WATCH: Controversial ending keeps Auburn from pulling off upset vs Tennessee
Tennessee escaped with a 46-43 victory against Auburn on Saturday afternoon, but it didn’t come without drama at the end. As Tigers guard Wendell Green pulled up for the potential game-tying 3-pointer with five seconds remaining, he drew contact from Volunteers forward Olivier Nkamhoua.
Green flailed around and fell to the ground as a result, but no foul was called as Tennessee grabbed the rebound to secure the win. The no-call, which you can view below, led to some shocked reactions from Auburn fans on social media.
The no-call robbed No. 25 Auburn of the chance to upset the country’s No. 2 team. It was also huge for the SEC standings, as both schools entered with identical conference records of 7-2. Tennessee guard Josiah-Jordan James led all scorers with 15 points in the low-scoring affair.
Both Auburn and Tennessee struggled offensively throughout the game, with both teams shooting under 30% from the field. The game ended as the fourth-lowest scoring game between ranked opponents in the shot clock era.
Green later called out the officials on Twitter for the no-call.
“I respect all referees just like I respect all people…But What could you possibly have been looking at?” Green wrote in his tweet.
Auburn trailed 38-30 with 8:05 remaining, but clawed its way back to cut the deficit to 40-38 after a pair of free throws with 2:49 to go. Green nailed his second 3-pointer of the game with 30 seconds left to make it a 44-41 game. Unfortunately for the Tigers, his final 3 fell just a bit short as it clanked off the front of the rim.
The loss marked the third for Auburn in its past four games, and it’s clear the Tigers have some things to figure out with eight regular season games remaining. Their next chance to bounce back will come against Texas A&M at 6 p.m. CT on Tuesday in College Station.