Johni Broome’s double-double (18 points and 10 rebounds) and Wendell Green’s 20 points and six assists weren’t enough to keep Auburn from dropping its second consecutive Southeastern Conference road game. Texas A&M got 22 points from Wade Taylor on 5-16 shooting, 4-10 from three, 8-9 from the free-throw line, and 20 points, including 8-9 free throws by Julius Marble in Tuesday’s 83-78 victory against Auburn.

Allen Flanigan hit a deep three with 4:41 left in the first half. Flanigan’s three gave the Tigers a 32-22 lead. However, he blew a kiss toward the Aggie bench, which drew a technical foul. Taylor sank two free throws following the technical foul.

“You’re allowed to celebrate,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl told reporters after the game. “They must’ve thought his celebration was unsportsmanlike.”

Flanigan finished the game with 12 points and six rebounds. He was one of four Tigers to score double-digits in the loss. Jaylin Williams had 12 on 4-8 shooting and 3-5 from three.

Auburn went from leading by 10 points with less than five minutes remaining in the first half to trailing 37-36 at the half after Broome’s layup with less than 40 seconds remaining. Broome had the only two buckets for Auburn in over four minutes after Flanigan’s three.

Zep Jasper hit a three at the 16:07 mark in the second half, and Green followed with a jumper with 15:36 left in the game to give the Tigers a 49-41 lead after trailing by three at halftime. Jasper scored six points and hit a three during the Tigers’ 8-0 that erased the Aggies’ halftime lead and gave Auburn a five-point advantage in the second half.

One of the most significant issues for Auburn was the disparity in free throw attempts and makes. Texas A&M outscored Auburn 46-42 in the second half leading to the season sweep. The Aggies ended Auburn’s home win streak earlier in the season, and the Tigers’ payback attempt failed partly because Auburn went 8-13 in the second half on free throws against 24-27 from the Aggies.

Pearl’s squad shot 9-14 from the free throw line in the game. Texas A&M was 31-39. Pearl had a brief reply when asked how does a team overcome a 22-point deficit at the charity stripe.

“You really can’t,” Pearl said to reporters via Zoom. “You got to do a better job defending and not fouling — but it’s hard to overcome.”

Foul trouble was an issue for Auburn as Broome fouled out. Not having the third-leading shot blocker in the conference for long stretches led to several open looks inside the paint for the Aggies.

“You score 78 on the road against a really good defensive team; it should be enough to win,” Pearl said. “Our second-half defense let us down. We fouled them too much. And it didn’t matter whether we were playing man or playing zone; we couldn’t keep them off the foul line.”

Auburn returns to Neville Arena with a 17-4 record and are 7-4 in SEC action. The Tigers’ next game will be on Saturday against Alabama at home.

Nubyjas Wilborn covers Auburn for Alabama Media Group.