COLUMBIA, Mo. — Mizzou Men's Basketball took down No. 11 Auburn, 85-73, Saturday at Mizzou Arena. Mizzou claimed its first win over an opponent ranked No. 11 or higher since beating No. 5 Florida on Feb. 19, 2013.

Mizzou clicked on offense from the tip, shooting 54.9 percent from the field and a season-best 65.4 percent (18-of-29) in the opening half. The Tigers led for more than 32 minutes of game clock.

Redshirt junior guard Dru Smith (Evansville, Ind.) and sophomore guard Xavier Pinson (Chicago, Ill.), both finished with 28 points to lead Mizzou. Pinson and Smith's 56 combined points were the most by a Tiger duo in the same game since Jordan Clarkson and Jabari Brown combined for 61 points on Feb. 1, 2014. Mizzou received contributions from nine different Tigers, including 10 points from Kobe Brown and four points from redshirt freshman forward Parker Braun (Overland Park, Kan.).

Turning Point:

With just under seven minutes left in the first half, Xavier Pinson scored on a fast break to give Mizzou the lead, breaking a back and forth battle that saw five lead changes in the early going. Pinson's layup kickstarted a 14-3 run that gave Mizzou a 35-25 advantage with 3:14 remaining in the first half. The Tigers extended their lead to 13 at halftime on a buzzer-beating triple from Pinson. Auburn would cut the deficit to as little as six in the second half, but each time Mizzou answered.

Top Tigers

• Dru Smith co-led all scorers with a career-high 28 points, including going 10-for-11 from the charity stripe. The redshirt junior reached double-figures for the third consecutive game. Smith reached the 20+ plateau for the fourth time this season and the second time this week.
• Xavier Pinson also co-led all scorers with a career-high 28 points, the third time the sophomore has finished with 20+ points in his career.
• Kobe Brown finished with 10 points and a career-high nine rebounds. It is the first time the freshman has finished in double figures since Jan. 18 (11 points, vs. Alabama).

Notes

• Mizzou's win over Auburn is its first over a team ranked No. 11 or higher since Feb. 19, 2013 (Florida, 63-60).
• Mizzou scored 85 points against Auburn, the most against an AP Top 25 team since the Tigers scored 98 in a win against No. 23 Ole Miss on Feb. 9, 2013.
• Mizzou totaled 45 points in the first half, its second-highest scoring output in a half since Jan. 11 (51 vs. Florida).
• Mizzou shot a season-high 65.4 percent (18-29) from the field in the first half.
• The win marks the first against Auburn in the Cuonzo Martin era, and Mizzou's fifth against Auburn in the all-time series.
• Mizzou outscored Auburn in bench points, 12-7. Mizzou has matched or outscored its opponents in bench points in 20 of 25 games this season.
• The Tigers held Auburn to 5.9 percent shooting from three, its worst percentage from behind the arc this season.
• MIzzou forced 10 turnovers in the game. The Tigers have forced double-digit turnovers in 24 of 25 games this season.
• With two assists in the contest, Smith became the seventh different player at Mizzou since 1992-93 to record 50 steals and 100 assists in the same season.
• Smith scored in double figures for the 14th time this season.
• Xavier Pinson recorded a career-high in points with 28.
• Smith and Pinson combined for 56 points, the most since Jabari Brown and Jordan Clarkson combined for 61 on Feb. 1, 2014.
• Sophomore guard Xavier Pinson tallied 15 points in the first half, his highest-scoring output in a half since Jan. 28 (16, vs. Georgia).
• Freshman forward Kobe Brown reached double figures for the fourth time this season. Brown grabbed nine rebounds, tying his career-high.

NEXT UP

Mizzou will remain at home to face Ole Miss on Tuesday evening. Tip off on the SEC Network is set for 7:30 p.m. CT at Mizzou Arena.

For all the latest on Mizzou's Men's Basketball, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @MizzouHoops.