Auburn Tigers vs Mississippi State Bulldogs Match Player Stats On Mar 02, 2022

K.D. Johnson netted 12 of his 14 points in overtime as No. 5 Auburn beat Mississippi State on Wednesday night, claiming a share of the Southeastern Conference regular-season championship with an 81-68 victory in Starkville, Miss.

The Tigers (26-4, 14-3) earned at least a piece of the SEC crown for the first time since 2018. The title is their fourth in school history.

They can secure the top spot outright and No. 1 seed in the SEC tournament next week with a home win over South Carolina on Saturday.

Johnson, a transfer from Georgia, made three field goals -- one of them a 3-pointer -- and was 5-for-5 at the line in the extra session as Auburn outscored the Bulldogs 20-7.

Jabari Smith posted 27 points and 10 rebounds, and Zep Jasper had 11 points for Auburn, which won for the first time in four road games.

The club's 14th conference victory matched a high set by the 1998-99 team.

The Tigers won for the fourth straight time over the Bulldogs (17-13, 8-9) and improved to 7-2 in their past nine against Mississippi State.

Mississippi State was down by 19 points with just over two minutes left in the first half but trimmed the deficit to 12 points entering the break.

The Bulldogs took their first lead, 50-49, on Garrison Brooks' jumper with under nine minutes left as part of a 13-0 run.

They eventually settled for overtime at 61-61 as Smith's long 3-point attempt for the win fell short at the horn.

Losing for just the second time in nine SEC home games, Mississippi State received 22 points and 12 rebounds from Tolu Smith. Iverson Molinar scored 14 points, and Brooks had 10 and eight rebounds. Andersson Garcia grabbed 13 boards.

The Bulldogs rallied in the game by outscoring Auburn 50-24 in the paint and winning the rebounding margin 50-32.

In the first half, the visitors sank five of their first seven treys and led 23-10 edge after Jasper stayed perfect by nailing his third with 10:33 remaining.

The Tigers headed to the locker room with a 40-28 advantage. Auburn was good on 7 of 14 shots from long range in the half, while the Bulldogs went 0-for-9.

--Field Level Media