portal. They're not talking to people about, well, what are you going to do next season?

Those conversations will come. But I thought you're you're right when when sway said be kind of

bored. I'm imagining a talented young basketball player just sitting around and just and just

getting some phone calls, not even necessarily other teams, but you know, people getting in here

about what you're going to do. Next season instead, you get to, you know, have some fun with your

teammates out on the court for for another few games. And so we will see what time, you know,

Auburn plays Nevada this week inside of a Neville arena. Tuesday would be, I don't maybe I'll

eat these words. I don't see Tuesday. I don't know how you'd give the one seed one day's one day break

and also Nevada having to come across the country just on one day in between.

Like how you'd practice and travel in the same day. I mean, that would just be a nightmare. And so

can't surely that would not happen. Surely they're going to play Wednesday. But we'll we'll see.

By the time you watch this, you know, most likely. And so for Patrick Bingham, I'm Nathan King.

Thank you so much for watching the tradition of the post game pod as we continue to move on in the NIT

here at Neville arena head over to Auburn undercover.com for full coverage of obviously Auburn

basketball, but Auburn baseball series against Texas over the weekend. They lost that one two to one

against Longhorns and then a huge recruiting weekend that Christian and Jason have been

on top of. So we got that all covered for you guys at Auburn undercover. We'll see you again there.