Slow start dooms Raiders at No. 19 Auburn

AUBURN, ALA. >> A strong first half paced No. 19 Auburn past Colgate 91-62 on Monday night in the regional round of the Legends Classic at Auburn Arena.

Fresh off setting a program-record 116 points in a win three days ago, Auburn showed no signs of slowing down on Monday night. The Tigers connected on their first three shots from beyond the arc, with two from Samir Doughty opening a 15-2 lead six minutes into the game.

Auburn brought the crowd to their feet early and often after shooting a blistering 63 percent (22of-35) from the field and 53 percent (8- of-15) from beyond the arc in the first half. Keegan Records was a bright spot early for the Raiders, tallying two points, two steals, and five rebounds in eight minutes off the bench.

Records hauled in an offensive rebound and turned it into two second-chance points with a layup to trim Auburn’s lead to 34-17 midway through the opening half. But another 3-pointer from Doughty capped a 13-2 run for the Tigers en route to a 53-21 score at the half.

Colgate tipped the scales in the second half and found a better rhythm on both ends of the floor. The Raiders shot over 50 percent from the field and outscored Auburn by three 4138 over the final 20 minutes.

This came after a 3-pointer from Doughty ignited a 13-0 second-half start for Auburn. Will Rayman halted the run with his second 3-pointer and after going 1-for-11 from beyond the arc in the first half, Rayman, Burns, and Jack Ferguson rattled off three in a row in an 11-0 run for the Raiders midway through the period.

Burns connected on four of his last five field goals. A steal on the defensive end led to a 3-pointer in transition to push Colgate’s run to 19-4 and cut the Auburn lead to 73-43.

Rapolas Ivanaus - kas reached double figures with back-to-back inside buckets and Ryan Moffatt registered the final four points, but the second-half surge was not enough as Auburn secured the 91-62 victory to improve to 5- 0 for the first time since 2004.

“It is not ideal to play three straight games [against Power Five opponents] at this point in the season but that’s the way the schedule worked out this year,” said Colgate coach Matt Langel. “The hope is that we learn from being in environments like tonight. And that getting the various experiences we have over the last few weeks helps us understand who we are and what we can do, but also what we cannot do if we are going to be the best team that we can be.”