Auburn Stomps Jacksonville State, 78-54

The Auburn Tigers rebounded from Friday's loss this Tuesday night in a big way, besting the Jacksonville State Gamecocks 78-54. Chris Denson once again led the way for the Tigers, scoring 15 points. KT Harrell was not far behind, adding 14 of his own to the final tally.

The Gamecocks' DJ Felder led all scorers with 16, and had himself a solid night on the boards as well, grabbing 12 rebounds to complete the double-double. Malcolm Canada was the third Tigers scorer to land in double-digits, earning himself 10 points on the night.

Thompson earned his first points Tuesday night (Todd Van Emst)

Auburn Allows 72 Points In the 2nd Half, Loses 111-92

Northwestern State scored 72 points in the second half of tonight's game to pull past Auburn and win 111-92. The Demons' Jalan West led all scorers with 30 points, while Chris Denson led the Tigers with 29.

Northwestern State was able to pull away in the second half by hitting 68% of their field goals and a whopping 64% of their 3-pointers, all while hitting 91% of their free throws. The Demons hit 50% of their total field goals in the game. Auburn shot 53% in the first half to take a 48-39 lead, but cooled off significantly, only hitting 40% in the second half.

KT Harrell finished the night with 21 points (Kyle Taylor)

Auburn Tops Nicholls State In Season Opener, 76-54

Auburn emerged victorious in their season opener against the Nicholls State Colonels on Friday night, 76-54. Chris Denson led all scorers with 22 points, followed closely by KT Harrell with 19, continuing the trend that the bulk of the Tigers' scoring will come through those two.

The rest of the Tigers' scoring was a little more spread out, with the next two leading scorers being Asauhn Dixon-Tatum with 8 and Malcolm Canada with 7. Dixon-Tatum led in rebounding with 8 boards, followed by Dion Wade with 6. Dixon-Tatum also had a big night in terms of blocks, swatting 4 of the Colonels' attempts.

Malcolm Canada had a solid night with 7 points (Kyle Taylor)

PREVIEW: Auburn vs Nicholls State

It's finally here. The 2013 season is upon us! It seems like its been forever since last season's miserable end, but the Nicholls State Colonels are coming to town, so I'm here to get you ready for the game.

Season Uniform Preview - Part 2

Hello again Jungle blog! I am back again to finish up the uniform post for the 2013-14 Auburn basketball season. You can check out yesterday’s post here. Today we will complete the SEC portion of the schedule and then go to a more overall look around the country.

• The SEC schedule unfortunately starts at Ole Miss. We all would love to host the Rebels again, even if Henderson is suspended, just because of what happened last year. (guys, no more flicking off. Never) Since we don’t host Ole Miss, we wont have to worry about whether or not they’ll wear red or blue, (unless they want a red-on-blue or blue-on-orange game, which I would love!) so here are the white uniforms they wore last year. I would doubt they change anything for this year, but don’t be surprised if they did.
• Last year we traveled Missouri for the first time as an SEC opponent, so we get to host them this year. Missouri is set to honor their 1993-94 Big Eight Championship team with some awesome throwbacks. These are on tap for the opening game, but don’t be surprised if they wear them more. Before last season, the entire Missouri athletic department was completely overhauled by Nike, with new uniforms for every sport. For the basketball team, they got new white, yellow, and greys, and new "sweatback" designs.

Season Uniform Preview - Part 1

It's finally game week! To kick things off this week, guest contributor and the Jungle's very own Clint Richardson has given a rundown on the uniforms of every single team on the schedule this season, plus a few extra. (check out his awesome Auburn uniform blog!) The post is divided into two parts: non-conference and SEC. So without further ado, here's part 1 of Clint's 2013 uniform preview!

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Hello Jungle! First and foremost I would like to thank our King for allowing me to do this kind of thing. He will be doing a season preview post for my blog, so you can check that out here. King and I are both really into uniforms, (Uni Nerds as we prefer) and I thought he would be interested in a uniform run down for this year in college basketball. So, let’s start with the opponents our Auburn Tigers will be playing, and especially with the new uniforms we will be seeing in our own home. This post will be split into two days, one for the non-conference schedule, and another for the SEC schedule and some other miscellaneous uniform notes.

Basketball uniforms are a lot more templatic than football uniforms, meaning that someone like Nike has a few simple designs and just throw different color combinations and logos on it and be done with it. Through this list, you will see many of the same designs, and then again many different templates from the same manufacturer.

• Our Tigers open the season at home on November 8, hosting Nicholls State from Louisiana, which is the beginning of a five game home stand. (versus State teams at that) As a small school, don’t expect the Colonels to change their uniforms up much. This picture is from their athletic website, so expect to see the red uniform on our court. Even without a maker’s mark, these are Adidas uniforms, with the tell-tale sign being the necklace thing…

Auburn Brings the Pain to Paine College, 99-64

Auburn defeated Paine College in their second and final exhibition game Friday night, 99-64, in front of yet another small crowd. KT Harrell didn't seem to mind as he led the Tigers in scoring, putting up 25 points on the night.

Senior guard Chris Denson was close behind, scoring 24 points, while Asauhn Dixon-Tatum, Tahj Shamsid-Deen, and Benas Griciunas each had 11. Asauhn Dixon-Tatum led the team in rebounding with his 9 boards, and Tahj Shamsid-Deen ended up with the most assists of the night with 7.

Benas Griciunas drives to the basket (Kyle Taylor)

Auburn Gives Victory a Taste of Defeat, 109-67

Auburn got their season off to a high-scoring start in front of a sparse crowd on Monday night against Victory University, putting up 109 points to the Eagles' 67 points.

Five Tigers scored in double-digits, led by Chris Denson with 21, Tahj Shamsid-Deen with 16, Benas Griciunas with 15, and Asauhn Dixon-Tatum and KT Harrell with 14. Chris Griffin led the Tigers in rebounding with 8 total rebounds, and Malcolm Canada had the most assists with 9.

Chris Griffin nails a jumper against Victory (Todd Van Emst)

NEWS: Jungle Jam 3-Point and Dunk Contest Participants Announced

Just one day before the Jungle Jam, Auburn unveiled which players will participate in the 3-point and dunk contests at the event.

(Auburn University)

Allen Payne, Chris Griffin, KT Harrell, Benas Griciunas, Tahj Shamsid-Deen, and Dion Wade will be the seven participants in the 3-point contest that is loaded with newcomers. There will be two rounds in the contest, where the top two scorers in the first round advance to the finals.

My prediction: Benas Griciunas squeaks by KT Harrell in the finals for the upset victory.

Four Tigers will be featured in the dunk contest: 2011 co-winner Chris Denson, Asauhn Dixon-Tatum, Jordon Granger, and Matthew Atewe. This contest will also feature two rounds, with the top two scores from the celebrity judge panel advancing to the finals.

My prediction: Chris Denson holds on to his crown and bests Matthew Atewe in the finals.

The Jungle Jam is tomorrow at 7 pm, with the Arena doors opening at 6. The event is free for everyone and features actor/comedian Mike Epps and rapper Ludacris. For the fans at least, tomorrow Auburn basketball season officially begins!

Everything You Need to Know About the Jungle Jam

Before getting down to business, I have to apologize for the lack of updates to the blog lately. Since I'm a student, sometimes my professors decide that school is more important than Auburn basketball and force me to focus on that instead. Don't worry though, that brief time is behind us and I am free to focus on what's really important. Now for the real reason you're here...

Weekly Recap: September 8-14, 2013

While it was a relatively quiet week news-wise for Auburn hoops, the team did receive a visit from a PGA champion this week:

Jason Dufner Visits the Tigers

That's right, former Auburn golfer visited the Auburn basketball team this week to give them some words of wisdom and inspiration, plus there may have been a little bit of #Dufering on the side...


This upcoming week looks to be promising for the blog as I'll be writing a post or two on the upcoming Jungle Jam, taking place October 4, so keep it locked here for all of your Auburn hoops info!

Auburn Hoops Hangs out with PGA Champ Jason Dufner

It's no secret that PGA champion Jason Dufner is a huge Auburn basketball fan, having made appearances at 2011's Tiger Hoops Madness as well as many games since then. He spent the afternoon with the team on Monday, and @AUBasketball tweeted a series of pictures documenting the visit for our enjoyment.

First, Jason Dufner and the PGA trophy first give the team a pep talk.

Weekly Recap: September 1-7, 2013

There were commitments galore last week, as Auburn picked up not one, but two big additions to the 2014 recruiting class.

Sam Logwood

Auburn received their first verbal commitment of the 2014 class on Sunday when Sam Logwood announced his commitment to the Tigers.

Jack Purchase

Right on the heels of Logwood, Australian wonder Jack Purchase announced that he too would join the Auburn basketball team next season.



Excited about these two commitments? Sound off in the comments below! As always, stay tuned to the blog for more Auburn hoops updates!

NEWS: Auburn Picks Up Commitment from Australian F Jack Purchase

Auburn received their second class of 2014 commitment this week after Australian forward Jack Purchase committed to the Tigers on Thursday afternoon.

Purchase is listed by 247 Sports at 6' 8" and 198 lbs, or 203 cm and 89.8 kg if you ask Purchase and his fellow Australians. He chose the Auburn Tigers over Boise State and St. Mary's, making him potentially the first Australian to not play for St. Mary's in over a decade. He committed after his visit to the Plains this last weekend.

Looks like Purchase already has some experience in a Tigers jersey.

Weekly Recap: August 25-August 31, 2013

This past week was about as full of news as it gets for an August basketball blog, as details were slowly leaked about Auburn's 2013-14 schedule before it was finally released Friday. I'll just point you towards the full schedule reveal in this week's recap:

Auburn Reveals 2013-14 Schedule

After many weeks of anticipation, Auburn finally unveiled their 2013-14 schedule. There are a ton of great games, most notably at Iowa State and against Illinois in Atlanta. Be sure to check it out in the Schedule tab of the blog.


This week marks the beginning of September, which means we are that much closer to basketball season, so keep it locked to the blog for all of your Auburn hoops news!

NEWS: Auburn Lands 4-star F Sam Logwood

Auburn landed its first commitment of the 2014 class on Sunday morning when ESPN Top 100 recruit Sam Logwood announced his commitment to the Tigers after his visit this weekend. Here's his tweet announcing his decision: (somebody should probably tell him that it's "Auburn University" not "University of Auburn," but hey, Pat Dye made the same mistake)

Committed to UA !
— SL III (@Sammy2timesss) September 1, 2013

NEWS: Auburn Releases Full 2013-14 Schedule

Auburn has (finally) announced the full schedule for the 2013-14 men's basketball season.

Auburn begins their season with 5 straight games at home, starting with Nicholls State on Friday, November 8 at 7 pm CT. The Tigers then host Northwestern State (11/15), Jacksonville State (11/19), Murray State (11/23), and Tennessee State (11/26) throughout the rest of November.

The Tigers then take their show on the road for a couple of games, first against Iowa State in the Big 12/SEC Challenge on December 2, then traveling to Atlanta to face off against Illinois on December 8.

Finally, Auburn returns to Auburn Arena for their final four nonconference games: Clemson (12/19), Boston College (12/22), Arkansas-Pine Bluff (12/30), and Florida A&M (1/4).

Auburn opens the 2013-14 season with Nicholls State (Todd Van Emst)

NEWS: Auburn to Play Murray State on November 23

Another piece to Auburn's scheduling puzzle has been added today, as we have already learned about the Tigers' December 8 meeting with Illinois. Murray State unveiled their full schedule this week, showing that they will travel to Auburn Arena to take on the Tigers on Saturday, November 23. No time or TV has been set yet for the game.

This game was... not fun. (Joshua K.)

NEWS: Auburn-Illinois Set for December 8

The date for Auburn's rematch against the Illinois Fighting Illini this season has been revealed to be Sunday, December 8, according to the official Illnois schedule. The game will be played at Philips Arena in Atlanta, GA. There is currently no time or TV set for the game yet, but I expect we'll find out about that as the season draws near.

Asauhn Dixon-Tatum says "nope" to this shot. (Darrell Hoemann)

Weekly Recap: August 18-24, 2013

Scheduling was the big theme for last week, as we learned Auburn's entire SEC schedule as well as a couple of games against a couple of ACC schools. You can find all of the news here:

Full SEC Schedule Announced

After months of waiting, we finally know the when and where of Auburn's SEC schedule. This season ought to be exciting with some pretty huge home games for the Tigers.

Clemson, Boston College Dates Announced

The ACC also revealed their schedule last week, and with it came the dates and times of Auburn's home games against Clemson and Boston College.



Along with that exciting news, I ranked Auburn's 10 best SEC games, so be sure to check that out. There will likely be even more scheduling news and otherwise in the coming weeks, so keep it locked to the blog!

NEWS: Auburn to Play Clemson, Boston College in December

Clemson and Boston College unveiled their full schedules on Thursday afternoon, both revealing that they will travel to Auburn this December.

Auburn hosts Clemson first on Thursday, December 19 at 5 pm CT. This is the first game of a home and home series between the two schools, so Auburn will travel to Clemson, SC to take on the other Tigers next season. This is their first meeting since 1993, when former Auburn head coach Cliff Ellis was still coaching at Clemson.

The good Tigers will then host the Boston College Eagles on Sunday, December 22. No official game time has been decided upon as of right now. This game is a rematch of last year's non-bracketed Charleston Classic game, where Auburn fell 50-49 in Chestnut Hill.

Allen Payne showing the Eagles how it's done (Mark L. Baer)

Auburn's 10 Best SEC Games in 2014

The SEC unveiled the 2014 basketball schedules on Tuesday, meaning that we finally got our first look at Auburn's SEC schedule for this season. Now that we've all had plenty of time to pore over the fine details of the schedule, (which can be viewed here by the way) I decided to take it upon myself to rank the best 10 SEC games in the upcoming season. I ordered them based on an advanced formula of significance, excitement, and a host of other factors. It's science, people, trust me. Let's just jump right in with #10:

10. Mississippi State (2/15, 12:30 pm, SEC Network)

I know what you're thinking: "Mississippi State is one of the top SEC games? Lame!" And I agree, they are lame. Even still, you can't ignore the fact that 3 of the last 4 meetings between the Tigers and the Bulldogs were decided by exactly 3 points, meaning that you're on track for some exciting basketball when these two meet. My prediction? Auburn by 3.

9. at Florida (2/19, 6 pm, FSN)

I have our first road game of the bunch at #9, when the Tigers will find themselves in the good old O'Connell Center facing the Florida Gators. This one will be a tough out, but it took Florida breaking Kenny Gabriel's back to win the last time Auburn visited, so the Tigers may just have a chance to pull off the upset.

NEWS: SEC Schedule Announced

On Tuesday morning, the SEC announced its full TV schedule for the 2013-14 season, and man, does Auburn have an exciting home slate.

The Tigers have a very tough start to the SEC schedule, playing at Ole Miss on January 9, followed by Missouri at home on January 11, then traveling to Knoxville to face off against Tennessee on January 15, and then coming back home to play Florida on January 18. Whew.

In terms of home games, Auburn plays the aforementioned Missouri and Florida, as well as Alabama (Jan. 29), Georgia (Feb. 1), Kentucky (Feb. 12), Mississippi State (Feb. 15), Vanderbilt (Feb. 22), South Carolina (Feb. 26), and Tennessee (Mar. 5).

Auburn goes on the road to face Ole Miss, Tennessee, Mississippi State (Jan. 22), Arkansas (Jan. 25), South Carolina (Feb. 5), LSU (Feb. 8), Florida (Feb. 19), Alabama (Mar. 1), and Texas A&M (Mar. 8).

This of course means that Auburn plays Tennessee, Florida, Mississippi State, South Carolina, and Alabama twice this season, both at home on the road.

Auburn has three nationally televised games, as the Ole Miss game will be on ESPN or ESPN2 and the Missouri and Alabama games will be on ESPNU.

Overall, this is a great SEC schedule with a wealth of exciting home games. Look for more articles on Auburn's SEC games in the next few days, and be sure to keep it locked to the Schedule tab of the blog for even more non-conference updates!

Chris Denson is pumped about this year's SEC schedule. (Albert Cesare)

Weekly Recap: August 11-17, 2013

Last week a little piece of Auburn's schedule fell into place, and we finally got some video of Auburn in the Bahamas.

Big 12/SEC Challenge TV Schedule

The Big 12 and SEC announced the TV schedule for the inaugural Big 12/SEC Challenge, in which Auburn will play at Iowa State on December 2 at 6 pm CT on ESPNU.

Bahamas Trip Footage

Auburn Athletics put out a video with some clips from Auburn's trip to the Bahamas last week on their YouTube channel, and it's worth checking out.



By the way, be sure to check out the newly updated schedule and roster for this season on the tabs at the top of the page. Keep checking the blog this week for more news and updates on Auburn Tigers basketball!

Here's Some Footage from the Bahamas

Auburn Athletics' YouTube account posted a video on Wednesday with some footage from Auburn's trip to the Bahamas earlier this month. The video shows a little of the team relaxing and hanging out at the beach, but the real focus is the highlights from the Tigers' win over the Real Deal Shockers in their first game of the trip. Enjoy!

NEWS: TV Schedule for Big 12/SEC Challenge Announced

Though we knew the dates earlier this summer, the SEC has just announced the times and TV networks for all of the games in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.

Auburn travels to Ames, IA to take on the Iowa State Cyclones at 6 pm CT on Monday, December 2 on ESPNU. There is one other game in the Challenge that night, as Vanderbilt plays at Texas at 8 pm CT on ESPN2.

This will undoubtedly be a tough one for the Tigers, as Iowa State has built up a really solid home court advantage over the last few years. Even still, if a few things go our way, look for Auburn to be able to pull out the upset.

Looking at the other, less important games, Alabama gets off easy (of course) by playing Texas Tech at home. The obvious headliners are the December 6 matchup between Kentucky and Baylor in Dallas, TX and the December 10 game between Kansas and Florida, both on ESPN. Personally, I am also looking forward to the West Virginia-Missouri game as well as the late Oklahoma-Texas A&M game in Houston, as those are two of the more even matchups in the event.

Weekly Recap: August 4-10, 2013

Last week was about as eventful as it gets for a college basketball team in the summer, as Auburn played not one, but two games during their trip to the Bahamas last week.

Auburn 99, Real Deal Shockers 63

Auburn started the trip strong with a big win over the NPBA's own Real Deal Shockers on Tuesday night, 99-63.

 

Auburn 88, Bahamas All-Stars 60

Auburn capped off their trip in a big way on Thursday evening with another blowout victory, this time over the Bahamas All-Stars, 88-60.




Though these games weren't against the stiffest of competition, it is still a great start to the 2013-14 season for our beloved Tigers. Stay tuned to the blog as we have some excited features and updates coming soon!

Auburn Perfect in Paradise, Beats Bahamas All-Stars 88-60

Auburn closed out their trip to the Bahamas on another positive note Thursday night with an 88-60 win over the Bahamas All-Stars.

Virginia transfer KT Harrell led the Tigers with 21 points, and Chris Denson once again had a big night with 19.

In other scoring news, freshman point guard Tahj Shamsid-Deen put up 9 points while senior Allen Payne and freshman Dion Wade had 8 apiece.

Allen Payne had a solid evening with 8 points (AuburnTigers.com)

It was also a big night for the Tigers' big men in terms of rebounding: Asauhn Dixon-Tatum grabbed 9 boards off the glass while newcomers Benas Griciunas and Matthew Atewe both had 6.

This was the second and final game for Auburn on their trip to the Bahamas: the Tigers also took down the Real Deal Shockers on Tuesday night. We will likely find out who they will play next very soon, as Auburn will reveal their full schedule in the coming weeks.

Auburn Defeats Real Deal Shockers 99-63

In their first game in the Bahamas on Tuesday night, the Auburn Tigers took down the mysterious Real Deal Shockers 99-63.

The starters for the first exhibition game of the 2013-14 season were Malcolm Canada, KT Harrell, Chris Denson, Jordon Granger, and Asauhn Dixon-Tatum.

Both Chris Denson and newcomer Chris Griffin scored more than 20 points, with Denson putting up a game high of 24 by the end of the night. Most of Griffin's points came from behind the arc, as he hit 6 three-pointers during the game.

In other scoring news, new guys (I'm going to be saying that a lot) Malcolm Canada and Tahj Shamsid-Deen had 11 and 9 points, respectively.

ADT being his ridiculously tall self (AuburnTigers.com)

Tonight's game was the first of two for the Tigers in the Bahamas. Their second and final game of the trip will be against the Bahamas All-Stars and take place on Thursday night at 6 pm CT.

Who the @#$% Are the Real Deal Shockers?!

This is probably a question you've been asking since Auburn announced their trip to the Bahamas. So naturally, I scoured the internet for everything I could find about the 2013-14 Tigers' first opponent. (and other info on who and where Auburn will be playing)

The Real Deal Shockers play in the Vince Ferguson Division of the New Providence Basketball Association (NPBA), which is a branch of the Bahamas Basketball Federation. (I had a hard time finding anything out about the BBF because their web domain has expired, so I apologize) In the Vince Ferguson Division, the Shockers are pitted against fierce competition like the Mailboat Cybots and the Double R. Services Ltd. Cleaners. The more I read about this league, the more it starts to sound like the Sharknado of basketball leagues, which makes it the most awesome basketball league to ever come to this earth. (Just look at their official website!)

According to the league website, our beloved Shockers had a pretty solid season last year, going 10-6 overall, which was good enough to earn them second place in the Vince Ferguson Division behind only the dreaded Mailboat Cybots.

The only picture of the Shockers I could find. (Kelsie Johnson)

Weekly Recap: July 28-August 3, 2013

This week was (once again) a little light on the news, other than the Tigers having a safe flight to the Bahamas on Friday. I guess that's summertime for a basketball blog for you.

However, I did write one blog post last week that I felt was necessary, so here it is if you're interested.

(Lacasse Photography)

10 Reasons to Be Excited for 2013-14

That's right, here are my reasons why you should be pumped for next basketball season, even though things may not look too bright right now. Check it out!




So that's basically it for now, but I'll have a bunch of stuff this week as the Tigers will play in two exhibition games this week in the Bahamas! Keep checking the blog for updates!

10 Reasons Why You Should Still Be Excited for 2013-14

I know that there hasn't been much good news for Auburn basketball in the past few weeks, which can make it easy to forget all of the good things that a new season on the hardwood can bring. Luckily, that's what you have your friendly neighborhood King of the Jungle for! So without further ado, I give you my ten reasons why you should still be excited about this season:

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1. The seniors

In today's college basketball landscape, players frequently transfer or struggle with following the rules, so making it all the way from their freshman year to their senior year is quite the accomplishment. That's exactly what Allen Payne and Chris Denson have done at Auburn. It's been a bumpy ride for those two along with senior center Asauhn Dixon-Tatum, who transferred to Auburn last season from junior college. Even with all of the hardships they've endured, these guys have put in a lot of hard work during their careers, and this is our last chance to show how much we appreciate them.

Allen and CD3, pumped about graduating

Weekly Recap: July 21-27, 2013

It was a pretty light week in terms of Auburn hoops news, with only one major news item coming this week:

(Albert Cesare)

Shaq Johnson to NW Florida State JUCO

We learned the fate of Shaq Johnson after he was dismissed from the team just over a week ago after being arrested for second-degree possession of marijuana.




That was the only major news item this week for Auburn basketball, but keep it locked to the blog as I'll have some features going up this week and the next on the Tigers' upcoming trip to the Bahamas!

NEWS: Shaq Johnson Lands at NW Florida State Junior College

According to Brad Winton of JucoRecruiting.com, former Auburn guard Shaq Johnson has been picked up by Nortwest Florida State Junior College. Here's his tweet:

Former Auburn player Shaquille Johnson is headed to NW Florida State to play a year of JUCO
— Brad Winton (@JucoRecruiting) July 26, 2013

Shaq Johnson was removed from the Auburn team last Thursday after being arrested for second-degree possession of marijuana. He is the fourth former Auburn Tiger to find a new school this offseason: Jordan Price is transferring to La Salle, Brian Greene Jr. is transferring to Florida-Gulf Coast, and Jerome Seagears returned to Rutgers after being in Auburn only a week.

Shaq Johnson in last season's SEC Tournament (Dave Martin)

NEWS: [UPDATE] Former Auburn All-SEC Forward Korvotney Barber Found Dead

WSFA News has reported that the body of Korvotney Barber was found at 3:49 pm on Sunday in the waters off the coast of Panama City, FL.

Jay Jacobs released this statement to AuburnTigers.com:

"We are deeply saddened to learn of the devastatingly tragic and untimely death of Korvotney Barber. The Auburn Family remembers Vot as a relentless competitor with the heart of a champion. More importantly, those who knew him best remember him as a caring father who deeply loved his children and his family. Korvotney's family and friends will remain in our thoughts and prayers during this profoundly sad time."

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Barber's family and friends.

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As we await official word on the story, Tony Barbee took to Twitter to weigh in on Korvotney Barber's situation:

Former AU basketball player Korvotney Barber is missing & believed to have drowned last night. My thoughts & prayers go out to his family.
— Tony Barbee (@CoachTonyBarbee) July 21, 2013

It appears that no signs of Barber have been found, so he is still listed as missing, but the situation certainly looks grim.

Jay Jacobs also sent a tweet addressing the situation:

My thoughts and heartfelt prayers are with the family and friends of Korvotney Barber during this tremendously difficult time.
— Jay Jacobs (@jayjacobsauad) July 21, 2013

It certainly appears that we should fear the worst. We should all be keeping the friends and family of Vot Barber in our thoughts and prayers.

Here's the original story:

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Former Auburn forward Korvotney "Vot" Barber died in a fatal drowning accident in Florida on Saturday. He was 26 years old.

Korvotney Barber playing in the 2009 NIT

Barber played for the Tigers from 2005-2009, and is regarded as one of the best players to come through the Plains in the last decade. He played in 106 games at Auburn, putting up career averages of 10.9 points per game and 7.2 rebounds per game. He was placed on both the Coaches' and AP All-SEC Second Team in 2009, the last Auburn player to earn All-SEC honors.

Weekly Recap: July 14-20, 2013

This past week has been a rough one for Auburn basketball, perhaps the roughest ever. Here are the biggest news stories that made it so:

(Albert Cesare)

Shaq Johnson Dismissed

Auburn guard Shaq Johnson was dismissed from the team on Thursday after being arrested for second degree possession of marijuana on Wednesday night.

(Julie Bennett)

Brian Greene Jr. to FGCU

On Friday, Brian Greene Jr. announced his plans transfer to Florida-Gulf Coast. He had already announced that he was leaving Auburn earlier this year.

(Todd Van Emst)

Korvotney Barber Dead

Former All-SEC forward Korvotney Barber died at the age of 26 on Saturday after a fatal drowning accident.





As you can see, it's been a really bad week for the Auburn basketball family. Hopefully there will be some better news on the horizon as Auburn prepares for their trip to the Bahamas, and if so I'll keep you posted. Keep checking the blog for more Auburn hoops updates!

NEWS: Former Auburn G Brian Greene Jr. Transferring to FGCU

Today on Twitter, former Auburn guard Brian Greene Jr. announced his plans to transfer to Florida-Gulf Coast, having already decided to leave Auburn at the end of last season. Here it is in his own words:

Excited to be apart of a great program like #FGCU can't wait to get to work #DunkCity
— Brian Greene Jr (@flight_bg) July 19, 2013

NEWS: Shaq Johnson Dismissed from Team

Auburn G Shaq Johnson was dismissed from the team today after being arrested for second degree possession of marijuana on Wednesday night.

The Auburn high-flyer was expected to play a major role this season after playing in all 32 games last season and starting 21 of them. He is not the first Auburn Tiger to leave town this offseason; Jordan Price, Brian Greene Jr., and Jerome Seagears (despite only having been a Tiger for a week) all elected to transfer this offseason.

To say that this has been a rough offseason would be the understatement of the century.

Shaq doing his thing (Todd Van Emst)

Welcome!

Welcome to the world's #1 unofficial Auburn basketball blog, the King of the Jungle Blog!

My goals in creating this blog are simple: I want create a place where anyone can stay up to date on all things Auburn basketball on the internet. While there are many great Auburn websites out there, most of them are focused around Auburn football, so I decided to make a place where Auburn hoops fanatics like myself can go to get all of the latest news, speculation, and details about Auburn basketball.

As you may have noticed by the name and such, this blog will largely focus on Auburn basketball's student section, The Jungle, as most (if not all) of the posts will be written by me, the current "unofficial" King of the Jungle. This means that when the season rolls around, there will be a lot of posts about the student section both before and after each game: specifically, the "dirt" on opposing teams, information about different student section activities, and whatever else students want and need.

That being said, even if you aren't a student, don't let that discourage you from coming here and making yourself a part of the blog, because this blog isn't just for us students, it's for everyone in the Auburn family who loves Auburn Tiger basketball.

That's all I have for now, but keep checking back for more posts in the upcoming days and weeks! So again, welcome and War Eagle!

Allen Payne celebrating the creation of this blog. Or beating LSU, whatever. (Laura Chramer)