attacking duo Suarez and Neymar stepped up and delivered once ag

AUBURN, Ala. -- Mustapha Heron had his first career double-double -- 24 points and 10 rebounds -- Danjel Purifoy scored 16 points, and Auburn beat Eastern Kentucky 85-64 Thursday night in a Cancun Challenge game.Heron shouldered the load, but Auburn needed a team effort to keep its season-opening win streak alive.The Tigers led 10-2 but went cold while Eastern Kentucky (1-2) rallied and stayed ahead until two and a half minutes left in the first half. Purifoy hit a 3-pointer amid a 9-2 run and Auburn led 37-34 at halftime.The Colonels (1-2) closed to within 38-39 early in the second half on Jaylen Babb-Harrisons layup. Auburn pulled away on a 15-2 run and led 65-50 after a free throw by Heron and Eastern Kentucky got no closer.Auburns 34.5 shooting percentage in the first period became a scorching 56.7 percent in the second half as the Tigers broke the game open.Theyre a good team, and you cant give a team like that second- and third-chance opportunities, and thats what we did, Eastern Kentucky coach Dan McHale said. We allowed them to impose their will, and they made us pay.The Tigers (3-0) were by propelled by Heron, a freshman, who connected on all eight of his field goal attempts, but only made seven of his 13 free throws.Auburn outrebounded the Colonels 51-30, but made 25 of 41 free throws (61 percent), which helped Eastern Kentucky stay close for most of the game.I thought that we were obviously, our physicality -- the difference between the OVC and the SEC showed up on the boards, Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. And obviously we took advantage of some things. I dont think that our offensive execution is not what it needs to be. Were going to spend some time doing a better job with that.Nick Mayo led the Colonels with 22 points and five rebounds, and Dillon Avare added 14 points.THE TAKEAWAYAuburn: The Tigers finish their opening homestand 3-0 and head to Cancun, Mexico, on a roll.Eastern Kentucky: The Colonels drop the first of two games against Power 5 opponents and fall below .500 on the season.HE SAID ITInteresting. Weve struggled from the free throw line and we were shooting great in the preseason and we actually shot more free throws this week than we have in a while. I think Im not going to shoot any more free throws and just let them do it on their own because that could have been an issue in the outcome. -- Auburn coach Bruce PearlMAJOR MILESTONEAuburn guard Ronnie Johnson finished with 13 points, but it was a seemingly meaningless layup midway through the second half that mattered the most. With those two points, Johnson eclipsed 1,000 total points for his career. Johnson, a graduate transfer, scored 697 points in his first two years at Purdue and had 291 at Houston last year.STARTING HOTWith the win, Auburn moves to 3-0 for the first time since 2011-12. Its the second time in 12 years thats happened on The Plains.UP NEXTAuburn travels to Cancun to play Texas Tech on Tuesday for the Tigers first away game, and theyll look to keep Bruce Pearls best start at Auburn going.Eastern Kentucky also plays the Red Raiders in Cancun, but the Colonels take on Texas Tech on Saturday. <a href="https://www.cheapastros.com/2903o-jimmy-wynn-jersey-astros.html">Jimmy Wynn Jersey</a>. LOUIS -- Rookie Tavon Austin has missed another day of practice, lessening the odds hell be ready for the St. <a href="https://www.cheapastros.com/">Astros Jerseys 2020</a>. 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And although English league clubs are unlikely to splash cash in January, Arsenal and Chelsea could be tempted to strengthen their squads with new strikers.Barcelona hammered Real Madrid 4-0 at the Bernabeu in November with a performance which boss Luis Enrique said would go down in history. A double from Luis Suarez and further goals from Neymar and Andres Iniesta humiliated the hosts and moved Barca six points clear at the top of La Liga. They did it without Lionel Messi for much of the game too, with the Argentina ace only making his return from injury 57 minutes in.A rash challenge from Isco, which saw him sent off, capped a miserable night for the hosts and the Madrid fans jeered Real boss Rafa Benitez before the full-time whistle was even blown. But how did Barca pull off the victory? And what went so wrong for Real Madrid?Here, ahead of Saturdays El Clasico, we look back at the first meeting between the sides this season and pick out the key factors in Barcelonas remarkable win… Watch highlights of Barcelonas 4-0 win over Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu Team selectionAhead of the match there was intense speculation on whether Messi would return from a knee problem to take on Real Madrid and his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo. Ultimately, Messi started on the bench and Sergi Roberto was given a chance to impress. But it was the team selection of hosts Real Madrid which proved to be more decisive.Benitez opted to drop defensive midfielder Casemiro to make way for James Rodriguez. It left Real unbalanced and unable to boss the midfield battle. Jamie Carragher was unimpressed with the selection and suggested it was an uncharacteristic move from Benitez. Jamie Carragher picks apart what went wrong for Real Madrid in their 4-0 defeat to Barcelona Thats not a team Rafa would pick, Carragher said when analysing the game on Monday Night Football. Either the people above him have got involved or maybe hes bowed to media pressure or the players, I just dont know.You look at the team and hes not gone in with a holding midfield player - Rafa would normally play two. His best player this season has been Casemiro and hes left him out. I dont know if theres something where hes maybe getting pressure from the owner - weve bought these big stars and they need to play - and hes said ok lets play them against Barcelona, thats what happens. You see the results.Attitude from Reals players Gareth Bale tries to chase down Lionel Messi While the balance of the Real team may not have been right, what cant be denied is they fielded and XI bursting with quality. The problem was their application. There was a clear split in the Real Madrid team between attack and defence, with the hosts seemingly playing a 4-2-4 for much of the game. Luka Modric and Toni Kroos were left exposed in midfield and Barcelona were able to capitalise.They looked like the team had broken in two, Carragher said. There was a big gap between attack and defence and it was a bit like watching a Sunday league game. People just waiting up front. Were talking about world class stars. There was no intensity.Your nightmare as a player, as a midfield two, is playing against Barcelona and your front four arent willing to help you out. What can be worse than that? This type of game is not about the tactics. At one point you need to bring the desire and the right commitment on the field and the right intensity. It wasnt there at all [from Real Madrid]. Thierry Henry Thierry Henry was equally unimpressed with the attitude from Reals players and said that their failure to apply themselves appropriately left Benitez no way to influence the encounter.This type of game is not about the tactics, the former Barcelona forward told Sky Sports. At one point you need to bring the desire and the right commitment on the field and the right intensity. It wasnt there at all [from Real Madrid]. You cant play a Clasico like that.People are going to talk about Benitez and the tactics but the tactics come along when both teams desire and commitment is there and the game is tight. Then the boss will have to trigger one, two or three things to see whos going to be the best boss. But if your team goes out there without the right desire or commitment it becomes really difficult for the coach.Im not trying to find any excuses for Benitez but first and foremost you need to bring the desire on the field. You saw a team on one side and on the other side you see a group of players playing for themselves and not being a team at the moment. It was a collective thing. At the end of the day hes [Benitez] going to maybe take the blame. They ultimately failed as a team today. They didnt play well. Terry Gibson analyses Real Madrids tactical errors in El Clasico Barcelonas brillianceWhile much of the post-game reaction focused on Real Madrids shortcomings and the impact the result would have on Benitezs future, Barcelonas exceptional performance should not be overlooked.dddddddddddduarez was clinical in attack, converting two of his four shots, while Neymar conjured up twice as many key passes as any other player on the pitch. Ivan Rakitic didnt misplace a single pass in Reals half, Sergio Busquets racked up more tackles than anyone else and Gerard Pique was imperious at the back. All in all, it was a superb team performance from the visitors. Luis Suarez hit a brace against Real Madrid I dont think Real Madrid gave up, I just think we were a level above them, was Barca boss Enriques clinical assessment of the contest. We outnumbered them in many areas of the game and we were very effective. The game is more of a reflection of our merits than Madrids faults.This victory tastes glorious because it is against our eternal rivals and, as well as the victory, it will be very difficult for us to better this performance. This game will go down in history; it will be remembered by all Barcelona fans. This squad won the treble last year and it is one of the best squads you could hope for. Terry Gibson reviews Barcelonas tactics in their 4-0 win over Real Madrid Barcelonas commitment For all of Barcelonas eye-catching play, Henry was also keen to highlight their remarkable work rate when they didnt have the ball.Real Madrid recorded a far worse passing accuracy to their rivals (82.6 v 90.2 per cent) and managed just 41.4 per cent of possession. The Catalans intense pressing gave Benitezs men no time on the ball. Guillem Balague and Graham Hunter review Barcelonas win over rivals Real Madrid People always talk about when Barcelona have the ball and how they pass the ball well but they put pressure on, the back line is backing up the midfielders and striker to put pressure on, said Henry.The distances are right between the players. They never give up, they help each other. You even saw Busquets in the 91st minute making a foul. It could have been 4-1 but no, 4-0. The discipline and intensity is key for that team.When you see the likes of Suarez working hard, Neymar working hard, Andres Iniesta working hard, it speaks volumes to the other guys to be better. We dont emphasise enough how Barca is good in those type of situations. Neymar got on the scoresheet at the Bernabeu Contrasting performances from star performers Barcelonas brilliance is built on more than just one man and in the previous nine games, with injured Messi absent, Enriques side had won seven. At the Bernabeu, with the Argentine benched, attacking duo Suarez and Neymar stepped up and delivered once again.The pair scored 18 goals during Messis absence and, with him watching from the dugout, added three more to their tally against Real. Suarezs opener after 11 minutes concluded a brilliant 24-pass team move.For Real, Ronaldo could easily have made his way onto the scoresheet had it not been for two brilliant stops from Claudio Bravo - but the hosts key man was unable to influence proceedings as he would have liked. Ronaldo only managed two shots at goal in the entire game and produced just one pass leading to a shooting opportunity. The defeat heaped pressure on then Real boss Rafa Benitez While he struggled, Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and James Rodriguez failed to make their mark, too. The trio only managed to work Bravo four times between them.The performance of the latter three players raises questions about whether they were physically ready for the intensity of a Clasico, given they had all been sidelined with injury in the weeks leading up to the game. Since the start of October Real Madrid played seven games but of the 1890 minutes the trio could have racked up, they had managed just 309.Gareth Bale was the only one to have played a full 90 minutes in that time. He did it just once, in Reals 3-2 defeat to Sevilla in the previous game. In short, most of Reals key attackers were undercooked. Also See: Barca pay tribute to Cruyff Messis 117-game shooting streak ends <a href="http://www.chinawholesalejerseysnfl.com/">Wholesale Jerseys</a> ' ' '