It was Smalley's last game as a Tiger
TOLEDO, Ohio — Auburn struggled to find its offense early and often in the second round of the WNIT against Toledo.
And because of that, the Tigers’ season came to an end with a 67-52 loss.
In her final game in an Auburn uniform, Alli Smalley led the Tigers with 13 points, finishing her career in the top 10 all-time in scoring.
Freshman Tyrese Tanner was the only other AU player in double figures with 12.
“This is a tough place to play and Toledo is a tough team, you have to give them credit,” said Auburn head coach Nell Fortner. “But, we will take some positives from this game. It was great to get into the postseason and we got some good experience for our young players.”
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Smalley led the Lady Tigers to take the win in the 1st round WNIT.
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. — Down 7 points early in the second half, Auburn (16-15) responded with an 11-3 run to take a lead it would not give up in a 68-54 win at Tennessee Tech (23-8) in the first round of the WNIT.
Auburn scored the last 11 points of the game, including a 7-of-8 mark from the free throw line in the last 1:06 to secure the win. Senior Alli Smalley scored a team-high 17 points, leading four Tigers in double figures.
After TTU started the second half on a run to take the lead, it was a defensive change that made the difference for Auburn down the stretch. After going down 7, Auburn outscored Tennessee Tech, 35-14, the rest of the game.
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Nell Fortner knows her young Tigers will grow from the WNIT experience.
Nell Fortner remembers the last time she took the Tigers to the Women’s NIT, in 2007.
That team, which featured three sophomores, a junior and a freshman in its starting lineup, made it to the quarterfinals that year, the NCAA Tournament the next year and won the SEC regular season championship the year after.
Fortner is hoping to see a similar progression come out of the Tigers’ return trip to the WNIT this year, which starts tonight at 7 p.m. with a road matchup against Ohio Valley Conference regular-season champion Tennessee Tech (23-7).
“The most important thing to remember is we’ve got five freshmen on this team, and they need all the postseason experience they can get,” Fortner said. “I’m really happy we’re going to continue to play in that environment. Hopefully we can reap the benefits of this opportunity.”
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The Lady Tigers were selected for the WNIT. The new Arena will also play host to the first round of the Women's NCAA
Auburn’s players and coaches had to wait nearly two weeks to learn their postseason fate after a first-round loss to Mississippi State in the SEC Tournament on March 3.
Their answer came late Monday night. And in the form of a team they haven’t played in 21 years.
The Tigers (15-15) open the Women’s NIT with a trip to Cookeville, Tenn., to take on Tennessee Tech (23-7) on Thursday night, at a time that has yet to be determined.
“It’s definitely good to finally know,” Tigers coach Nell Fortner said. “It’s kind of nerve-wracking to wait.”
So Fortner knows the where and when. Now she’s just got to figure out the who.
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