The GW men’s basketball team’s 74-70 loss to Auburn University in the BB&T Classic Sunday could be summed up in the game’s final three seconds. Down four points, the Tigers’ DeWayne Reed stripped senior Maureece Rice of the ball, effectively ending the chance of any last-second heroics at Verizon Center.

The game, the Colonials’ third consecutive loss, was defined by GW’s 21 turnovers and Auburn’s unheard of 17 steals. It was GW’s first BB&T loss in four years.

The loss also is the first time the Colonials dipped below .500 since Jan. 11, 2003.

“The mere fact that we kept turning the ball over didn’t allow us a chance to win the game,” head coach Karl Hobbs said. “Whenever we built up momentum, we would turn the ball over. That was the most frustrating (part of the game).”

Both squads play an up-tempo, high-energy game, so more turnovers are to be expected with the quicker pace. But the Colonials (2-3) have made a trend of turning the ball over this season – averaging 18 turnovers per game – and against Auburn (4-1) it was no different. Whatever rhythm GW may have gathered throughout the game was quickly interrupted by an Auburn steal.

The entire game’s story, in fact, could also be told off the statistics sheet. The Tigers shot 55 percent from the floor. They were ineffective from beyond the arc but deadly in the paint. The Colonials, meanwhile, made 11 three-pointers but missed countless layups.

All 74 of the Tigers’ points were scored by their five starters, including 24 from guard Frank Tolbert and 21 from forward Korvotney Barber. Barber played 40 minutes, as did Reed, who had 10 points and eight steals. Guard Quantez Robertson also played the entire game. A total of eight Auburn players saw court time.

Hobbs said he thinks having fewer active players is an advantage because it allows them to learn a style together. With the Tigers’ relatively small size, they were forced to move the ball effectively in order to open up easy scoring opportunities.

Earlier in the week, Auburn head coach Jeff Lego said he did not know how his team would guard 6-foot-8 junior forward Rob Diggs. Barber, at 6-foot-7, is the Tigers’ tallest player and Tolbert said after the game that his team does not have a legitimate low-post game because of injuries. Diggs finished the game with 15 points but only had five points in the second half. Lebo said he thought his team did a good time neutralizing him late in the game.

Junior Wynton Witherspoon scored 17 points but Rice continued to struggle, scoring just 11 points.

The Colonials return to Smith Center to host the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore Dec. 5 at 7 p.m.