Short-handed Vols make late stand, win

KNOXVILLE (AP) — Tennessee could have folded after its best inside player was ejected and Auburn went ahead by six points. Instead, the Volunteers found a way to win.

Scooter McFadgon made a 3-pointer and six free throws in the final 1:19 and Tennessee held on to beat Auburn 75-69 Saturday night.

‘Our guys showed a sign tonight that I’ve been looking forward to seeing. I knew they had it in them,’ Tennessee coach Buzz Peterson said. ‘They showed a little bit of grit and a little bit of fire going down the stretch.’

The Vols (14-11, 6-8 Southeastern Conference) trailed by six with 7:18 remaining and after center Brandon Crump was ejected with Auburn’s Marco Killingsworth for fighting.

But Tennessee countered with an 8-0 run to go ahead 61-59 with 5:29 left.

The teams traded the lead several times and were tied at 66 with two minutes left. Then McFadgon hit a 3, and the Tigers (13-12, 4-10) turned it over at the other end.

He was fouled on the Vols’ next possession with 38.6 and sank both free throws.

McFadgon went to the foul line two more times before the buzzer. He finished with 23 points and was 13-of-13 on free throws for the game.

‘I thought Scooter’s 3 was big. They made a little gamble there to go for the ball, and we made a good kick-out for him to get a nice shot,’ Peterson said.

Auburn’s Ian Young hit a 3-pointer with 19.3 seconds to go, but the Tigers couldn’t rally.

C.J. Watson added 16 points and Crump had 10 for the Vols, who snapped their two-game losing streak and won for the 13th time at home this season. They are angling for a shot to play in at least the NIT.

‘We needed this win. I want to play in the postseason. Everyone wants to play in the postseason. So we knew this was an important win for us,’ McFadgon said.

Reserve Brandon Robinson had 19 points and 12 rebounds while Young added 11 points and Quinnel Brown had 10 for Auburn, which has lost three straight games.

The Tigers, who dropped to 1-6 on the road in the SEC, took their first lead of the game five minutes into the second half and stretched it to four points.

Tennessee chipped away and tied it at 53 on Watson’s 3-pointer with 8:58 left.

Technical fouls were called on Crump and Killingsworth after the play, and both players were ejected after head official Ted Valentine reviewed the video replay several times.

Peterson said Killingsworth threw a punch and Crump didn’t but was ejected for participating in a fight.