Auburn’s Jordan Clarkson leads NCAA tournament with 25 points
Auburn has been able to overcome a rough first half to beat Baylor and earn a berth in the NCAA tournament.
Baylor (11-11, 6-9 SEC) lost for the third time in five games as the Tigers bounced back from an early three-game losing streak.
They have won eight straight games dating back to March 11, but they’ve been outscored by a combined 17-5.
Clemson (13-9, 6.8 ACC) was able to win despite a poor performance from senior point guard Bam Adebayo.
He shot 7 of 12 from the field, 5 of 8 from 3-point range and 2 of 7 from the foul line.
Adebahor made just 2 of 11 shots from beyond the arc.
He also committed two turnovers.
Trey Burke and Xavier Woods combined for 25 points for Auburn.
After scoring 18 points in a 94-85 win over South Carolina, senior guard Kyle Anderson had 24 points, seven rebounds and four assists in the loss.
He is averaging 10.8 points on 50.5 percent shooting over his last five games.
The Tigers lost for just the second time in 14 NCAA tournament games and their first since 2012.
Auburn was expected to be the No. 1 seed.
But the Tigers are now the third team to lose three games in a row in the first round.
The only other teams that have done it are Kentucky and Duke.
This marks the second straight NCAA tournament that the Tigers have been without top-ranked guard Justin Jackson.
Jackson is out indefinitely due to a left ankle injury.
Despite being No. 3 in the AP poll, Alabama, Kentucky and Texas A&M were expected to go No. 2.
But they fell to No. 4 in the ESPN.com poll.
Louisville had to overcome some rough shooting from junior forward Marcus Smart, who was 6 of 14 from 3 and 2 for 8 points.
Kentucky has had a difficult time getting past the No, 3 seed South Carolina.
The Cardinals are 6-2 all-time against the Wildcats, including two wins.
They also won the 2016-17 SEC tournament.
South Carolina is No. 5 in the country in scoring (27.5 ppg), shooting percentage (.559), field goal percentage (.543) and assist percentage (.632).
AUBURN, ALABAMA: Auburn led by as many as 16 in the third quarter before being outscoured by Baylor.
South Carolina outscore Auburn 45-33 in the second half.
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) The Auburn Tigers are the third-best team in the Big Ten Conference and the conference’s No. 8 seed.
The Tigers are coming off a victory over the No., 2 seed Syracuse Orange in the national championship game.
SEC Tournament: The SEC tournament begins Tuesday in New Orleans and concludes Sunday in Tallahassee, Fla.
