AUBURN — The Tigers spent the past two weeks sparking a renaissance of sorts with aggressive defense and improved play from point guard Varez Ward.

Consider that run finished.

Auburn regressed spectacularly against Alabama on Tuesday night, losing sight of the behaviors that recently made it more successful. Ward finished with just three points while a meltdown late in the first half allowed Alabama to build a double-digit margin it never relinquished.

That’s how Alabama rolled into Auburn Arena and earned a 68-50 win.

“At the end of the day, it came down to toughness. We got out-toughed,” Auburn coach Tony Barbee said. “It was disappointing.”

Auburn (13-11, 3-7) opened the game by hitting five consecutive shots, but things tailed off quickly. The zone defense, which has flummoxed some opponents, clearly lost effectiveness once Alabama began attacking it thoughtfully.

Quick passes along the perimeter allowed the Tide to search for weaknesses. Once exposed, the correct pass

was made and an easy basket followed.

The Tigers’ problems began with four minutes remaining in the first half. Trevor Releford hit a pair of free throws, sparking a run that saw Alabama (16-7, 5-4) score on seven of its final nine possessions of the period.

Auburn’s retort? Three points off eight possessions, which included two offensive fouls, two technical fouls and a bungled lay-up from center Rob Chubb.

Alabama led, 35-24.

“We got some tough calls that went against us,” Ward said. “Things just went downhill from there.”

The Tigers picked up their offensive production to open the second half, but defense remained a problem. Alabama, which came into the game as the Southeastern Conference’s worst three-point shooting team, thrived from the perimeter.

They finished 6-of-14 from three-point range. That’s roughly twice as accurate as usual.

Auburn built a small run that cut Alabama’s lead to 11 points late in the second half. Yet that surge, like everything else the Tigers tried to accomplish offensively, was marginalized by turnovers.

How bad was it? Auburn played an entire game against Mississippi State last weekend and committed a total of three turnovers. That number jumped to 20 Tuesday night.

The worst offender was Ward, who finished with six turnovers in 17 minutes of work.

“It was disappointing how he played,” Barbee said. “We have to get better guard play than that.”

Still, the Tigers insisted that effort was the biggest problem Tuesday night. Alabama, guard Frankie Sullivan said, simply played with more purpose and enthusiasm.

That disgusted Barbee.

“It’s just disappointing how we competed,” he said. “Things got hard, things got tough and we went away. When things get tough, you’ve got to buckle up.”

Auburn resumes play Saturday at Ole Miss.