Tuesday March 19th, 2024 1:47AM

Dogs cooling off fast, become Auburn's second SEC win of season

By The Associated Press
AUBURN, Ala. -- Chris Denson scored 18 points and Auburn made six straight free throws over the final 34 seconds in a 74-67 victory over Georgia on Saturday.

The Tigers (10-9, 2-6 Southeastern Conference) went 11 of 13 from the foul line over the final five minutes to secure their second straight SEC win after dropping 16 in a row.

Auburn had five players score in double figures for the first time in an SEC game since Feb. 20, 2010, against Arkansas.

Denson and KT Harrell, the SEC's top scoring duo, took turns offensively. Denson had 14 in the second half.

Harrell scored 13 of his 16 points in the first half and made three 3-pointers. Freshman Tahj Shamsid-Deen, a Georgia native, finished with 12 points and four assists while Asauhn Dixon-Tatum and Allen Payne scored 10 apiece.

Dixon-Tatum also had eight rebounds and four blocked shots.

Charles Mann scored 18 points and Nemanja Djurisic had 11 for the Bulldogs (10-10, 4-4), who have dropped three straight games.

Georgia's No. 2 scorer, Kenny Gaines, returned after missing the last two games with a bruised left thigh. He scored nine points on 2-of-10 shooting but picked up his fourth foul with 8:38 left.

Mann scored on two quick drives to bring Georgia back to within three twice over the final 1:08.

The Bulldogs had to keep sending Auburn to the line, though.

Payne, Shamsid-Deen and Dixon-Tatum all hit a pair of free throws down the stretch.

The Tigers hadn't won back-to-back league games since opening 2-0 last season.

The Bulldogs trailed by as many as 13 points in the second half but pulled to within 59-57 with 5:40 left.

J.J. Frazier came up with two big plays to cap a 15-4 run. He stole the ball from a driving Shamsid-Deen, drove and dished to Djurisic, who hit a layup and subsequent free throw.

Then Frazier buried a 3-pointer from the right corner.

Auburn scored seven of the next eight points.

Shamsid-Deen, who is from Decatur, Ga., said Friday that he wasn't recruited by the Bulldogs because they deemed him too small.

He left the game for several minutes in the first half with a twisted right ankle but still played a big role.
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