# 2002–03 Auburn Tigers men's basketball team

The 2002–03 Auburn Tigers men's basketball team represented Auburn University in the 2002–03 college basketball season. The team's head coach was Cliff Ellis, who was in his ninth season at Auburn. The team played their home games at Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum in Auburn, Alabama. They finished the season 22–12, 8–8 in SEC play. They defeated Tennessee to advance to the semifinals of the SEC tournament where they lost to Kentucky. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they defeated Saint Joseph's and Wake Forest to advance to the Sweet Sixteen where they lost to Syracuse.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 31, 2002* 7:00 pm | | Global Sports All-Stars | W 90–70 | | 19 – Davis | 8 – Tied | 6 – Tied | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (3,500) Auburn, AL |
| November 15, 2002* 7:00 pm | | EA Sports All-Stars | W 72–56 | | 16 – Gaines | 8 – Tied | 5 – Monroe | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (4,000) Auburn, AL |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 22, 2002* 7:00 pm | | Wofford | W 81–63 | 1–0 | 15 – Daniels | 10 – Killingsworth | 5 – Daniels | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,000) Auburn, AL |
| November 26, 2002* 7:00 pm, CSS | | Georgia State | W 100–71 | 2–0 | 27 – Daniels | 10 – Daniels | 7 – Daniels | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,000) Auburn, AL |
| December 1, 2002* 2:00 pm | | vs. Western Kentucky | L 70–89 | 2–1 | 21 – Killingsworth | 5 – Tied | 5 – Daniels | Gaylord Entertainment Center (6,589) Nashville, TN |
| December 2, 2002* 7:00 pm | | Southeastern Louisiana | W 77–47 | 3–1 | 22 – Daniels | 12 – Davis | 5 – Bird | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,000) Auburn, AL |
| December 4, 2002* 8:00 pm, CSS | | South Carolina State | W 85–65 | 4–1 | 17 – Killingsworth | 10 – Davis | 7 – Monroe | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,000) Auburn, AL |
| December 8, 2002* 3:00 pm, FSS | | Rutgers | W 82–70 | 5–1 | 23 – Killingsworth | 12 – Daniels | 7 – Daniels | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,000) Auburn, AL |
| December 14, 2002* 3:00 pm | | Murray State | W 72–53 | 6–1 | 24 – Daniels | 11 – Daniels | 4 – Monroe | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,000) Auburn, AL |
| December 17, 2002* 7:00 pm | | Western Michigan | L 54–72 | 6–2 | 18 – Daniels | 12 – Killingsworth | 4 – Daniels | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,000) Auburn, AL |
| December 20, 2002* 4:30 pm | | at Puerto Rico–Mayagüez San Juan Shootout quarterfinal | W 94–64 | 7–2 | 18 – Killingsworth | 9 – Tied | 4 – Monroe | Mario Morales Coliseum (200) Caguas, P.R. |
| December 21, 2002* 4:30 pm | | vs. Denver San Juan Shootout semifinal | W 63–58 | 8–2 | 19 – Watson | 9 – Daniels | 4 – Daniels | Mario Morales Coliseum (200) Caguas, P.R |
| December 22, 2002* 4:30 pm | | vs. Troy State San Juan Shootout championship | W 94–66 | 9–2 | 38 – Daniels | 9 – Tied | 4 – Monroe | Mario Morales Coliseum (300) Caguas, P.R |
| December 30, 2002* 7:00 pm | | Southern Miss | W 92–46 | 10–2 | 21 – Daniels | 8 – Daniels | 6 – Monroe | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,000) Auburn, AL |
| January 2, 2003* 7:00 pm | | North Texas | W 90–65 | 11–2 | 17 – Daniels | 11 – Killingsworth | 8 – Monroe | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,000) Auburn, AL |
| January 8, 2003 7:00 pm | | Vanderbilt | W 62–59 | 12–2 (1–0) | 18 – Killingsworth | 6 – Watson | 3 – Tied | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (7,189) Auburn, AL |
| January 11, 2003 2:00 pm | | at Arkansas | W 52–37 | 13–2 (2–0) | 11 – Bird | 9 – Killingsworth | 2 – Tied | Bud Walton Arena (18,473) Fayetteville, AR |
| January 15, 2003 6:30 pm | | at South Carolina | W 67–60 | 14–2 (3–0) | 31 – Daniels | 7 – Tied | 3 – Tied | Carolina Center (13,962) Columbia, SC |
| January 18, 2003 3:00 pm, JP | | No. 9 Alabama Rivalry | W 77–68 | 15–2 (4–0) | 13 – Tied | 6 – Killingsworth | 5 – Tied | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (10,500) Auburn, AL |
| January 22, 2003 6:00 pm, FSS | No. 24 | at No. 8 Kentucky | L 51–67 | 15–3 (4–1) | 19 – Killingsworth | 8 – Daniels | 3 – Monroe | Rupp Arena (21,554) Lexington, KY |
| January 25, 2003 12:00 pm, JP | No. 24 | at No. 19 Georgia | L 79–85 | 15–4 (4–2) | 25 – Robinson | 9 – Robinson | 6 – Monroe | Stegeman Coliseum (10,523) Athens, GA |
| February 1, 2003 3:00 pm | | Tennessee | L 57–60 | 15–5 (4–3) | 15 – Tied | 6 – Daniels | 4 – Watson | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (8,854) Auburn, AL |
| February 5, 2003 7:00 pm | | Ole Miss | W 77–71 | 16–5 (5–3) | 20 – Daniels | 10 – Davis | 4 – Monroe | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,874) Auburn, AL |
| February 8, 2003 3:00 pm | | LSU | W 56–54 | 17–5 (6–3) | 15 – Daniels | 12 – Killingsworth | 4 – Daniels | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (9,149) Auburn, AL |
| February 15, 2003 7:00 pm, PPV | | at Alabama Rivalry | L 68–84 | 17–6 (6–4) | 23 – Daniels | 9 – Killingsworth | 2 – Tied | Coleman Coliseum (15,316) Tuscaloosa, AL |
| February 19, 2003 7:00 pm | | No. 19 Mississippi State | L 46–63 | 17–7 (6–5) | 17 – Daniels | 11 – Davis | 4 – Monroe | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (8,280) Auburn, AL |
| February 22, 2003 4:00 pm, FSS | | at Ole Miss | W 80–75 | 18–7 (7–5) | 29 – Daniels | 6 – Daniels | 4 – Daniels | Tad Smith Coliseum (6,016) Oxford, MS |
| February 26, 2003 7:00 pm | | at LSU | L 63–94 | 18–8 (7–6) | 18 – Gaines | 4 – Tied | 3 – Lollar | Pete Maravich Assembly Center (8,078) Baton Rouge, LA |
| March 1, 2003 1:00 pm, JP | | No. 4 Florida | L 70–73 | 18–9 (7–7) | 21 – Bird | 9 – Davis | 4 – Tied | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (9,334) Auburn, AL |
| March 5, 2003 7:00 pm | | Arkansas | W 69–54 | 19–9 (8–7) | 20 – Bird | 7 – Daniels | 5 – Tied | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum (6,814) Auburn, AL |
| March 8, 2003 1:00 pm, JP | | at No. 23 Mississippi State | L 45–67 | 19–10 (8–8) | 14 – Tied | 9 – Davis | 3 – Watson | Humphrey Coliseum (9,733) Starkville, MS |
| SEC tournament |||||||||
| March 14, 2003 8:45 pm, JP | (W2) | vs. (E3) Tennessee Quarterfinals | W 66–53 | 20–10 | 17 – Killingsworth | 10 – Killingsworth | 4 – Tied | Louisiana Superdome (18,510) New Orleans, LA |
| March 15, 2003 2:25 pm, JP | (W2) | vs. (E1) No. 2 Kentucky Semifinals | L 58–78 | 20–11 | 19 – Robinson | 9 – Robinson | 5 – Daniels | Louisiana Superdome (21,427) New Orleans, LA |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| March 21, 2003* 11:25 am, CBS | (10) | vs. (7) Saint Joseph's First Round | W 65–63 $^{OT}$ | 21–11 | 25 – Daniels | 9 – Davis | 4 – Tied | St. Pete Times Forum Tampa, FL |
| March 23, 2003* 3:30 pm, CBS | (10) | vs. (2) No. 8 Wake Forest Second Round | W 68–62 | 22–11 | 18 – Daniels | 8 – Killingsworth | 3 – Tied | St. Pete Times Forum Tampa, FL |
| March 28, 2003* 8:40 pm, CBS | (10) | vs. (3) No. 13 Syracuse Sweet Sixteen | L 78–79 | 22–12 | 27 – Daniels | 9 – Tied | 5 – Bird | Pepsi Arena (15,093) Albany, NY |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. |||||||||