Number 20 Auburn used an offensive explosion from Kevin Overton and Keyshawn Hall to surge past NC State, 83-73, on Wednesday night at Neville Arena in the ACC/SEC Challenge.
With the win, Auburn improved to 7-2 on the season and marks 65 straight over non-conference foes at home.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the game:
Too many turnovers
Auburn displayed a sloppy effort in the turnover department on Wednesday night, and it was in large part the reason the Tigers didn’t escape with a large margin of victory.
Going into the game, Auburn was averaging just 9.1 turnovers per game, which was tops in the SEC and 11th nationally. But the Tigers coughed the ball up 13 times in the first half alone, setting a season-high. They finished with 20 turnovers on the night.
NC State, which went into this one forcing just 13.7 turnovers per game (124th nationally), cashed in on 22 points on the other end of the floor off of Auburn’s turnovers. It’s the most points off turnovers Auburn has relinquished this season, with the second-highest coming in the season opener against Bethune-Cookman (18).
Hall, Overton lead the charge
It was the Keyshawn Hall and Kevin Overton show in Neville Arena on Wednesday night.
The duo combined for 57 points with 11 triples on 16 attempts. In the second half, they notched 34 of Auburn’s 42 points. They are the first auburn duo with 25-plus point games since the 2018 season – Bryce Brown (26) and Jared Harper (24) against Xavier.
Overton, who played with a chip on his shoulder against an old ACC foe, set a new career-high with 29 points, owning six of the converted treys between the two. Hall, who is second in the SEC in scoring, turned in his sixth 20-point game of the season with 28.
Efficient from the charity stripe
NC State came into this one sitting last in the ACC and 327th in the nation in fouls, averaging 20.7 per game, so Auburn was bound to spend time at the free-throw line on Wednesday night.
Auburn attempts nearly 30 free throws per game, but came into this one ranking 202nd nationally in free-throw percentage (70.8% per game).
Against the Wolpack, led by Overton, who was a perfect 7-of-7 from the charity stripe, Auburn missed just three free throws, converting on 19-of-22. Its 86% clip from the free-throw line was its highest mark of the season.
Feisty defense keeps NC State's fiery offense at bay
NC State sat at No. 10 in KenPom’s offensive efficiency rankings coming into Wednesday night’s showdown. It owned the seventh-best 3-point clip in the country with a 42.2% clip from deep and averaged 93.6 points per game.
Auburn held the Wolfpack to its lowest point total of the season – the second straight game Auburn has achieved that feat against its opponent. Additionally, Auburn held NC State to a 30% mark from deep on 30 3-point attempts.
Auburn will return to action on Saturday against No. 2 Arizona at McKale Memorial Center. Tip-off is set for 9 p.m. on ESPN.
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