Florida and No. 12 Auburn Collide with SEC Tournament Title on Line

When Florida hosted Auburn on Feb. 10, the Gators played one of their best games of the season and blew out the Tigers 81-65, establishing a 42-26 lead at the break and pushing the margin as high as 29 points in the second half.

Gators coach Todd Golden figures 12th-ranked Auburn (26-7) will bring a much better effort on Sunday afternoon when the teams meet again, this time for the Southeastern Conference tournament title in Nashville, Tenn.

“We had some things going our way in regards to just the lead-up to the game,” Golden said of the February win over the Tigers. “We played with incredible energy and enthusiasm. … We did a really good job defending them, limiting their opportunities.”

Sixth-seeded Florida (24-10) has done many of those same things over the past three days to reach this point. After being down 18 points in the first half on Saturday in the tournament semifinals against Texas A&M, the Gators got the deficit down to eight by the break, then finished the rally in the second half for a 95-90 victory.

They put five scorers in double figures, getting a career-high 20 points from reserve Denzel Aberdeen. Will Richard added 19 points, Walter Clayton Jr. had 16, and Zyon Pullin and Tyrese Samuel each netted 15.

Florida hit the Aggies from every angle it could, draining 14 3-pointers and also getting strong work inside from Samuel, who got to the free-throw line seven times, making good on five of his attempts from the stripe.

“We did a great job of playing off two feet, not over-penetrating and then looking out,” Golden said.

While the Gators won a high-scoring game, the fourth-seeded Tigers (26-7) grinded out a 73-66 victory over Mississippi State on Saturday for their fifth straight victory. They used their staples — depth, balanced scoring and relentless defense — to eliminate the tourney’s ninth seed.

Five Auburn players hit for at least 10 points, led by Chad Baker-Mazara’s 14, and Auburn limited the Bulldogs to 41.1 percent shooting from the field. The Tigers survived a tough, tempestuous matchup in which the teams were whistled for a combined five technical fouls.

As far as Auburn coach Bruce Pearl was concerned, there were no hard feelings about the way the game was played.

“It was a rock fight because both teams were playing really, really physical,” he said. “That’s Mississippi State’s MO. Our MO is playing hard all the time, not always quite as physical. They beat us on the boards, but we hung in there. We hung in there. I thought that was really important.”

The result might give the Tigers confidence when it comes to playing in tight games, as it was their first win of the season by single digits. They were 0-5 in games decided by less than 10 points prior to Saturday.

And Auburn is preparing for another dogfight on Sunday.

“We’re not just going to walk in there (on Sunday) and get a dub,” Baker-Mazara said. “I feel like we stayed together at the end and stayed composed (on Saturday).”

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College Sports News
WCC to Add Grand Canyon and Seattle in 2025
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Seattle and Grand Canyon will be leaving the Western Athletic Conference and moving to the West Coast Conference starting July 2025.
The nine current members of the conference are private universities with a religious affiliation. Seattle is a Jesuit institution, while Grand Canyon, situated in Phoenix, is a Christian college.
Grand Canyon’s basketball achievements were a significant factor in attracting WCC commissioner Stu Jackson. The team has participated in the last two NCAA Tournaments and three of the previous four under the leadership of coach Bryce Drew.
As the 12th-seeded Antelopes defeated fifth-seeded Saint Mary’s before losing to Alabama in the tournament this season.
Saint Mary’s is currently a member of the West Coast Conference.
The WCC, while also integrating Oregon State and Washington State this autumn (excluding football), will expand from 11 to 13 members by the 2025-26 season.
The future beyond 2026 looks uncertain, with Oregon State and Washington State appearing unlikely to continue with the WCC.
The former Pac-12 schools are under a two-year contract, expiring on June 30, 2026. Sources from CBS Sports suggest that the odds of the two Pacific Northwest institutions staying are slim, with a move to the Mountain West or a new conference formation being more probable.
Following the departures of Sam Houston and New Mexico State last year, Seattle and Grand Canyon’s exit from the WAC will reduce the conference’s membership to just eight by July 2025.
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College Sports News
Ex-Cal State Fullerton G Max Jones Commits to Kansas State
Kansas State adds athletic wing in left-handed shooter Max Jones
Former guard of Cal State Fullerton Max Jones has made a decision to join Kansas State for his upcoming collegiate season, according to reports.
Notable alternatives that Jones purportedly pondered were New Mexico, Texas A&M, Mississippi State, Florida Atlantic, and Loyola Chicago.
During the previous season with the Titans, Jones maintained an average of 15.3 points and 3.0 rebounds across 24 games, in which he started 21. He secured the second-highest scoring position within the team, alongside being the second in 3-pointers with 42 baskets and 41 steals.
In the season prior, Jones held an average of 12.5 points and 4.0 rebounds in 32 games, amassing 34 three-pointers and 30 steals.
Before making his way to Cal State Fullerton post the 2021-22 season, Jones spent two years at Division II Tampa, where he managed to achieve an average of 21.9 points across 21 games during his sophomore year with the Spartans.
In the recent offseason, Kansas State acquired Dug McDaniel, a former player from Michigan recognized as one of the premier point guards available in this year’s transfer portal.
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College Sports News
Stanford Names Basketball Court in Honor of Tara VanDerveer
View From The Top with Tara VanDerveer, Former Coach of Stanford Women’s Basketball
Tara VanDerveer’s legacy at Stanford will now be visibly acknowledged, with the school revealing on Thursday that the basketball arena’s floor will bear the name of the esteemed Hall of Fame coach.
At the age of 70, VanDerveer stepped down following her 38th season at the helm of the Cardinal.
She steered Stanford to 14 Final Fours and secured three national championships (1990, 1992, 2021). VanDerveer embarked on her coaching journey at Idaho (1978-80) and later coached at Ohio State (1980-85).
In January, she surpassed Mike Krzyzewski to clinch the title of the most successful college basketball coach in history, across both men’s and women’s teams. VanDerveer concluded with a remarkable 1,216-271 record, boasting a 1,064-220 tally with the Cardinal.
Alongside the unveiling of the Tara VanDerveer Court at Maples Pavilion this November, Stanford also established an endowed position in women’s basketball for an assistant coach in VanDerveer’s honor.
VanDerveer said in a statement, “This endowment will go a long way to strengthening the future of Stanford women’s basketball. I have many wonderful memories of leading the women’s basketball program at Maples Pavilion.”
“It’s an honor, and a little surreal, to know that my name will be linked to both in these ways, and I look forward to celebrating with all our fans this fall.”
Last month, Stanford appointed Kate Paye, one of VanDerveer’s longtime assistant coaches who played for the Cardinal from 1991-95 and began coaching under VanDerveer in 2007, as the new head coach.
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