02/26 at 12:47 AM

Momentum, apparently, can be sustained through 15 minutes of idleness, an awards presentation at center court and a halftime performance from Tiger Paws.

Auburn proved that Wednesday at Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum when it didn’t let its positive end to a lackluster half go to waste.

After Quantez Robertson beat the first-half buzzer with an awkward 3-pointer, the Tigers rode a feel-good wave all the way through the final 20 minutes en route to a 77-64 revenge victory over Ole Miss.

The win lifted Auburn (18-10, 7-6 SEC) ahead of Ole Miss (15-12, 6-7) in the SEC West standings and put the Tigers in a tie for second with Mississippi State, which lost Wednesday at Tennessee. Auburn travels to Starkville on Saturday for an all-of-a-sudden huge conference matchup.

“They had a run right before that and we needed that momentum going into halftime,” guard Tay Waller said. “And then Tez made that shot.”

With Auburn down 7, Robertson took an inbounds pass with 3 seconds remaining and pushed up the floor.

“Coach (Jeff Lebo) said in the huddle we had two or three dribbles to get a shot up,” Robertson said.

It was easier said than done, though, as Robertson had Murphy Holloway on his hip the entire way. The ball slipped loose when he went up for the look just right behind the 3–point arc, but Robertson, a lefty, was still able to get enough power on it to give it a chance.

“I just threw it up,” Robertson said, “but it went in.”

And then Auburn proceeded to completely wax a dysfunctional-at-times Ole Miss squad.

The Tigers outscored the Rebels 23-5 in the first 12 minutes of the second half. The 4-point lead Ole Miss took into the locker room was wiped away in 15 seconds, when Waller’s 4-point play tied it. Waller turned it into a permanent Auburn lead 37 seconds later with another 3.

Waller finished with 18 points and DeWayne Reed had 19 to lead the Tigers.

Auburn didn’t shoot the lights out by any means during the run, as it finished 36 percent from the field during the second half and 38 for the game. The Rebels just shot it that much worse, hitting just one of their first 17 shots.

Ole Miss guard David Huertas, who was a perfect 5-for-5 in the first half, missed seven consecutive shots during that stretch.

As the minutes ticked away and the missed shots piled up, Ole Miss completely lost its composure.

Missed shots were promptly followed by panicked looks to the officials. Unforced turnovers elicited intra-squad bickering.

“I’m used to it,” Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy said. “We’ve got an immaturity I suppose with younger players and still trying to identify a sense of ownership.”

That didn’t go unnoticed by Auburn.

“With us being aggressive and taking it to them, it really got them flustered in the second half,” Robertson said. “Some teams know how to handle it and others don’t.”

That aggressiveness was apparent in all facets, particularly in the post, where the Tigers overcame a poor first half and picked up seven offensive rebounds.

Korvotney Barber grabbed 11 of his 13 rebounds in the second half to go along with his 13 points. Barber, the only player in the SEC to average a double-double in league play, picked up his ninth of the season with the effort.

“Ole Miss whooped us pretty good last game,” Barber said of the Tigers’ 78-59 loss Feb. 4 in Oxford. “They were more aggressive than we were, boxing out more than we were.”

Hoping to inspire his team, Lebo showed the team a compilation of every offensive rebound the Rebels grabbed that game shortly before Wednesday’s shoot-around.

“When you put them all together,” Lebo said, “it didn’t look too pretty.”

Neither was Robertson’s shot at the first-half buzzer, but the momentum it provided certainly made for a much more desirable final result.

“That,” Lebo said. ” was a big shot.”

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