AUBURN – The Jacksonville State men's basketball team got off to a slow start and never recovered on Tuesday night, when Auburn opened up an early lead and closed with a 78-54 win at Auburn Arena.

The Gamecocks (0-5) shot just 35 percent from the floor, while the Tigers (2-1) overcame a low percentage early to shoot 45 percent and grab the 13th win in as many meetings in the all-time series.

JSU got a double-double from junior D.J. Felder, whose first of his career came in the form of 16 points and 12 rebounds, both career highs. The Topeka, Kan., native was the only Gamecock to score in double figures and had over a third of his team's 33 rebounds in the game.

Freshman Undra Mitchem played 17 quality minutes off of the bench for JSU, scoring six points on a couple of 3-pointers. Juniors Darion Rackley and Grant White each scored seven for the Gamecocks.

Auburn got 15 points from Chris Denson, 14 from KT Harrell and 10 from Malcolm Canada in the win, while Asauhn Dixon-Tatum scored nine and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds to lead the Tigers to a 47-33 advantage on the glass.

The Gamecocks struggled to find the basket early in the game, while Auburn found its rhythm to open an early 15-point advantage. Eight JSU turnovers and a .296 shooting percentage helped the Tigers take a 33-19 lead into the locker room.

Felder scored seven and led all players with eight boards in the first 20 minutes.

The Gamecocks pulled to within 10 with a small run to start the second half, but the Tigers had another answer, this time with a Jordan Granger tip in that was followed by a KT Harrell three that stretch the Auburn lead back to 40-25.

They then pulled ahead to start a 12-0 run that put the game out of reach for the Gamecocks.

JSU will return home for a Friday matinee against Dalton State in Pete Mathews Coliseum. The game will tip at 1 p.m. CT and will be on the JSU Radio Network. It will be Kitty Stone Elementary Day at The Pete, and, as always, everyone ages 18 and under gets in free.