BCU

AUBURN

No. 20 Auburn escapes in overtime against Bethune-Cookman in Steven Pearl's coaching debut

AP
Nov 03, 2025

Auburn Tigers, Ala. (AP) Keyshawn Hall scored seven of his 28 points in overtime to lead No. 20 Auburn to a 95-90 victory against Bethune-Cookman Wildcats in Steven Pearl's coaching debut Monday night.

The Tigers led 81-78 in regulation when Elyjah Freeman fouled Arterio Morris on a half-court heave just before the buzzer. Morris knocked down all three free throws to send the game into overtime. Hall took over from there.

KeShawn Murphy added 17 points, eight rebounds and four assists for the Tigers. The 6-foot-10 transfer from Mississippi State has been dealing with a knee injury but gave Auburn some much-needed size against the Wildcats.

Auburn has now won 61 consecutive games against non-conference opponents.

Quentin Heady led Bethune-Cookman with 21 points. He also had three rebounds and three assists. Morris finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Morris spent last season at South Plains College. He also had stints at Kansas and Texas.

Bethune-Cookman dropped to 0-29 all time against ranked teams.

It was a back-and-forth first half in which no team led by more than five. The Tigers found a lot of opportunities from the free-throw line in the first half but failed to capitalize.

The game featured 31 lead changes and a disparity at the free-throw line. Auburn made 27 of 38 from the charity stripe; Bethune-Cookman was 8 of 9.

Pearl replaced his retiring father, Bruce, in late September. The elder Pearl spent 11 seasons on the Plains and led the Tigers to the No. 1 overall seed in last seasons’ NCAA Tournament and a Final Four appearance. However, his son's debut came with a scare.

Bethune-Cookman plays at Miami on Thursday.

Auburn hosts Merrimack on Thursday.

---

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

1st Half
COOK
Wildcats
37
AUB
Tigers
38

Time		Play	Score
20:00		Daniel Rouzan vs. Filip JoviÄ (Wildcats gains possession)
19:41	+2	Daniel Rouzan makes two point jump shot (Quentin Heady assists)	2-0
19:11		Tahaad Pettiford turnover (traveling)
18:56		Keyshawn Hall personal foul
18:52	+2	Daniel Rouzan makes two point layup	4-0
18:44		Keyshawn Hall misses three point jump shot
18:42		Kevin Overton offensive rebound
18:35	+2	Keyshawn Hall makes two point layup (Kevin Overton assists)	4-2
17:53	+2	Daniel Rouzan makes two point layup	6-2
17:45	+3	Tahaad Pettiford makes three point jump shot	6-5
17:18		Daniel Rouzan misses three point jump shot
17:16		Elyjah Freeman defensive rebound
17:12		Tahaad Pettiford misses three point jump shot
17:10		Daniel Rouzan defensive rebound
17:00		Daniel Rouzan turnover (lost ball)
16:33	+2	Kevin Overton makes two point layup	6-7
16:19		Jordan Johnson misses three point jump shot
16:17		Tigers defensive rebound
16:16		Tahaad Pettiford misses three point jump shot
16:14		Tigers offensive rebound
16:14		Jakobi Heady personal foul
15:59		TV timeout
15:59	+2	Sebastian Williams-Adams makes two point jump shot (Keyshawn Hall assists)	6-9
15:38	+3	Seneca Willoughby makes three point jump shot (Jakobi Heady assists)	9-9
15:28	+2	KeShawn Murphy makes two point layup	9-11
15:04		Seneca Willoughby misses three point jump shot
15:02		KeShawn Murphy defensive rebound
14:42		Daniel Rouzan blocks Sebastian Williams-Adams's two point layup
14:40		Wildcats defensive rebound
14:38	+2	Jakobi Heady makes two point layup	11-11
14:21		Seneca Willoughby blocks Abdul Bashir's three point jump shot
14:19		Daniel Rouzan defensive rebound
14:12	+2	Quentin Heady makes two point layup (Daniel Rouzan assists)	13-11
14:00	+2	KeShawn Murphy makes two point jump shot (Tahaad Pettiford assists)	13-13
14:00		Daniel Rouzan shooting foul (KeShawn Murphy draws the foul)
14:00		KeShawn Murphy misses regular free throw 1 of 1
14:00		Jakobi Heady defensive rebound
13:41		Rickey Mitchell Jr. misses three point jump shot
13:39		KeShawn Murphy defensive rebound
13:32		Abdul Bashir turnover (lost ball) (Rickey Mitchell Jr. steals)
13:27		Jakobi Heady misses two point layup
13:25		Sebastian Williams-Adams defensive rebound
13:16		Daniel Rouzan blocks Tahaad Pettiford's two point layup
13:14		Tigers offensive rebound
12:59		Filip JoviÄ misses two point layup
12:57		Jakobi Heady defensive rebound
12:36		Quentin Heady misses two point layup
12:34		Tigers defensive rebound
11:54		TV timeout
11:42		Elyjah Freeman misses three point jump shot
11:40		Tigers offensive rebound
11:40		Elyjah Freeman turnover
11:40	+3	Quentin Heady makes three point jump shot	16-13
11:39		Elyjah Freeman misses two point jump shot
11:39		Rickey Mitchell Jr. defensive rebound
11:39		Rickey Mitchell Jr. misses two point jump shot
11:38		Elyjah Freeman defensive rebound
11:38		Ariel Bland shooting foul (Elyjah Freeman draws the foul)
11:38		Elyjah Freeman misses regular free throw 1 of 2
11:38	+1	Elyjah Freeman makes regular free throw 2 of 2	16-14
11:22		Jordan Johnson turnover (lost ball) (Elyjah Freeman steals)
10:03		Rickey Mitchell Jr. shooting foul (Elyjah Freeman draws the foul)
10:03	+1	Elyjah Freeman makes regular free throw 1 of 2	16-15
10:03		Reggie Theus technical foul
10:03	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes technical free throw 1 of 1	16-16
10:03	+1	Elyjah Freeman makes regular free throw 2 of 2	16-17
9:38	+2	Ariel Bland makes two point layup (Arterio Morris assists)	18-17
9:17		Filip JoviÄ turnover (lost ball) (Quentin Heady steals)
9:11		Quentin Heady misses two point layup
9:09		Elyjah Freeman defensive rebound
9:04		Kevin Overton misses three point jump shot
9:02		Arterio Morris defensive rebound
8:49		Arterio Morris turnover (lost ball)
8:42		Kevin Overton misses two point layup
8:40		Arterio Morris defensive rebound
8:33		Ariel Bland misses two point layup
8:31		Keyshawn Hall defensive rebound
8:31	+2	Kevin Overton makes two point layup	18-19
8:31		Jordan Johnson shooting foul (Kevin Overton draws the foul)
8:31	+1	Kevin Overton makes regular free throw 1 of 1	18-20
8:14		Daniel Rouzan misses two point jump shot
8:12		Elyjah Freeman defensive rebound
8:06	+2	Elyjah Freeman makes two point layup	18-22
8:02		Wildcats 30 second timeout
8:02		TV timeout
7:53		Rickey Mitchell Jr. misses three point jump shot
7:51		Keyshawn Hall defensive rebound
7:43		Daniel Rouzan shooting foul (Keyshawn Hall draws the foul)
7:43	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 1 of 2	18-23
7:43		Keyshawn Hall misses regular free throw 2 of 2
7:43		Daniel Rouzan defensive rebound
7:40		Abdul Bashir personal foul
7:18		Quentin Heady misses two point layup
7:16		KeShawn Murphy defensive rebound
7:10		Abdul Bashir misses three point jump shot
7:08		Arterio Morris defensive rebound
6:59	+2	Arterio Morris makes two point layup	20-23
6:42		Keyshawn Hall misses two point layup
6:40		KeShawn Murphy offensive rebound
6:39	+2	KeShawn Murphy makes two point layup	20-25
6:10	+3	Seneca Willoughby makes three point jump shot (Quentin Heady assists)	23-25
5:37	+3	Sebastian Williams-Adams makes three point jump shot (Tahaad Pettiford assists)	23-28
5:12	+3	Seneca Willoughby makes three point jump shot (Ariel Bland assists)	26-28
4:41		Seneca Willoughby shooting foul (Sebastian Williams-Adams draws the foul)
4:41		Sebastian Williams-Adams misses regular free throw 1 of 3
4:41	+1	Sebastian Williams-Adams makes regular free throw 2 of 3	26-29
4:41		Sebastian Williams-Adams misses regular free throw 3 of 3
4:41		Keyshawn Hall offensive rebound
4:41		Keyshawn Hall turnover (bad pass) (Arterio Morris steals)
4:38	+2	Arterio Morris makes two point dunk	28-29
4:21	+3	Tahaad Pettiford makes three point jump shot	28-32
3:48		Wildcats 30 second timeout
3:48		TV timeout
3:45		Filip JoviÄ personal foul
3:41	+2	Quentin Heady makes two point layup	30-32
3:25		Keyshawn Hall misses three point jump shot
3:23		Wildcats defensive rebound
3:00		Jakobi Heady misses two point jump shot
2:58		Kevin Overton defensive rebound
2:58		Seneca Willoughby shooting foul (Tahaad Pettiford draws the foul)
2:58		Tahaad Pettiford misses regular free throw 1 of 2
2:58		Tahaad Pettiford misses regular free throw 2 of 2
2:58		Sebastian Williams-Adams offensive rebound
2:52	+2	Sebastian Williams-Adams makes two point layup	30-34
2:37		Quentin Heady misses two point jump shot
2:35		Keyshawn Hall defensive rebound
2:31		Keyshawn Hall turnover (bad pass) (Arterio Morris steals)
2:26	+2	Arterio Morris makes two point layup	32-34
2:13		Tahaad Pettiford misses three point jump shot
2:11		Arterio Morris defensive rebound
2:06	+3	Jordan Johnson makes three point jump shot (Arterio Morris assists)	35-34
1:49		Tigers 30 second timeout
1:41	+2	KeShawn Murphy makes two point jump shot (Sebastian Williams-Adams assists)	35-36
1:17		Quentin Heady misses three point jump shot
1:15		Ariel Bland offensive rebound
1:08		Jordan Johnson turnover (lost ball)
0:53		Sebastian Williams-Adams misses two point layup
0:51		Arterio Morris defensive rebound
0:45		KeShawn Murphy shooting foul (Quentin Heady draws the foul)
0:45	+1	Quentin Heady makes regular free throw 1 of 2	36-36
0:45	+1	Quentin Heady makes regular free throw 2 of 2	37-36
0:37	+2	Tahaad Pettiford makes two point layup	37-38
0:02		Wildcats turnover (shot clock violation)
0:01		Arterio Morris shooting foul (Sebastian Williams-Adams draws the foul)
0:01		Sebastian Williams-Adams misses regular free throw 1 of 2
0:01		Sebastian Williams-Adams misses regular free throw 2 of 2
0:01		Arterio Morris defensive rebound
0:00		End of period

2nd Half
COOK
Wildcats
44
AUB
Tigers
43

Time		Play	Score
19:44	+2	KeShawn Murphy makes two point jump shot	37-40
19:21		Quentin Heady turnover (bad pass) (KeShawn Murphy steals)
19:15	+2	Kevin Overton makes two point layup (KeShawn Murphy assists)	37-42
18:54	+2	Quentin Heady makes two point layup (Daniel Rouzan assists)	39-42
18:30		KeShawn Murphy misses two point jump shot
18:28		Quentin Heady defensive rebound
18:13	+2	Arterio Morris makes two point layup (Seneca Willoughby assists)	41-42
17:48		Arterio Morris shooting foul (Keyshawn Hall draws the foul)
17:48	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 1 of 2	41-43
17:48		Keyshawn Hall misses regular free throw 2 of 2
17:48		Daniel Rouzan defensive rebound
17:29	+3	Arterio Morris makes three point jump shot (Seneca Willoughby assists)	44-43
17:20		Elyjah Freeman misses three point jump shot
17:18		KeShawn Murphy offensive rebound
17:15		Tahaad Pettiford misses three point jump shot
17:13		KeShawn Murphy offensive rebound
17:10	+2	KeShawn Murphy makes two point layup	44-45
16:54		Arterio Morris misses two point jump shot
16:52		Quentin Heady offensive rebound
16:48		KeShawn Murphy blocks Daniel Rouzan's two point layup
16:46		Jakobi Heady offensive rebound
16:41		Jakobi Heady misses two point jump shot
16:39		Daniel Rouzan offensive rebound
16:35	+2	Daniel Rouzan makes two point layup	46-45
16:27	+2	Keyshawn Hall makes two point layup (Tahaad Pettiford assists)	46-47
16:00	+2	Quentin Heady makes two point jump shot (Seneca Willoughby assists)	48-47
15:40	+3	Keyshawn Hall makes three point jump shot (KeShawn Murphy assists)	48-50
15:16		Quentin Heady misses two point layup
15:14		Elyjah Freeman defensive rebound
15:09		Jakobi Heady personal foul
15:09		TV timeout
15:02		Ariel Bland blocks Keyshawn Hall's two point layup
15:00		Jakobi Heady defensive rebound
14:44		Jakobi Heady turnover (lost ball) (Kevin Overton steals)
14:28		Kevin Overton misses three point jump shot
14:26		Wildcats defensive rebound
14:20	+2	Quentin Heady makes two point layup	50-50
14:12		Filip JoviÄ misses three point jump shot
14:10		Seneca Willoughby defensive rebound
13:45	+2	Ariel Bland makes two point layup (Quentin Heady assists)	52-50
13:15		Ariel Bland shooting foul (Keyshawn Hall draws the foul)
13:15	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 1 of 2	52-51
13:15	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 2 of 2	52-52
12:57		Seneca Willoughby misses two point layup
12:55		Filip JoviÄ defensive rebound
12:46	+2	Filip JoviÄ makes two point layup (Sebastian Williams-Adams assists)	52-54
12:26		Jordan Johnson misses three point jump shot
12:24		Wildcats offensive rebound
12:24		Tahaad Pettiford personal foul
12:24		Ariel Bland turnover (bad pass) (Sebastian Williams-Adams steals)
12:10		Ariel Bland blocks Sebastian Williams-Adams's two point layup
12:08		Tigers offensive rebound
12:04	+2	KeShawn Murphy makes two point layup (Tahaad Pettiford assists)	52-56
11:45		Arterio Morris misses two point jump shot
11:43		KeShawn Murphy defensive rebound
11:38	+2	Elyjah Freeman makes two point dunk (KeShawn Murphy assists)	52-58
11:08	+2	Quentin Heady makes two point layup	54-58
11:02		Jordan Johnson personal foul
11:02		TV timeout
10:55		Tahaad Pettiford turnover (bad pass)
10:52		Sebastian Williams-Adams personal foul
10:49	+3	Jakobi Heady makes three point jump shot	57-58
10:32		Elyjah Freeman turnover (lost ball) (Jakobi Heady steals)
10:24		Jakobi Heady misses two point layup
10:22		Sebastian Williams-Adams defensive rebound
10:16		Quentin Heady blocks Tahaad Pettiford's two point layup
10:14		Tigers offensive rebound
9:50		Tahaad Pettiford misses three point jump shot
9:48		Jordan Johnson defensive rebound
9:30		Arterio Morris misses two point jump shot
9:28		KeShawn Murphy defensive rebound
9:23		Arterio Morris blocks Kevin Overton's two point layup
9:21		Tigers offensive rebound
9:13		Filip JoviÄ misses two point layup
9:11		Daniel Rouzan defensive rebound
9:08	+2	Daniel Rouzan makes two point dunk (Ariel Bland assists)	59-58
8:54		Kevin Overton misses three point jump shot
8:52		Arterio Morris defensive rebound
8:25		Arterio Morris misses two point jump shot
8:23		Sebastian Williams-Adams defensive rebound
8:20		Daniel Rouzan blocks Kevin Overton's two point layup
8:18		Sebastian Williams-Adams offensive rebound
8:16	+2	Sebastian Williams-Adams makes two point layup	59-60
8:16		Jordan Johnson shooting foul (Sebastian Williams-Adams draws the foul)
8:16	+1	Sebastian Williams-Adams makes regular free throw 1 of 1	59-61
7:59	+3	Jakobi Heady makes three point jump shot	62-61
7:59		Kaden Magwood turnover (lost ball) (Arterio Morris steals)
7:37		Kaden Magwood shooting foul (Jakobi Heady draws the foul)
7:37		TV timeout
7:37		Jakobi Heady misses regular free throw 1 of 2
7:37	+1	Jakobi Heady makes regular free throw 2 of 2	63-61
7:21		Jordan Johnson shooting foul (Keyshawn Hall draws the foul)
7:21	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 1 of 2	63-62
7:21	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 2 of 2	63-63
7:04	+2	Daniel Rouzan makes two point layup (Rickey Mitchell Jr. assists)	65-63
6:39	+3	Keyshawn Hall makes three point jump shot (KeShawn Murphy assists)	65-66
6:15	+3	Arterio Morris makes three point jump shot	68-66
5:54	+3	KeShawn Murphy makes three point jump shot (Sebastian Williams-Adams assists)	68-69
5:29		Arterio Morris misses three point jump shot
5:27		Abdul Bashir defensive rebound
5:15		Ariel Bland personal foul (Keyshawn Hall draws the foul)
5:15	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 1 of 2	68-70
5:15	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 2 of 2	68-71
5:01		Arterio Morris misses two point layup
4:59		Elyjah Freeman defensive rebound
4:57		Rickey Mitchell Jr. personal foul (Elyjah Freeman draws the foul)
4:57		Elyjah Freeman misses regular free throw 1 of 1
4:57		Rickey Mitchell Jr. defensive rebound
4:29		Filip JoviÄ personal foul
4:27		Filip JoviÄ personal foul
4:20	+2	Quentin Heady makes two point layup (Daniel Rouzan assists)	70-71
4:08		Keyshawn Hall misses two point jump shot
4:06		Rickey Mitchell Jr. defensive rebound
3:49	+2	Daniel Rouzan makes two point jump shot	72-71
3:33		Tahaad Pettiford misses three point jump shot
3:31		Tigers offensive rebound
3:29		TV timeout
3:22		Ariel Bland shooting foul (Sebastian Williams-Adams draws the foul)
3:22	+1	Sebastian Williams-Adams makes regular free throw 1 of 2	72-72
3:22	+1	Sebastian Williams-Adams makes regular free throw 2 of 2	72-73
3:06		Sebastian Williams-Adams blocks Daniel Rouzan's two point jump shot
3:04		Sebastian Williams-Adams defensive rebound
2:44		Keyshawn Hall turnover (lost ball) (Daniel Rouzan steals)
2:19		Arterio Morris misses two point jump shot
2:17		Arterio Morris offensive rebound
2:17		Arterio Morris misses two point layup
2:15		Arterio Morris offensive rebound
2:10		Sebastian Williams-Adams shooting foul (Arterio Morris draws the foul)
2:10		Wildcats 30 second timeout
2:10		TV timeout
2:10		Tigers 30 second timeout
2:05	+3	Seneca Willoughby makes three point jump shot (Ariel Bland assists)	75-73
1:54		Elyjah Freeman misses two point layup
1:52		Seneca Willoughby defensive rebound
1:35		Kevin Overton blocks Ariel Bland's two point layup
1:33		Tahaad Pettiford defensive rebound
1:22	+2	Sebastian Williams-Adams makes two point layup (Tahaad Pettiford assists)	75-75
0:51		Daniel Rouzan turnover (bad pass) (Kevin Overton steals)
0:33	+2	Kevin Overton makes two point jump shot	75-77
0:23		Wildcats 60 second timeout
0:20		Daniel Rouzan turnover (bad pass) (Kevin Overton steals)
0:13		Seneca Willoughby personal foul (Kevin Overton draws the foul)
0:13	+1	Kevin Overton makes regular free throw 1 of 2	75-78
0:13	+1	Kevin Overton makes regular free throw 2 of 2	75-79
0:05	+3	Arterio Morris makes three point jump shot	78-79
0:03		Seneca Willoughby personal foul (Keyshawn Hall draws the foul)
0:03	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 1 of 2	78-80
0:03	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 2 of 2	78-81
0:01		Elyjah Freeman shooting foul (Arterio Morris draws the foul)
0:01	+1	Arterio Morris makes regular free throw 1 of 3	79-81
0:01		Tigers 30 second timeout
0:01	+1	Arterio Morris makes regular free throw 2 of 3	80-81
0:01	+1	Arterio Morris makes regular free throw 3 of 3	81-81
0:00		End of period

OT
COOK
Wildcats
9
AUB
Tigers
14

Time		Play	Score
5:00		Daniel Rouzan vs. Sebastian Williams-Adams (Tigers gains possession)
4:47		Tahaad Pettiford misses three point jump shot
4:45		Arterio Morris defensive rebound
4:35		Arterio Morris misses three point jump shot
4:33		Ariel Bland offensive rebound
4:25	+2	Ariel Bland makes two point layup	83-81
4:09	+2	Keyshawn Hall makes two point layup	83-83
4:09		Ariel Bland shooting foul (Keyshawn Hall draws the foul)
4:09	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 1 of 1	83-84
3:46	+2	Daniel Rouzan makes two point layup	85-84
3:27		Quentin Heady shooting foul (Keyshawn Hall draws the foul)
3:27	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 1 of 2	85-85
3:27	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 2 of 2	85-86
3:08		Daniel Rouzan turnover (lost ball) (Kevin Overton steals)
3:04	+2	Kevin Overton makes two point layup	85-88
2:36		Seneca Willoughby turnover (lost ball) (Tahaad Pettiford steals)
2:10		Quentin Heady shooting foul (Keyshawn Hall draws the foul)
2:10	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 1 of 2	85-89
2:10	+1	Keyshawn Hall makes regular free throw 2 of 2	85-90
1:50		Seneca Willoughby turnover (lost ball) (Elyjah Freeman steals)
1:34		Keyshawn Hall misses two point layup
1:32		Quentin Heady defensive rebound
1:22	+3	Jordan Johnson makes three point jump shot (Seneca Willoughby assists)	88-90
1:04	+2	Tahaad Pettiford makes two point jump shot	88-92
1:04		Arterio Morris shooting foul (Tahaad Pettiford draws the foul)
1:04	+1	Tahaad Pettiford makes regular free throw 1 of 1	88-93
0:50		Tahaad Pettiford blocks Jordan Johnson's two point jump shot
0:48		Keyshawn Hall defensive rebound
0:43		Keyshawn Hall turnover (bad pass) (Seneca Willoughby steals)
0:40		Keyshawn Hall shooting foul (Quentin Heady draws the foul)
0:40		Wildcats 60 second timeout
0:40	+1	Quentin Heady makes regular free throw 1 of 2	89-93
0:40	+1	Quentin Heady makes regular free throw 2 of 2	90-93
0:19		Elyjah Freeman misses two point layup
0:17		Elyjah Freeman offensive rebound
0:14	+2	Elyjah Freeman makes two point layup	90-95
0:07		Quentin Heady misses three point jump shot
0:05		Elyjah Freeman defensive rebound
0:00		End of period

Elyjah Freeman defensive rebound